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IBC Turns 10: What makes India’s pivotal insolvency law a significant legal & economic reform
IBC Turns 10: Marking ten years of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016, and the establishment of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) on Saturday hosted a commemorative event titled “IBC & NCLT @10 – Celebrating a Decade of Insolvency Reforms” at Hotel Taj Mahal, New Delhi.
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Justice Bhushan highlighted the crucial role played by the NCLT and NCLAT in both implementing and shaping the IBC through judicial interpretation. |Image source: ChatGPT generated/Representational|
Written By: ZeeBiz WebTeam
Updated: Sat, May 30, 2026
07:35 PM IST
07:35 PM IST
New Delhi, ZeeBiz WebDesk
IBC Turns 10: Marking ten years of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016, and the establishment of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) on Saturday hosted a commemorative event titled “IBC & NCLT @10 – Celebrating a Decade of Insolvency Reforms” at Hotel Taj Mahal, New Delhi.
The event brought together judges, policymakers, regulators, insolvency professionals, legal experts and industry leaders, including Justice Ashok Bhushan, Chairperson, NCLAT; Justice Rajesh Bindal, Former Judge, Supreme Court of India; Justice M.M. Kumar, Founder President, NCLT and Former Chief Justice of the Jammu & Kashmir High Court; Dr. Anju Rathi Rana, Member Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs, Government of India; Shri Debajyoti Ray Chaudhuri, MD & CEO, National e-Governance Services Ltd. (NeSL), among others, to mark the 10-year journey of India’s insolvency framework.
IBC as a structural shift in India’s insolvency system
Speaking at the event, Justice Ashok Bhushan, Chairperson of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), described the IBC as a transformative legal reform that reshaped India’s insolvency landscape.
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He said the IBC replaced a “fragmented, delayed and uncertain system” with a time-bound, structured and creditor-centric framework, fundamentally changing how distressed assets are resolved in India.
According to him, the reform has strengthened credit discipline and created a credible deterrent against default, with several disputes getting resolved even before formal admission into insolvency proceedings.
Role of NCLT and NCLAT in shaping insolvency jurisprudence
Justice Bhushan highlighted the crucial role played by the NCLT and NCLAT in both implementing and shaping the IBC through judicial interpretation.
Over the past decade, the tribunals have contributed significantly to developing insolvency jurisprudence across areas such as:
- Corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP)
- Liquidation
- Avoidance transactions
- Personal guarantor insolvency
- Homebuyer-related disputes
He noted that the tribunals have ensured that insolvency law evolves as a “living and integrated” part of India’s legal system.
Also Read: 10 Years of IBC: Key milestones, biggest challenges and the road ahead
Economic impact: stronger credit discipline and early resolution
A key highlight of the reform, according to the address, has been its economic impact on borrower behaviour and credit markets.
The IBC has:
- Improved credit discipline among borrowers
- Created early resolution incentives
- Encouraged settlement before formal insolvency admission
- Strengthened market confidence in lending frameworks
Justice Bhushan described this behavioural shift as a “quiet but profound success” of the legislation.
Challenges remain: delays, capacity gaps, and recovery concerns
Despite progress, the address also underscored several continuing challenges in India’s insolvency ecosystem.
The major concerns include:
- Persistent delays in CIRP resolution timelines
- Limited institutional capacity and infrastructure constraints in tribunals
- Backlog and workload pressure on NCLT and NCLAT
- Substantial haircuts in recovery outcomes
- Weak liquidation value realization
- Nascent frameworks for cross-border insolvency
- Absence of a fully developed group insolvency regime
He stressed that unless timelines and capacity are strengthened, insolvency resolution risks losing its effectiveness as a value-preserving mechanism.
Future roadmap: efficiency, capacity, and institutional strengthening
Outlining the way forward, Justice Bhushan called for a sharper focus on strengthening India’s insolvency ecosystem in its second decade.
Key priorities include:
- Strict adherence to statutory timelines
- Expansion of tribunal capacity and infrastructure
- Creation of specialised insolvency benches
- Technology-driven case management systems
- Development of group insolvency frameworks
- Strengthening out-of-court restructuring mechanisms
He emphasised that “resolution must remain the norm and liquidation the exception,” adding that insolvency success should be measured not just by speed, but by value preservation, employment protection, and economic stability.
A decade of institutional building
Reflecting on the journey of the past ten years, the address noted that the first decade of the IBC represented a phase of institution-building, legal evolution, and framework consolidation.
The second decade, it said, must focus on efficiency, deeper institutional capacity, and strengthening public and market confidence in India’s insolvency ecosystem.
Concluding the discussion, Justice Bhushan expressed optimism about the future of India’s insolvency framework, stating that continued reforms and collective institutional effort would strengthen the system further and enhance its role in supporting India’s economic growth.
The event underscored the IBC’s position as one of India’s most significant legal and economic reforms of the past decade—reshaping insolvency resolution, improving credit discipline, and redefining how distressed businesses are managed in the country.
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