Visa Steel Ltd Q2 FY26 – From CIRP to Chrome Comeback? Or Just a 200-Crore ‘Warrant’ Story in Shiny Packaging?
1. At a Glance
Visa Steel Ltd is one of those companies that have lived more financial lives than most soap opera characters. Once a rising ferrochrome producer from Odisha, it now sits at a market cap of ₹609 crore, trading at ₹52.6 — down 4.4% on 28 November 2025 — and still trying to convince investors it’s a “going concern.” The company is basically running its Ferro Chrome plant on life support, courtesy of related-party “conversion arrangements” (a fancy way of saying someone else pays for your coal).
For Q2 FY26, Visa Steel reported a quarterly revenue of ₹75.8 crore — down a brutal 49.6% YoY — and a loss of ₹20.2 crore, representing a 73.4% deeper fall than last year’s comparable quarter. Return on capital employed? A sad -5.46%, and net worth is so negative that book value stands at ₹-119 per share. Add to that a debt load of ₹1,396 crore, 72.8% promoter pledge, and unpaid interest of ₹14,044.87 million (₹1,404 crore) — and you’ve got a full-blown metallic melodrama.
And yet — amid all this, the board recently approved ₹200 crore in fresh promoter warrants at ₹40 each, signaling either faith or a desperate infusion to stay alive. Let’s find out which.
2. Introduction
Every once in a while, the Indian stock market gives us a perfect “How Not to Run a Company” case study — and Visa Steel is a masterclass. Born in 1996 with big dreams of stainless domination, the company once aimed to be India’s next Jindal. Today, it’s just trying not to rust away under the weight of unpaid loans, CIRP history, and a balance sheet that looks like it’s gone through an industrial furnace itself.
After spending years in financial limbo and even flirting with insolvency, Visa Steel finally saw its CIRP withdrawn in September 2025. The company celebrated by issuing 5 crore convertible warrants worth ₹200 crore to its promoter entity — Visa Industries Ltd — at ₹40 each. Out of this, ₹50 crore has already been received. The stated purpose? To “revive operations and strengthen working capital.” The unstated purpose? Probably to keep the lights on and the auditors from writing “Going Concern? LOL.” again.
While peers like Indian Metals & Ferro Alloys (IMFA) and Maithan Alloys run profitable plants with double-digit ROCEs, Visa Steel’s furnaces run mostly on hope, operational creditors, and borrowed patience. The company’s high-carbon ferrochrome production at Kalinganagar remains operational — but barely — under a “conversion” model where others use its furnaces and pay a fee.
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
Visa Steel makes High Carbon Ferro Chrome, an essential alloy used in stainless steel manufacturing. The company owns a 125,000 TPA Ferro Chrome Plant in Kalinganagar, Odisha, with five Submerged Arc Furnaces and three 25 MW power generation units. Sounds great on paper — until you realize most of it is now used under a “conversion” setup because Visa doesn’t have enough cash to buy its own raw materials.
Essentially, instead of manufacturing and selling ferrochrome directly, Visa Steel lets others bring in ore and take out finished goods, while it earns a small conversion fee. Think of it like owning a restaurant but renting the kitchen to someone else because you can’t afford the groceries.
The company also had a special steel division once — Kalinganagar Special Steel Pvt Ltd — but lost control of it in FY23, recording a one-time notional gain of ₹1,748 crore. In accounting language, that’s “You lost your asset but got a paper profit.” In real life, it’s like pawning your car and celebrating because your balance sheet looks temporarily fancy.
4. Financials Overview
Let’s crunch the recent quarters. (All figures in ₹ crore)
Metric
Q2 FY26 (Sep 2025)
Q2 FY25 (YoY)
Q1 FY26 (Jun 2025)
YoY %
QoQ %
Revenue
75.8
150.4
171.0
-49.6%
-55.7%
EBITDA
-9.0
8.0
18.0
-212.5%
-150%
PAT
-20.2
-11.7
4.0
-73.4%
NA
EPS (₹)
-1.75
-1.03
0.37
-69.9%
NA
Commentary: Visa Steel’s quarterly performance looks like a chrome-coated tragedy. Revenue halved, operating profit turned negative, and PAT slipped back into the red after one lonely positive quarter in June 2025. EBITDA margins plunged to -11%, showing how conversion income barely covers fixed costs. The company continues to bleed cash, and with interest expense at ₹8 crore a quarter, there’s not much chrome shine left.
5. Valuation Discussion – Fair Value Range Only
Let’s take a mathematical joyride (for education, not heart attack):
Current Price: ₹52.6
TTM EPS: -₹45.03 (yes, negative, as usual)
P/E: Not applicable (loss-making)
EV/EBITDA: ₹1,999 crore / ₹25 crore (TTM EBITDA) ≈ 80x (because pain has a premium)
If, hypothetically, Visa Steel ever turns around to earn ₹10 EPS (miracle territory) and trades at 10–15x P/E, the fair value range could be ₹100–₹150. But for now, with negative net worth and heavy pledged promoter holding, the educational fair value sits in ₹30–₹55 range, purely based on enterprise value and turnaround optionality.
Disclaimer: This fair value range is for educational purposes only and is not investment advice.
6. What’s Cooking – News, Triggers, Drama
Ah, where do we begin?
CIRP Withdrawal: The biggest update — On 26 September 2025, the NCLT officially allowed withdrawal of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP). The moratorium was lifted, and the Resolution Professional was told to return the company’s records. Translation: “You’re free, now please fix your mess yourself.”
Warrants Mania: On 2 November 2025, shareholders approved issuing 5 crore convertible warrants worth ₹200 crore to promoter group entity Visa Industries Ltd at ₹40 each. ₹50 crore is already received, with conversion within 18 months. This is either a comeback attempt or a slow-motion promoter bailout.
Unpaid Interest Bomb: The board disclosed ₹14,044.87 million (₹1,404 crore) in unprovided interest liabilities. So even after debt assignment to ARCs, the ghosts of old NPAs continue haunting the books.
Operational Status: The plant continues operations under “conversion mode,” supported by related parties. The fact that it still runs is almost a miracle considering the current ratio is 0.04 (essentially “no liquidity”).
In short: Visa Steel is trying to reboot its business, raise fresh funds, and survive after a decade of insolvency flirtation. Whether it succeeds depends on two things — promoter intent and power bills.
7. Balance Sheet
(All figures ₹ crore, consolidated)
Item
Mar 2023
Mar 2024
Sep 2025 (Latest)
Total Assets
1,068
1,032
529
Net Worth (Equity + Reserves)
-772
-844
-1,377
Borrowings
1,394
1,398
1,396
Other Liabilities
445
467
510
Total Liabilities
1,068
1,032
529
Observations:
Assets have halved since FY23 — looks like the furnaces are shrinking faster than investor patience.
Borrowings remain sticky at ₹1,396 crore — same number, different year.
Net worth is a deep red abyss, now negative ₹1,377 crore, making “book value” a horror story.
Funny Takeaways:
“Balance” sheet? It’s mostly imbalance.
The liabilities table looks like a family WhatsApp group: nobody leaves, everyone adds more drama.
Fixed assets now worth less than some IPO startups’ marketing budgets.
