Abhishek Securities

Asia’s oldest bourse, BSE’s share price in the grey market (channels that are legal but unintended by the entity), has surged in the past few days as the exchange gradually moves towards an initial public offering (IPO) of equity. After being mostly steady in the past three months, the price has picked up momentum, gaining 10 per cent to Rs 355 in the past 10 days, after the bourse set up an escrow account to enable shareholders to tender shares in its Offer for Sale (OFS), said sources. The shares have gained about 25 per cent in six months, posting a sharp spike after  BSE  told the Securities and Exchange Board of India in a letter dated January 22 that it was fully compliant with regulations and ready to list for an IPO. In the past two years, BSE shares have zoomed more than two times in off-market trades, added sources. “The shares are moving up in anticipation of a listing. The grey market is an illiquid market, as there are hardly any participants. The real price discov

Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings is looking to acquire more than 10% stake in Kerala­based Catholic Syrian Bank (CSB), people familiar with the development told ET. Watsa’s latest Indian bet is seen as part of the Canadian billionaire’s plan to establish a conglomerate in India with interests in fields ranging from banking, insurance, broking, infrastructure and chemicals. A proposal to this regard has also been submitted to the Reserve Bank of India, sources said. “The bank needs constant capital… We are talking to many investors including Fairfax,” said S Santhanakrishnan chairman, Catholic Syrian Bank. A mail sent to Fairfax Financial did not elicit any response until press time on Sunday. The banking regulator in May issued new guidelines on ownership in private sector banks by bundling shareholding patterns into two broad categories of individuals (natural persons) and legal entities/institutions. Acquisition of shareholding in a private sector bank by

RBL Bank (formerly Ratnakar Bank) is mulling at tying up with an online spending aggregator which can keep track of consumers’ spending patterns and give a credit card based on it. This step will necessarily skip checking the credit score, which has been one of the key parameters for giving credit cards in the aftermath of the 2008-09 crisis, when bad loans shot up in the this segment. However, bankers are now saying that a sneak peek into the monthly spend pattern can also be a good measure to understand the consumer. “A credit score shows that a consumer hasn’t defaulted in the past. However, that doesn’t mean that he/she won’t in the future. However, if I know your monthly spend and buying patterns for the last 12 months and there is consistency in it, even that can be a good determinant to know the kind of customer you are and based on that I can offer you a  card,” said a bank official from RBL. In fact, now that bad loans in the retail segment have been limited in the past f

IT company  L&T  Infotech  today said it is "activity" scouting for acquisitions to strengthen its offerings in areas such as analytics, consulting and Internet of Things.  The mid-sized IT company, which will come out with over Rs 1,200-crore IPO on July 11, said it would be interested in buys in the US,  Europe  or even Indian market. "We are looking at the US and European markets predominantly as the  acquisition  has to cater to that market by selling to our 250-plus customers. We will also look at Indian companies that serve customers in the US and Europe," Sanjay Jalona, CEO and MD of Larsen and Toubro Infotech said at a conference.  Besides, analytics, consulting and Internet of Things, another area of interest for the company is cloud-based infrastructure transformation. Put simply, Internet of Things links smart everyday objects to the net, allowing them to send and receive data.  "Acquisition is an integral part of a services company as it

I’m living in London for the last 5 years. I have few Indian stocks and want to book a profit. How will I be taxed? —Sayantan Chandra Capital gain from sale of shares of an Indian company is taxable in India. The taxability will depend on the nature of the asset, holding period and residential status of the seller. Capital gain on sale of equities listed on a recognised stock exchange in India will be classified as long term if held for more than 12 months. Long-term capital gains (LTCG) from share sale are tax exempt provided securities transaction tax has been paid. Short-term capital gains (STCG) on sale of listed equity shares are taxable at 15% plus applicable surcharge and education cess provided securities transaction tax has been paid; an effective tax rate of 17.77%. Capital gain on sale of unlisted shares will be classified as long term if held for more than 24 months. STCG on sale of such equity shares are taxable at applicable marginal tax rate, plus applicable surc

