BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) has seen its market share go past the critical 20 per cent mark in the derivatives segment, intensifying its battle with bigger rival - the National Stock Exchange (NSE) - which, less than a year ago, had a monopoly in this space. In April, the average daily trading volume (ADTV) for BSE stood at Rs 89 trillion, accounting for 20.6 per cent of the overall ADTV of Rs 432 trillion (based on notional volumes for options).
Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) reported a 25 per cent rise in net profit attributable to the owners of the company for the January-March quarter of 2024-25, owing to higher revenues and an exceptional gain. For the quarter under review, L&T posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 5,497.3 crore, while revenue rose 10.9 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 74,392.28 crore.
The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) on Thursday quashed the markets regulator Sebi's order imposing a fine of Rs 7 crore on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in the dark-fibre case. Additionally, the tribunal has set aside a fine of Rs 5 crore levied by Sebi on the exchange's former official Anand Subramanian. Further, it has partly set aside the regulator's order against former MD and CEO of NSE Chitra Ramkrishna, ex-official Ravi Varanasi and a few stock brokers, among others.
In a bid to expedite the processing of initial public offerings (IPOs), the markets regulator will now seek additional information from lead managers (LMs) when they file draft documents. Last week, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) sent a letter to bankers, listing over two dozens of new disclosure requirements. The average time Sebi takes to clear the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) - a document companies must file before accessing public funds - has dropped to less than three months in 2024 (until May 31).
The merger of ZEE Entertainment and Sony has reached an advanced stage of completion, and the issues faced by promoters with Sebi should not become a problem for the company, debarred ZEEL MD Punit Goenka has said in a letter to employees, according to sources. Goenka, who along with his father Subhas Chandra, was denied any interim relief against a Sebi order that barred them from holding the position of director or key managerial post in any listed company, in the letter ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) staff asserted that the merger of Culver Max (earlier known as Sony Pictures Networks India) is at a very important juncture. With the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) restricting him from holding a directorial or key managerial position in a listed company, Goenka told the employees that the ZEEL board has constituted an interim committee of senior executives to ensure smooth operations and day-to-day functioning.
The Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) has stayed the ban imposed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Samir Jain, vice-chairman and managing director of Bennett, Coleman & Co (BCCL), his wife Meera Jain, and six others. BCCL owns news media organisations The Times of India, and The Economic Times. Last month, the regulator had refrained Jain from accessing the securities market for allegedly violating minimum public shareholding (MPS) norms in PNB Finance and Industries (PNBFIL) and Camac Commercial Company (CCIL), which are listed on the Calcutta Stock Exchange.
Officials said Sebi first proposed to the FinMin to amend the relevant provisions in the Sebi Act to discontinue RBI's representation on its board, as it already has adequate presence of government nominees and in its over 25 years of existence the regulator has evolved as an "effective and one of the best in the world".
Only a fifth of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in breach of the market regulator-specified thresholds may need to provide enhanced disclosure on ultimate beneficiaries, thanks to exemptions being provided, according to people in the know. The ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) disclosures, for FPIs with over 50 per cent holding in a single corporate group or over Rs 25,000 crore exposure to Indian assets, will be required from February 1. But, depending on their category, FPIs will have 10-30 working days to submit these granular details.
Fundraising momentum is expected to accelerate further in the New Year, potentially surpassing 2024's record figures
'Sebi had no problem with derivatives until trading exploded after Covid.' 'But now, having built a dangerous road, from which different entities, mainly governments, are extracting a heavy toll, Sebi is concerned that people are driving on it in much greater numbers,' explains Debashis Basu.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is contemplating the implementation of a same-day settlement cycle, known as T+0, in two phases. This is seen as a preliminary step towards instantaneous settlement. The shorter T+0 settlement cycle is being considered for the equity cash segment as an optional mechanism, in addition to the current T+1 (Trade plus one day) cycle.
Market regulator Sebi does not expect a large number of foreign portfolio investors to be impacted by the new beneficial ownership disclosure norms, according to sources. The norms are set to come into effect from February 1 and against this backdrop, the equity market has witnessed significant volatility, with the benchmark Sensex crashing over 1,000 points on Tuesday after shedding early intraday gains. The sources in the know said FPIs which may be required to provide enhanced disclosures are expected to be significantly less than estimated in the consultation paper and the Sebi board note of October 2023.
The Adi/Nadir Godrej family, along with other family members/trusts, has made an open offer to the shareholders of Astec Lifesciences to acquire an additional 26 per cent stake from the public as part of the family settlement agreement (FSA), according to an announcement to the stock exchanges on Wednesday. The offer, made at the price of Rs 1,069.75 per share, was triggered by the Adi/Nadir family's plan to acquire a 20.84 per cent stake in Godrej Industries (GIL) from the Jamshyd Godrej/Smita Crishna Godrej family, according to the FSA announced on Tuesday.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear on February 17 a fresh plea of a Congress leader seeking investigation under the supervision of a sitting apex court judge against the Adani group of companies in light of the allegations made by the US-based Hindenburg Research.
In its closure report submitted before a special CBI court New Delhi, the agency is understood to have said it did not find enough evidence to prosecute the accused.
