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PR No.150/2008

SEBI Board Meeting

1.       SEBI Board decides to reduce time lines for rights issues

In order to reduce the time duration for a Rights Issue, SEBI has decided to amend the SEBI (DIP) guidelines and the Listing Agreement. Reduction in timeline approved include: the number of days for the notice period for a Board Meeting will be reduced from 7 days to 2 working days; the notice period for record date will be reduced from 15/21/30 days to 7 working days for all scrips; issue period will be reduced from minimum 30 days to minimum 15 days with a maximum of 30 days and the time period for completion of post issue activity will be reduced from 42 days to 15 days.

These changes in timeline would enable a right issue to be completed within about 43 days as against about 109 days currently available for a rights issue. The reduction in timelines would reduce the market risk faced by investors and issuers and would ensure faster turnaround of money for investors.

2.       SEBI Board decides to revise pricing norms for QIP and Preferential Allotment

SEBI guidelines for preferential and QIP require that the floor price for issue of securities shall be higher of the average of the weekly high and low of the closing prices of the shares during the two weeks or six months preceding the relevant date. The relevant date is defined as a date which is 30 days prior to the date when shareholders’ meeting is held to approve the issue. In order to align the present pricing norms to the market, SEBI Board has decided to revise the pricing norms for QIP and Preferential allotment to the following effect:

·     Floor price may be based on the two weeks average for making a QIP or for making   preferential allotment to QIBs.

·     Relevant date for QIP shall be the date on which the Board of the company or the Committee of Directors duly authorized by the Board of the company meets to take the decision to open QIP. No change is contemplated in relevant date for preferential allotment as the resolution for preferential allotment is valid only for 15 days as against one year for QIP.

3.       SEBI Board approves modification to Clause 41 of the listing agreement

SEBI Board today decided to amend the Clause 41 of the listing agreement. The major modifications are as follows:

·     Time limit for submission of financial results to stock exchanges: A listed entity in addition to submitting quarterly and year to date standalone financial results within one month of end of the quarter may also submit consolidated financial results to the stock exchange within two months from the end of the quarter.

·     Publication of financial results: A listed entity opting to submit consolidated financial results in addition to standalone results to the stock exchanges shall be required to publish consolidated financial results only.

·     Limited review report to be placed before Board of Directors: A listed entity would be required to place the limited review report on un-audited financial results before its board of directors / committee before submission to stock exchanges only if the variation (as defined in present Clause 41) between un-audited financials and financials amended pursuant to limited review for the same period exceeds 10%.

·     Submission of limited review report in case of last quarter: Where the listed entity chooses to submit un-audited financial results for the last quarter (instead of submitting audited financial results for the entire financial year within 3 months of end of financial year), the limited review report shall be submitted for the last quarter also.  

4.       Standardising format of Abridged Schemewise Annual Report and reduction in time period for dispatch to the Mutual Fund unit holders

          The Board in its meeting held on August 13, 2008 approved the proposal for prescribing and standardizing the format for Abridged Schemewise Annual Report and reduction in time period for dispatching the Annual Report to the Mutual Fund unit holders from 6 months to 4 months.  The new time limit for dispatching will be made applicable for the Annual Reports of 2008-09 onwards.

5.       SEBI Regional Office at Ahmedabad

          The Board today approved the opening of Western Regional Office of SEBI at Ahmedabad.  This office will function in line with the functioning of our other three Regional Offices at New Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai and look after the regulatory aspects of investor protection and market regulation and supervision regarding issuers, investors and intermediaries.  The Western Regional office would have territorial jurisdiction with respect to the states of Gujarat and Rajasthan for the present while matters with respect to Goa and Maharashtra would continue with the Head Office at Mumbai.  It is expected that the regional office would become operational during the financial year 2008-2009.

 

Mumbai

August 13, 2008