Zee Entertainment shares settle 15% lower on Wednesday

New Delhi: Shares of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) settled 15 per cent lower on Wednesday amid reports that Sebi has found financial discrepancies in the accounts of the company.

On the BSE, the scrip of the company tumbled 14.77 per cent to close at Rs 164.50 apiece.

ZEEL shares nosedived 14.02 per cent to end at Rs 165.65 apiece on the NSE.

During the day, the stock hit a low of Rs 163.75 and Rs 164.10 -- its lower circuit limit -- apiece on the NSE and the BSE.

In volume terms, 10.68 crore equity shares were traded on the NSE , while 1.46 crore equity shares changed hands on the BSE during the day.

On Wednesday, the 30-share BSE Sensex slumped 434.31 points, or 0.59 per cent, to settle at 72,623.09, while NSE Nifty slipped 141.90 points to close at 22,055.05.

As per the reports, during Sebi's probe into Zee's founders, the regulator discovered that approximately Rs 2,000 crore (equivalent to USD 241 million) may have been diverted from the company.

However, the company spokesperson clarified that the reports related to accounting issues are "incorrect and false".

The report suggested that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has been in conversation with senior Zee officials, including its founders Subhash Chandra and his son Punit Goenka, and some board members to explain their stance.

Further, the report noted that the amount found missing is not final and may change after Sebi reviews the responses from the company executives.

A ZEEL spokesperson said, "The reports and rumours pertaining to accounting issues in the company are incorrect and false." "Pursuant to the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) order, which granted relief to the current Key Managerial Personnel (KMP), the company has been in the process of providing all comments, information or explanation requested by Sebi, and has extended complete co-operation on all aspects," the spokesperson said.

On Tuesday, shares of ZEEL settled 8 per cent higher amid reports that Zee and Sony Pictures Networks (India) are working to salvage their USD 10-billion merger.

ZEEL shares have seen a massive downfall after the collapse of its merger with Sony Group Corp's India unit.