Redemption of Debentures

Debentures are debt instruments. Hence when their period expires, debenture holders are paid back their principal amount. This process of discharging the company’s debt is known as the redemption of debentures. Let us learn more about the various methods of redemption of debentures and their accounting treatments.

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Redemption of Debentures

Redemption of debentures refers to the repayment of these debentures by the company to the debenture holders. So the company will discharge its liability and remove it from the balance sheet. This is a major transaction for the company since the amount of money involved tends to be quite significant.

There are a few ways in which this redemption of shares can take place. These methods all have different accounting treatment as well. So let us take a look at the various methods of redemption of debentures.

Lump Sum Method

This method as the name suggests is a one-time payment method. Here the company will repay the whole amount in one lump sum payment to the debenture holders. The amount and the date of the payment will be according to the terms of issue.

Since the company knows the date of the repayment in advance they can plan their finances accordingly. So they make provisions to pay the debenture holders. So as per the provisions of the Companies Act and the SEBI guidelines the company has to make provisions for such a debenture. And hence the company sets up a special account known as the Debenture Redemption Reserve.

This debenture redemption reserve is a capital reserve account. It is funded by the divisible profits of each year, i.e. a portion of the profits are set aside for this purpose. This account can only be utilized for the purpose of redemption of debentures and for no other purpose.

Browse more Topics under Issue And Redemption Of Debentures

• Meaning of Debentures
• Issue of Debentures
• Terms of Issue, Interest on Debentures

Accounting Treatment

The entries passed in the first year of the debentures is as follows

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Profit & Loss Appropriation A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund A/c			xxx
	(Being appropriation of profit to DRF A/c)
2	DRF Investement A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Bank A/c			xxx
	(Being amount invested in securities)

The entries passed in the subsequent years are as follows

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Bank A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Interest on DRF Investment A/c			xxx
	(Being interest received on investment made)
2	Interest on DRF Investment A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund A/c			xxx
	(Being interest credited to DRF account)
3	Profit & Loss Appropriation A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund A/c			xxx
	(Being appropriation of profit to DRF A/c)
4	DRF Investement A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Bank A/c			xxx
	(Being amount invested in securities)

And now finally the entries passed in the last year, i.e. the year of redemption

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Bank A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund Investment A/c			xxx
	(Being investment sold)
2	Profit & Loss Appropriation A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund A/c			xxx
	(Being amount of profit transfered)
3	Debenture Redemption Fund A/c	Dr	xxx
	To General Reserve A/c			xxx
	To Capital Reserve A/c			xxx
	(Profit on sale of investment)

Installment Method

This is also known as the drawing of lots method. Here the company will start redeeming debentures in lots or installments from one particular year as agreed by the terms of issue. Let us see the accounting entries for the same.

If the Debentures are redeemed from profits

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Profit & Loss Appropriation A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Redemption Fund A/c			xxx
2	Debentures A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Debenture Holders A/c			xxx
3	Debenture Holders A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Bank A/c			xxx

Conversion Method

A company may opt to not pay the debenture holders at the time of redemption. Instead of that, it can convert the debentures into a new class of debentures or even equity shares. Such debentures are known as convertible debentures. Such new debentures or shares can be issued at par, premium or even discount. Let us see the accounting treatment for these scenarios.

Debentures converted to a new class of debentures

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	8 % Debentures A/c (old)	Dr	xxx
	To 9% Debentures A/c (New)			xxx
	(Being debentures converted to new debentures)

Debentures converted to Equity Shares

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	8 % Debentures A/c (old)	Dr	xxx
	To Equity Share Capital			xxx
	(Being debentures converted to new shares)

Debentures converted to shares at a premium

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	8 % Debentures A/c (old)	Dr	xxx
	To Equity Share Capital			xxx
	To Securities Premium A/c
	(Being debentures converted to new shares)

Purchasing Method

In this method, the company will buy its debentures from the open market and then immediately cancel them. This is known as the purchase from the open market. This way the company can defer the redemption till it is suitable to them. Also if they buy the debentures for a discount they can make additional benefits/profits as well.

When debentures are purchased for a premium

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Debentures A/c	Dr	xxx
	Loss on Redemption A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Bank A/c			xxx
2	Profit and Loss A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Loss on Redemption A/c			xxx

When debentures are purchased at a discount

Sr No	Particulars		Amount	Amount
1	Debentures A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Profit on Redemption A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Bank A/c			xxx
2	Profit on Redemption A/c	Dr	xxx
	To Capital Reserve A/c			xxx

Solved Question for You

Q: In the conversion method debentures are always converted to equity shares. True or False?

Ans: The following statement is False. In conversion method the debentures can also be converted to new debentures, i.e. the old debentures are cancelled and new debentures are issued in its place.