The spike in volatility, amid election uncertainty, has done little to dent the confidence of retail investors, shows demat account addition and equity mutual fund (MF) investment data. In May, investors opened a net 3.6 million demat accounts, taking the total to 158 million. MF data released on Monday pegged the net inflows into equity schemes and SIP investments at new record highs of Rs 34,697 crore and Rs 20,904 crore, respectively.
Equity fundraising through initial public offerings (IPOs) rose 20 per cent during the financial year 2023-24 (FY24). During the period, 76 Indian corporates raised Rs 61,915 crore through main board IPOs, compared to Rs 52,116 crore mobilised by 37 IPOs in 2022-23, as disclosed by PRIME Database. However, if one excludes the mega Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) IPO, which came out in 2022-23, IPO mobilisation increased by 58 per cent from last year.
Institutional Investor Advisory Services had recommended investors to vote 'against' the proposal, while Stakeholders Empowerment Services asked investors to vote 'for' the proposal.
Capital markets regulator Sebi on Wednesday asked all investors to link their PAN with Aadhaar number by March-end for continual and smooth transactions in the securities market. The non-compliance with this would be considered non-KYC compliant, and there could be restrictions on securities and other transactions until the Permanent Account Number (PAN) and Aadhaar are linked, Sebi said in a statement.
Retail investors now own a larger share of smallcap companies than they did a year ago, thanks to their conviction in mutual fund (MF) schemes focused on this segment. Data from Capitaline shows that MFs' average holding in the National Stock Exchange Nifty Smallcap 250 Index stood at 9 per cent at the end of the October-December quarter of 2023-24 (FY24), up from 7.76 per cent in the same quarter of 2022-23.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Thursday warned investors not to fall prey to investment schemes with assured returns offered by Sameer Gulabrao Thite associated with Samsan Unitrade. The exchange pointed out that the person and the entity are not registered either as a member or authorised person of any registered member of the NSE. The cautionary statement comes after the NSE noticed that Sameer Gulabrao Thite associated with Samsan Unitrade was offering the service to handle trading accounts of investors by asking them to share their user identification (user ID) and password.
Quant funds are a unique offering in the MF space as the investment decisions are driven by a blend of active and passive strategies.
Those who want to invest should consider their risk appetite. Youngsters may go for it as they have a longer horizon to recover from a setback.
Equity fundraising through initial public offerings (IPOs) rose 20 per cent during the financial year 2023-24 (FY24). During the period, 76 Indian corporates raised Rs 61,915 crore through main board IPOs, compared to Rs 52,116 crore mobilised by 37 IPOs in 2022-23, as disclosed by PRIME Database. However, if one excludes the mega Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) IPO, which came out in 2022-23, IPO mobilisation increased by 58 per cent from last year.
'Expectations are high regarding the change in LTCG with respect to equity investments.'
'Are we to believe that coordinated moves by the Canadian and US authorities are no longer taking place?', asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has made a fresh attempt at settling a regulatory investigation into the misuse of Trading Access Point (TAP) software at the bourse. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) rejected a similar application in 2022. "NSE and its employees have filed a consolidated settlement application dated May 4, 2023, with Sebi.
Capital markets regulator Sebi Chairman U K Sinha advocated the listing of bourses and greater competition among exchanges.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) of India is going to indefinitely defer the internal deadline set for extending trading hours, according to sources in the know. The exchange aimed to introduce a three-hour evening session exclusively for index derivatives by March 2024, contingent upon regulatory clearance from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Sources indicate that the market regulator has not provided a favourable indication, dimming optimism surrounding the proposal.
The stock exchange BSE has called off the merger of its unit at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City International Financial Services Centre (GIFT IFSC), India International Exchange (India INX), with NSE International Exchange (NSE IX), a similar unit floated by rival National Stock Exchange (NSE), according to sources familiar with the development. BSE and NSE had been in discussions for the merger for over a year, but it has yielded no results, they said.
Securities Exchange Board of India chairman C B Bhave, and Insurance Regulatory Authority of India chief J Harinarayan had separate meetings with finance secretary Ashok Chawla on Monday over the ongoing tussle between the two regulators over equity-linked insurance schemes.
India Inc is staring at significantly higher compliance and governance costs, following the Securities and Exchange Board of India's (Sebi's) latest tightening of disclosure norms and regulations around the filling of key positions, the materiality of information, and third-party transfers. Recently, the securities market regulator amended the Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements (LODR) to introduce a raft of changes that will affect how listed companies go about transparency and disclosures. The new framework will further empower public shareholders and soon move towards a 'comply or be penalised regime or comply or explain' in the case of high-value debt-listed entities.
The bid-pack for potential investors is ready and the government-appointed board has already sent it to the Company Law Board and Securities Exchange Board of India, according to sources close to the development.
Investors may have to wait a little longer for Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based block mechanism in the secondary market even as the market regulator has set the effective launch date as January 1, 2024. Several brokerage firms said they may take a few months more to implement it. Investors will be able to register for this facility only if the stock broker has opted for the UPI block facility.
Jignesh Shah, the promoter of Financial Technologies India Ltd, on Wednesday resigned from the board of MCX Stock Exchange, amid continuing Rs 5,600 crore (Rs 56 billion) payment crisis at group company NSEL.
Cases of front-running mostly happen when large asset managers and intermediaries are involved in bulk trades as their transaction size is generally big enough to impact the stock price.
