From Chairman’s Desk
CA. Durgesh Kumar Kabra, Chairman, Insolvency, Bankruptcy and Valuation Standards Board, ICAI
Over the course of a decade, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 has grown from a bold legislative experiment into one of the most transformative economic reforms in India’s history. Having now completed ten years of operation, as per the IBBI Quarterly Newsletter for April-June 2026, the Code has, till June 2026, rescued 4,227 corporate debtors of which 1,484 through approved resolution plans, 1,410 through appeal, review or settlement and 1,333 through withdrawal enabling creditors to realise more than 30.52% of admitted claims and over 166.58% of liquidation value, with resolution plans yielding, on average, 94.72% of fair value. Of these, 203 resolution plans relate to large accounts with admitted claims exceeding Rs.1,000 crore, where realisation stood at 172.55% of liquidation value. Separately, over 30,000 cases involving underlying defaults of nearly Rs.14 lakh crore have been resolved even before formal admission, reflecting a fundamental shift in debtor-creditor behaviour and credit discipline across the market.
With each passing year, its provisions have gained greater clarity, its institutional ecosystem has matured and a rich body of jurisprudence has steadily fortified its foundations. The enactment of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 marks a defining new chapter in this remarkable journey, a testament to the legislature’s continued responsiveness to the evolving realities faced by every stakeholder across the resolution spectrum.
This landmark amendment introduces the Creditor-Initiated Insolvency Resolution Process, a progressive debtor-in-possession mechanism designed to deliver a faster, less adversarial route to resolution while safeguarding enterprise value and business continuity. Equally momentous are the long-awaited enabling frameworks for Group Insolvency and Cross-Border Insolvency, which will empower India’s insolvency regime to navigate the complexities of interconnected corporate structures and multi-jurisdictional distress with far greater coherence and confidence. Together with the reinforcement of the clean-slate principle, tightened admission and liquidation timelines, and strengthened accountability mechanisms for insolvency professionals, this amendment directly addresses market realities that practitioners have long flagged chief among them, resolution timelines that continue to average close to two years against the statutory mandate, and the consequent erosion of asset value that delay invariably brings.
On the valuation side, practitioners are increasingly triangulating the income, market including cost approaches with sector-specific benchmarking and are placing growing reliance on discounted cash flow modelling calibrated to distressed-asset risk premia, precedent-transaction multiples drawn from resolution outcomes and where relevant, replacement-cost analysis for asset-heavy sectors. There is also a discernible shift toward greater use of technology enabled and AI-assisted valuation analytics to strengthen objectivity and auditability, alongside growing attention to ESG considerations, intangible-asset valuation, and startup and digital-asset valuation areas where conventional benchmarks are still being refined. Regulators and market participants continue to emphasize as on the need to curb inflated claims and “valuation shopping,” reinforcing why valuation discipline, independence and adherence to the ICAI Valuation Standards remain central to preserving stakeholder confidence and minimising haircuts in distressed situations.
It is against this backdrop of sweeping legislative advancement and evolving market practice that the Insolvency, Bankruptcy and Valuation Standards Board of ICAI is privileged to present “RESOLVE-2026,” the 4th Edition of the International Convention on Insolvency Resolution and Valuation, to be held on 8th-9th January 2027 at Mumbai. Building on the resounding success of our editions in Singapore, New Delhi and Mumbai, this year’s convention arrives at a truly pivotal moment, where regulators, practitioners and industry come together to interpret, operationalize and refine the newly enacted provisions and to benchmark emerging market practices against global standards that will shape the next decade of insolvency and valuation practice in India.
I am confident that RESOLVE-2026 will once again prove to be a meeting opportunity uniting regulators, jurists, insolvency professionals, registered valuers and thought leaders from across jurisdictions on a single platform. I extend a warm welcome to every delegate joining us for what promises to be an intellectually enriching, thought-provoking and truly rewarding experience.