Confidentiality of Valuation Reports explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
There is one commercial fact that explains the entire confidentiality architecture around CIRP valuations.
A bidder who knows the liquidation value will bid at it.
Not above it. At it. The moment the floor is known, it becomes the ceiling — and the statutory objective of maximising the value of the corporate debtor's assets quietly fails.
Fair value and liquidation value go to the CoC in electronic form, after a confidentiality undertaking — and never to resolution applicants. Both the RP and the valuer carry independent obligations. A leak from any party suppresses plan values and invites a challenge to the integrity of the process.
Who gets the numbers, and who does not
| Party | Access |
|---|---|
| Resolution professional | Yes — receives the reports |
| CoC members | Yes — electronically, after the confidentiality undertaking |
| Registered valuers | Their own asset class |
| Resolution applicants | No |
| Erstwhile promoters / suspended board | No |
| Operational creditors not on the CoC | No |
The line is drawn around who is deciding rather than who is interested. The CoC votes, so the CoC must be informed. Everyone else either bids against the number or has an interest in it moving.
Why disclosure to bidders is so damaging
It converts the benchmark into a ceiling. A rational applicant offering more than necessary is leaving money on the table. Tell them the floor and they will find it.
It removes competitive tension. Bidders who all know the same number converge on it. The dispersion that produces a good outcome for creditors disappears.
It is undetectable after the fact. A suppressed bid looks exactly like a market view. Nobody can prove what would have been offered — which is precisely why the obligation is preventive rather than remedial.
The consequence lands on creditors, and it is permanent. Fair value vs liquidation value →
Two independent obligations
The RP and the valuer each carry their own duty. Neither discharges the other's.
The RP controls distribution — obtaining the undertakings, circulating the numbers, and restricting who receives what.
The valuer controls the source. A valuer who discusses a figure with a prospective applicant has breached their own obligation and exposed their registration, regardless of the RP's arrangements. Valuer independence and confidentiality →
And CoC members are bound by their undertakings. A financial creditor whose group also runs an investment arm considering a bid is exactly the situation the undertaking exists for, and it is the one that requires the most careful handling.
What the RP has to do before a vote
This is the procedural step most often missed, and the one that surfaces when a decision is challenged.
Every CoC member must have had access to the valuation before voting on a plan. A creditor who voted without seeing the numbers did not exercise informed commercial judgment — and informed judgment is the condition on which the CoC's decisions are protected from review. CoC commercial wisdom →
The discipline:
- obtain and retain the confidentiality undertakings from each member;
- circulate the values before the meeting at which the plan is considered, not during it;
- minute that the reports were made available and that members had the opportunity to review them;
- record any request for clarification and how it was answered;
- keep distribution logs — who received what, and when.
Where leaks come from
Rarely from a deliberate breach. Usually from process:
- valuation figures reproduced in CoC minutes that then circulate widely;
- numbers included in an information memorandum or process document sent to applicants;
- a CoC member's internal circulation beyond the individuals bound;
- email forwarding without restriction;
- discussion in meetings attended by advisors to prospective applicants.
The controls are unglamorous: keep the numbers out of documents that travel, restrict circulation lists, use access-controlled distribution rather than attachments, and remind attendees at each meeting.
And a brand-led debtor needs more care than most — publicity about the insolvency damages the very asset being valued, so confidentiality there is asset preservation as well as process integrity. Brand and franchise valuation →
Key takeaways
- A disclosed floor becomes a ceiling. That is the whole rationale.
- CoC yes, applicants never.
- The RP and the valuer carry independent duties.
- Every member must have access before voting — and it must be minuted.
- Leaks are usually procedural, not deliberate.
- Keep figures out of documents that circulate.
- The harm is undetectable afterwards, which is why prevention is the only remedy.
Read next
- How the CoC Uses Valuation: Commercial Wisdom and Its Limits
- Regulation 35: Determining Fair Value and Liquidation Value
- Valuer Independence and Conflict of Interest Under IBBI Rules
- Resolution Plan: Contents, Approval and Implementation
Disclaimer: Positions stated as on 5 September 2026. Verify the current Regulations before relying on any procedural requirement.