Blog Posts
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Budget Impact
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] This year’s budget, termed by the media as a populist one, has received mixed reactions from the corporate sector. At the same time, it has not gone well with the stock markets, which fell following the budget announcements. The entire set of budget materials is available here. Now, we look at…
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Taxation Issues in Short Selling
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] An earlier post on this blog had discussed the introduction of short selling in the Indian market and its implications on the market. Today’s Hindu Business Line has an article that refers to lack of clarify in the taxation regime with respect to short sales. Obviously, there seem to be several…
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Corporate Governance Study
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] Research in areas of corporate governance involving Indian companies has not been substantial, compared to that in its emerging market counterparts such as China. However, a recent study that has been commissioned by the IFC Global Corporate Governance Forum in consultation with SEBI and the National Institute for Securities Markets (NISM)…
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Should Insider Trading be Permitted?
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] An affirmative answer to this question will almost always be dismissed as outlandish. But, Henry Manne, who is considered the father of law and economics, has argued for deregulation of insider trading for the last 40 years. His ideas have encountered a barrage of criticisms from other legal scholars. Further, as…
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Analysing Foreign Currency Exchangeable Bonds (FCEBs)
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] When it came to borrowings in foreign currency, Indian companies hitherto had two options, namely (i) external commercial borrowings (ECBs) where they borrow monies in foreign currency, or (ii) foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) where they issue bonds denominated in foreign currency that are convertible into shares of the issuer company.…
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Indian Sovereign Wealth Fund: Now a Possibility
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) have become the flavour of the day. Not only are the SWFs of various countries investing billions of dollars in companies around the world, they are generating a significant amount of skepticism from regulators in host countries urging greater transparency.As far as India is concerned, initial indications…
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Guest Contributor: Somasekhar Sundaresan
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] It is my pleasure to introduce our guest contributor, Mr. Somasekhar Sundaresan Practice Focus: Capital Markets, Securities Laws, Banking and Non-banking Financial Services and Mergers and Acquisition involving listed companies. Somasekhar has extensive experience and expertise in the practice and evolution of securities laws in India. While primarily a transactional lawyer,…
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Competition Act and Merger Regulation
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] Today’s Economic Times carries a column by Jaishree Vyavaharkar & David Jacobs of Baker & McKenzie analyzing the provisions of the Act and the recent draft regulations on business combinations, with specific reference to implications on foreign investors. Here are some excerpts: “A fundamental concern for foreign investors was the lack…
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Northern Rock: Bank Nationalisation
[Posted by Umakanth Varottil] As the Economist reports, Britain’s Government has decided to nationalise the ailing Northern Rock Bank, after unsuccessful efforts to sell it to a private player. The strategy followed recently by the Reserve Bank of India in the case of ailing Indian Banks has been somewhat different. It has usually exercised its…