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Market regulator to get more powers
Hike in FDI ceiling to help telcos consolidate, cut debts
PSUs violating public holding norms to face action: SEBI
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India Inc welcomes raise in FDI limits
Marketing guru Nirmalya Kumar to join Tata Sons
ArcelorMittal scraps Rs 50k-cr Odisha project
SC pulls up Sahara group for not refunding Rs 24,000 crore
Air India to fly to Australia from August 29
HDFC Bank Q1 profit up 30%
EGoM clears stake sale in Neyveli
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Market regulator to get more powers
New Delhi, July 17 Amendments to the SEBI Act and other relevant regulations were finalised after detailed consultations with the Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI). Once the amendments come into effect, the regulator would have direct powers to carry out search and seizure operations and for attachment of assets, as part of efforts to crackdown on ponzi schemes. Besides, SEBI would have powers to seek information, such as telephone call data records, from any persons or entities in respect to any securities transaction being probed by it. The capital market watchdog has been seeking an overhaul of regulations as well as mandate for a long time, given the changing nature of the securities market in general, and newer tools being used by manipulators to take gullible investors for a ride, in particular. Among others, SEBI chairman would have the powers to authorise conducting of search and seizure. At present, SEBI can conduct search and seizure only after approval from the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, but this provision is often seen as delaying proceedings and hampering the confidential nature of probe.
— PTI |
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Hike in FDI ceiling to help telcos consolidate, cut debts
New Delhi, July 17 Market watchers were optimistic that the government’s decision would have a positive impact on the sector and also foreign investors. Hours before the government took the decision yesterday at the meeting called by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to open the telecom sector to 100 per cent FDI, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal had said the industry needed funds to the tune of Rs 5-6 lakh crore in the next five years and removing the FDI cap would help investment flow into the cash-starved sector. Overruling the objections raised by the security agencies, the minister had said the 100 per cent FDI in the sector was in no way a security threat to the country. Experts point out that the move would not only make the entry of foreign telecom operators into India easier, but would also help the Indian companies in joint ventures with these foreign operators to offload their share. Besides, the move would make impending spectrum auctions more attractive to foreign telcos as they would in future have the opportunity to go it alone in the Indian market, which remains one of the fastest-growing telecom markets in the world. As of now, foreign operators are permitted to participate in spectrum auctions conducted by the DoT, but they can begin services in India only when they get a 26% equity partner, which is an Indian entity. Additionally, FIPB needs to approve their foreign investment above 49 per cent, which also takes into account the attached security concerns. According to a presentation by GSM industry body COAI to DoT, the debt of telecom sector stood at Rs 1,85,720 crore at end of 2011-12. This included debt of Rs 93,594 crore from domestic and Rs 92,126 crore from external sources and the same is said to have grown to Rs 2.5 lakh crore. The decision is bound to trigger consolidation among existing foreign players who will now move to take complete control of their India operations. Experts said Bharti Group in Airtel, Aditya Birla Group in Idea, Tatas in TataTele, Shyam in MTS, Piramal in Vodafone, Reliance in Reliance Infocomm, and Reddys in Aircel, will now be in a position to sell in part or full their stake to the foreign investors. They say the decision could attract close to $10 billion worth of investments in the long term. The sector has so far attracted FDI worth $13 billion since early 2000.
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India Inc welcomes raise in FDI limits
New Delhi, July 17 On hike in FDI limit to 49 per cent for the insurance sector, the chamber said the move would unshackle insurance industry and drive orderly growth and long-term development of the insurance and pension sector in the country. On defence sector, CII said that "critical concepts such as 'state-of-the-art' technology would need to be defined". "Clarity and transparency needs to be ensured while allowing higher
FDI," Banerjee added. Assocham said the "welcome move" should be followed by easy rules on the mergers and acquisitions so that much needed consolidation in the insurance sector is facilitated. It said the decision to allow 100 per cent FDI in telecom will surely help the sector as it will lead to some overseas investors taking interests in the existing debt-ridden telecom
companies. Ficci said it "welcomes the announcements for raising FDI caps" in telecom and insurance sectors and for enabling the possibility in
defence. "What India needs are JVs that enhance its strategic capabilities like
'Brahmos' which has catapulted India to the group of nations with supersonic cruise missile capabilities, with IPRs residing within the country giving it export potential," Ficci president Naina Lal Kidwai said.
