On September 22, 2015, an Adjudicating Officer (AO) of SEBI passed an order against PACL Limited and certain other persons imposing a penalty of Rs. 7,269.5 crores in connection with a case involving the illegal and fraudulent mobilization of funds from the public. This is said to be highest penalty that SEBI has ever imposed. Such a penalty was imposed under section 15HA of the Securities and...
SAT on Market Manipulation Involving GDRs
Last year, we had discussed a decision of the Supreme Court which clarified that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had jurisdiction over the issuance of global depository receipts (GDRs), due to which lead managers to such issuances would also come within the purview of SEBI if their actions were found to violate Indian securities law. This involved PAN Asia Advisors Limited and...
Withdrawal of Open Offer: A Debate Rekindled?
[The following post is contributed by Saumya Bhargava & Prateek Suri, who are Associates at AZB & Partners, New Delhi. Views expressed are personal.] [In an earlier post dated August 5, 2016, we had discussed an order relating to the open offer of Jyoti Limited in the context of circumstances under which an open offer is allowed to be withdrawn in India] Public announcement of an open...
Promoter Upside Sharing Arrangements in Listed Companies: SEBI Comes Down Hard
[The following post is contributed by Amitabh Robin Singh, who is a corporate lawyer practising in Mumbai. For another perspective on the topic, please see an earlier post on the Blog.] The Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI“) has released a discussion paper (“Paper“) to regulate certain arrangements between private equity investors and the promoters/top...
Takeover Regulations and the Banking Sector
Two separate but recent developments underscore the need to treat the banking sector differently when it comes to compliance with the SEBI (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 2011 (the “Takeover Regulations”). While the first relates to the applicability of the Takeover Regulations to capitalization of banks, the second relates to restructuring debts of borrower...
SEBI’s Stance on Crowdfunding Platforms
On 30 August 2016, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) issued a press release titled “SEBI Cautions Investors”. It covers various matters pertaining to the stock markets. One issue pertains to the question of leagues/ schemes/ competitions that may involve distribution of prize monies, which has been the subject matter of an earlier post on this Blog. Another aspect of SEBI’s...
A Tricky Game: The Legality of Fantasy Trading in India
[In this post, Sumit Agrawal, Partner and Surbhi Purohit, Associate from Suvan Law Advisors write about the increasing trend of stock market virtual games, apps and websites and how regulators may look at it. They can be reached at [email protected].] Background In recent times, the online stock trading apps and games have stirred up some controversy in the otherwise efficiently regulated realm...
Discretionary Portfolio Management and Insider Trading
The concept of discretionary portfolio management (“DPM”) is one whereby a portfolio manager makes investments on behalf of a client. The decisions regarding which investments must be made, and on what terms, are left to the portfolio manager. The client neither influences the decision-making of the portfolio manager nor does the client get involved in day-to-day investment decisions. Request and...
SEBI’s Discussion Paper on Algorithmic Trading
Background to Algorithmic Trading Similar to most other fields, the use of technology is being optimized in trading in the stock markets. Stock trading is getting increasingly automated through use of sophisticated computer systems that operate through algorithms, which minimize human involvement and decision-making. Not only does this lead to the extensive use of technology by stock traders and...
Withdrawal of an Offer under SEBI’s 2011 Takeover Regulations
Once a takeover offer is made, it is generally treated as sacrosanct. It is extremely difficult for acquirers to withdraw from the offer. This position has been clarified in a number of decisions of courts and appellate tribunals, including the Supreme Court. We have previously discussed the cases of Nirma Industries v. Securities and Exchange Board of India (2013) and SEBI v. Akshya...
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