Press Release

Press Release

November 21, 2024

PRIMUS TRUST
Rating Downgraded and Issuer not co-operating

Product	Quantum (Rs. Cr)	Long Term Rating	Short Term Rating
Bank Loan Ratings	86.00	ACUITE BB \| Downgraded \| Issuer not co-operating*	-
Total Outstanding	86.00	-	-
Total Withdrawn	0.00	-	-
* The issuer did not co-operate; based on best available information.

Rating Rationale

Acuité has downgraded the long-term rating to ‘ACUITE BB’ (read as ACUITE double B) from 'ACUITE BB+' (read as ACUITE double B plus) on the Rs. 86.00 crore bank facilities of Primus Trust (PT) on account of information risk. The rating continues to be flagged as “Issuer Not-Cooperating” and is based on the best available information.

About the Company

Primus Trust (PT), established in 2006, is registered under the Indian Trust Act, 1972. The trust is currently located in karnataka.The trust was acquired by Universal Education Group (UEG) in 2016. The trust manages a school & colleges and offers International General Certificate of Secondary Education and Indian Certificate of Secondary Education curricula (IGCSE). School is affiliated to the Cambridge University and the college is affiliated to Karnataka State Board.The Authorised Director of the trust is Mr Balkishan Sharma.

About the Group

UEG has a presence in education since 2003. Mr. Jesus Lall is the founder. The group runs 44 educational institutions across 28 entities and offers K-12 education, degree and technical courses. While most of the entities are in education sector, some of them are asset holding and provides support services to the institutes. The group has its presence in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Unsupported Rating

Not Applicable

Non-cooperation by the issuer/borrower:

Acuité has been requesting for data, information and undertakings from the rated entity for conducting surveillance & review of the rating. However, the issuer/borrower failed to submit such information before the due date.
Acuité believes that information risk is a critical component in such ratings, and non-cooperation by the issuer along with unwillingness to provide information could be a sign of potential deterioration in its overall credit quality.
This rating is, therefore, being flagged as “Issuer not-cooperating”, in line with prevailing SEBI regulations and Acuité’s policies.

Limitation regarding information availability:

The rating is based on information available from sources other than the issuer/borrower (in the absence of information provided by the issuer/borrower). Acuité endeavored to gather information about the entity/industry from the public domain. Therefore, Acuité cautions lenders and investors regarding the use of such information, on which the indicative credit rating is based.

Rating Sensitivity

"No information provided by the issuer / available for Acuite to comment upon."

Liquidity Position

"No information provided by the issuer / available for Acuite to comment upon."

Outlook

Not Applicable

Other Factors affecting Rating

None

Key Financials

Particulars	Unit	FY 17 (Actual)	FY 16 (Actual)
Operating Income	Rs. Cr.	215.70	200.84
PAT	Rs. Cr.	(12.56)	(11.36)
PAT Margin	(%)	(5.82)	(5.65)
Total Debt/Tangible Net Worth	Times	4.14	3.29
PBDIT/Interest	Times	1.21	1.21

Status of non-cooperation with previous CRA

Not Applicable

Any other information

None

Applicable Criteria

• Service Sector: https://www.acuite.in/view-rating-criteria-50.htm
• Default Recognition: https://www.acuite.in/view-rating-criteria-52.htm
• Application Of Financial Ratios And Adjustments: https://www.acuite.in/view-rating-criteria-53.htm
• Consolidation Of Companies: https://www.acuite.in/view-rating-criteria-60.htm

Note on complexity levels of the rated instrument

In order to inform the investors about complexity of instruments, Acuité has categorized such instruments in three levels: Simple, Complex and Highly Complex. Acuite’s categorisation of the instruments across the three categories is based on factors like variability of the returns to the investors, uncertainty in cash flow patterns, number of counterparties and general understanding of the instrument by the market. It has to be understood that complexity is different from credit risk and even an instrument categorized as 'Simple' can carry high levels of risk. For more details, please refer Rating Criteria “Complexity Level Of Financial Instruments” on www.acuite.in.

Rating History

Date	Name of Instruments/Facilities	Term	Amount (Rs. Cr)	Rating/Outlook
24 Aug 2023	Term Loan	Long Term	57.60	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
	Term Loan	Long Term	22.89	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
	Proposed Long Term Bank Facility	Long Term	5.51	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
07 Jun 2022	Term Loan	Long Term	57.60	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
	Term Loan	Long Term	22.89	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
	Proposed Long Term Bank Facility	Long Term	5.51	ACUITE BB+ (Reaffirmed & Issuer not co-operating*)
04 Mar 2021	Proposed Long Term Bank Facility	Long Term	5.51	ACUITE BB+ (Downgraded & Issuer not co-operating* from ACUITE BBB+ \| Negative)
	Term Loan	Long Term	57.60	ACUITE BB+ (Downgraded & Issuer not co-operating* from ACUITE BBB+ \| Negative)
	Term Loan	Long Term	22.89	ACUITE BB+ (Downgraded & Issuer not co-operating* from ACUITE BBB+ \| Negative)
* The issuer did not co-operate; based on best available information.

Annexure - Details of instruments rated

Lender’s Name	ISIN	Facilities	Date Of Issuance	Coupon Rate	Maturity Date	Quantum (Rs. Cr.)	Complexity Level	Rating
Not Applicable	Not avl. / Not appl.	Proposed Long Term Bank Facility	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	5.51	Simple	ACUITE BB \| Downgraded \| Issuer not co-operating* ( from ACUITE BB+ )
Karur Vysya Bank	Not avl. / Not appl.	Term Loan	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	57.60	Simple	ACUITE BB \| Downgraded \| Issuer not co-operating* ( from ACUITE BB+ )
Karur Vysya Bank	Not avl. / Not appl.	Term Loan	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	Not avl. / Not appl.	22.89	Simple	ACUITE BB \| Downgraded \| Issuer not co-operating* ( from ACUITE BB+ )

* The issuer did not co-operate; based on best available information.

Contacts

Mohit Jain
Senior Vice President - Rating Operations

Sahil Sawant
Associate Analyst - Rating Operations

Contact details exclusively for investors and lenders

Mob: +91 8591310146
Email ID: analyticalsupport@acuite.in

About Acuité Ratings & Research

Acuité is a full-service Credit Rating Agency registered with the Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The company received RBI Accreditation as an External Credit Assessment Institution (ECAI) for Bank Loan Ratings under BASEL-II norms in the year 2012. Acuité has assigned ratings to various securities, debt instruments and bank facilities of entities spread across the country and across a wide cross section of industries. It has its Registered and Head Office in Kanjurmarg, Mumbai.

Disclaimer: An Acuité rating does not constitute an audit of the rated entity and should not be treated as a recommendation or opinion that is intended to substitute for a financial adviser's or investor's independent assessment of whether to buy, sell or hold any security. Ratings assigned by Acuité are based on the data and information provided by the issuer and obtained from other reliable sources. Although reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the data and information is true, Acuité, in particular, makes no representation or warranty, expressed or implied with respect to the adequacy, accuracy or completeness of the information relied upon. Acuité is not responsible for any errors or omissions and especially states that it has no financial liability whatsoever for any direct, indirect or consequential loss of any kind, arising from the use of its ratings. Ratings assigned by Acuité are subject to a process of surveillance which may lead to a revision in ratings as and when the circumstances so warrant. Please visit our website (www.acuite.in) for the latest information on any instrument rated by Acuité. Please visit https://www.acuite.in/faqs.htm to refer FAQs on Credit Rating.