[Gaurav Pingle is a practising company secretary and can be reached at [email protected]] Considering the importance of independent directors on the boards of listed entities, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”) has been amending the provisions relating to their appointment, re-appointment, appointment process, remuneration, and the like under the SEBI (Listing Obligations and...
SEBI’s Proposals to Enhance Corporate Governance by Empowering Shareholders
Over the last decade and, in particular, following the enactment of the Companies Act, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has been gradually and consistently strengthening the governance norms pertaining to listed companies. Among other measures, SEBI has sought to focus on two specific matters, viz., (i) enhancing transparency in corporate matters; and (ii) empowering...
Debenture Holders’ Right to Object to Material Related Party Transactions
[Vinita Nair is a Senior Partner at Vinod Kothari & Company] The Securities and Exchange Board of India (‘SEBI’) continues to tighten the regulatory regime for debt-listed entities as it aims to promote the corporate bond market. After equating debt-listed entities with outstanding value of listed non-convertible debt securities of Rs. 500 crore and above with equity-listed entities for the...
Identification of Related Parties of Subsidiaries
[Aisha Begum Ansari is a Manager at Vinod Kothari and Company] The provisions pertaining to related party transactions (RPT) under the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 (the ‘LODR Regulations’) were substantially amended by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on November 9, 2021. Pursuant to the amendments, the definitions of a related party...
The Regulatory Progression of ESG in India
The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has had a pivotal status in the debates surrounding corporate law and governance at the turn of the century. Although CSR was ensconced in the idea of voluntarism by which companies and their boards are invited to pay attention to the interests of various constituencies affected by a company’s activities, in some jurisdictions such as India it...
Call for Papers: Journal on Governance
[Announcement on behalf of Journal on Governance] National Law University, Jodhpur is an institution of national prominence established under the National Law University, Jodhpur Act, 1999 by Rajasthan State Legislation. The University is established for the advancement of learning, teaching, research and diffusion of knowledge in the field of law. About the Journal The Centre for Corporate...
India’s Changing Landscape of ESG Disclosures
[Aanchal Kabra is a 5th year B.A. LLB (Hons.) student at the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata] Sustainable finance has been gaining considerable prominence in corporate India. This conception of finance refers to finance which integrates environmental, social, and governance (‘ESG’) criteria into business and investment decisions, in an effort to increase benefits to...
Double Materiality in Indian ESG Disclosures
[Aanchal Kabra is a 5th year B.A. LLB (Hons.) student at the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata] The concept of ‘materiality’ in financial disclosures was first introduced in the United States Securities Act of 1993. Thereafter, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (‘SEC’) has maintained a consistent understanding of what information constitutes...
Analyzing the Business Judgement Doctrine in the Indian Context
[Dhvani Shah is a penultimate year student at Gujarat National Law University] In January 2022, the Rajasthan High Court stayed trial court proceedings against Mr. Pratip Chaudhuri, ex-SBI Chairman, for an alleged bank loan scam. Mr. Chaudhuri was arbitrarily arrested for discrepancy in the sale of a non-performing asset (NPA) of the bank, i.e., the “Garh Rajwada hotel” to the Alchemist Asset...
Tackling ESG Mislabels and Greenwashing: SEC in the BNY Mellon Case
[Salini Augusty and Nikash John are 5th-year students from the School of Law, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru] Sustainable development has progressively become a driving factor in the age of conscious investments. This ‘green factor’ is arguably exploited by corporates to misdirect investors for their gains. The environment, social, and governance, better known as the ESG, though...
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