— PTI |
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PSUs violating public holding norms to face action: SEBI
New Delhi, July 17 As per SEBI’s minimum public shareholding norms, all the listed public sector entities need to have at least 10 per cent public holding by August 8. Earlier, the deadline for the private sector companies to attain a minimum 25 per cent public holding expired on June 3 and SEBI took strong actions against promoters and directors of 105 non-compliant companies as on that date. Asked whether SEBI would initiate stringent actions in case of non-compliance by PSUs as well, SEBI chief UK Sinha said: "Yes, but I will also like to say that the government has assured me through a letter that they are going to implement it." Around 10 PSUs still need to achieve minimum 10 per cent public float by sale of shares cumulatively worth about Rs 3,000 crore. The government had earlier told SEBI that the rules could be relaxed for loss-making PSUs, but the regulator insisted on all listed entities meeting these norms. "SEBI’s position is very clear. Any company which is in violation of minimum public shareholding guidelines and is defaulting, should be punished," Sinha said here during a conference on venture capital investments. In the run-up to the expiry of deadline for private sector companies, SEBI had held consultations with the non-compliant companies to encourage them meet the deadline and had also sent them reminders.
— PTI New guidelines
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Marketing guru Nirmalya Kumar to join Tata Sons
New Delhi, July 17 Kumar will hold responsibility for strategy at the group level, it added. "In addition, Kumar will lend his expertise in bringing customer centricity to the fore, across the group companies," the company said. Reputed to be one of the world's leading thinkers on strategy and marketing, Kumar was included in Thinkers 50 (the bi-annual listing of the top 50 management thinkers in the world) and received their Global Village Award (for the person who contributed most to the business community's understanding of globalisation and the new frontiers established by the emerging markets). Kumar has taught at the Harvard Business School, IMD (Switzerland) and the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, the company said. He is also a member of the Board of Governors of the London Business School and has served on the boards of several top companies too, it added. Kumar has authored six books, including Brand Breakout: How Emerging Market Brands Will Go Global.
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ArcelorMittal scraps Rs 50k-cr Odisha project New Delhi, July 17 The biggest foreign investment pullout comes just a day after South Korean steel major Posco pulled out of its Rs 30,000-crore steel mill in Karnataka and the government widened its doors to foreign direct investment for a dozen sectors. Steel baron Lakshmi Mittal-headed group’s proposed plant in Odisha was among the biggest foreign direct investments in India. Posco’s Rs 52,000-crore steel mill in Odisha and ArcelorMittal’s Rs 50,000-crore steel mill in Jharkhand are the two other largest FDIs India has attracted. Both projects are also facing inordinate delays. “ArcelorMittal met today with the Government of Odisha’s Chief Secretary to inform him that the company has decided not to progress with its planned construction of an integrated steel plant and a captive power plant in Keonjhar district,” the company said in a statement. But the company will continue to pursue its other two projects in Jharkhand and Karnataka, it said, adding that “both of which are making steady progress”. In 2006, ArcelorMittal had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Odisha Government to set up a 12-million tonne steel plant in four phases at Keonjhar, entailing an investment of $12 billion (Rs 50,000 crore). The MoU was due for renewal since December, 2011. — PTI
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RBI opens Rs 25,000-cr window to help mutual fund industry
Mumbai, July 17 "This facility will be made available for a temporary period until further notice," RBI said in a notification. The mutual fund industry has been facing consistent equity folio closures in the past few months mainly due to profit booking and various merger schemes in the industry. The mutual fund industry lost more than 36 lakh investors in 2012-13. The last financial year also marked the fourth consecutive year of loss of folios by mutual funds. During the preceding three financial years, the mutual fund industry had lost over 15 lakh new investor accounts. As per SEBI data, mutual funds lost 10 lakh investors, measured in terms of individual accounts or folios, in April-June 2013-14. The total investor accounts with 44 fund houses, fell to around 4.18 crore at the end of June 2013, from 4.28 crore in the last fiscal
(2012-13). — PTI |
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SC pulls up Sahara group for not refunding Rs 24,000 crore
New Delhi, July 17 A Bench of justices KS Radhakrishnan and JS Khehar also came down heavily on Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) for restraining SEBI from taking coercive action against Sahara as ordered by the apex court. The Bench, which said that Sahara group must refund the amount by August 31 or face personal appearance, however, refrained from passing orders as the counsel for Roy pleaded that no such order be passed without hearing him and posted the case for hearing on July 24. "Comply with our judgement or we will pass orders. Pay the amount or face personal appearance before the court," the Bench observed, while expressing displeasure over Sahara group for not depositing Rs 24,000 crore with SEBI which will disburse the amount to around three crore investors. The apex court had on August 31 last year directed the Sahara group to refund the amount by November-end.
— PTI |
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Air India to fly to Australia from August 29
New Delhi, July 17 In a bid to attract travellers, the airline is offering attractive promotional fares on this route in both directions which would be available for a limited period, he said. Air India would be getting the delivery of three more Dreamliners by August-end, which would take the total number of these planes in its fleet to 10. The airline would operate the daily services on a triangular route — Delhi-Sydney-Melbourne-Delhi on four days and Delhi-Melbourne-Sydney-Delhi sector on three. The spokesperson said these flights would enable passengers from Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata and other cities to get a quick and easy connection to Sydney and Melbourne via
Delhi. — PTI |
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