Ahead of its proposed initial public offering, Asia's oldest bourse  BSE today warned investors against unauthorised offers to purchase or deal in the shares of the exchange that are unlisted currently.  BSE is expected to file  IPO  papers with market  regulator  Sebi  next month to mop-up Rs 800 crore.  The exchange's initial share-sale programme may hit the market this financial year.  Warning investors against unauthorised offers, BSE said in a notice, "Certain persons and/or entities have been circulating communications soliciting offer to purchase/deal in the shares of the exchange while such shares are unlisted."  It further said, "Such communications have not been directly or indirectly solicited or prompted by the Exchange, nor does the exchange endorse communications of such nature in any manner whatsoever. Any offer or solicitation pursuant to such communications should be carefully evaluated with respect to their legality as well as the risks invo

Philippe Delpech, President, Otis We will be manufacturing escalators in India soon, says Philippe Delpech, President, Otis Otis built the first elevator in the world 163 years ago and has since been the leader in the industry uninterrupted. The company, which is now a part of United Technologies Corporation, maintains about two million elevators in 200 countries/territories across the world moving about two billion people everyday. Philippe Delpech, President, was on a visit to India recently. BusinessLine caught up with him in Chennai. Excerpts from the interview: What kind of innovations are we seeing in the elevator business? The elevator is going to go through a dramatic revolution. I think what will happen in the next decade is that the digital part will be the big stream of innovation. Basically, if you visualise the elevator, it is a box going up and down — very safe, pretty sophisticated if you look at the system. It is connected to the other el

After two months of lull, activity in primary markets has started to pick up as five initial public offerings (IPOs) with a combined value of more than `5,000 crore are set to hit markets in the next one month. While the public offering of Mahanagar Gas has already opened, Quess Corp will launch its initial share sale during next week. Ratnakar Bank(RBL), L&T Infotech and Advanced Enzyme are also likely to announce their public offering by mid-July. If these public offerings manage to sail through, the total fund raising via IPO route in CY16 would cross `10,000-crore mark. In 2016 so far, ten companies have tapped primary markets to raise `6,743.69 crore, Prime Database showed. Apart from these, there are more than 10 companies including Sandhar Technologies, GNA Axles and Centre For Sight who have received a nod from the markets regulator for an IPO and are waiting for the right time to launch their share sales. According to Prithvi Haldea founder of Prime Database, al

The RINL is conducting a mineral exploration survey by the Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited in Bhilwara region of Rajasthan where it has been allotted low-grade iron ore. After picking up majority equity in Eastern Investments Limited through a payment of Rs.360.30 crore in 2010, the RINL had pinned high hopes on getting mines in Odisha. The EIL has strategic control over the Orissa Mining Development Corporation. “We have legitimate right to get captive mines in Odisha. The Centre should not show step-motherly treatment to RINL and clear legal hurdles in getting iron ore through OMDC at the earliest to save production cost. At the same time, the State Government should bring pressure on Centre to clear allotment of Kukunoor mines,” Visakha Steel Employees’ Congress (recognised union of VSP) general secretary Mantri Rajasekhar said. The RINL has a long-term agreement with the National Mineral Development Corporation for supply of iron ore from Bailadila in Chhattisgarh

I have received shares under the employee stock option plan (ESOP) from my employer. Can you please explain the tax liability on selling these shares? —Kishore Shah There are two stages of taxation for shares allotted to employees under ESOP. The first point is when the shares are allotted by the employer company. The same is taxed as salary or perquisite in the hands of the employee. The second is when the employee sells the shares allotted to her under ESOP. At this stage, the gains are taxed as capital gains. In the first stage, the difference between the shares’ fair market value (FMV) on the date of exercise and the exercise price paid by the employee, if any, is taxable as perquisite or salary on the date of allotment of shares. Accordingly, the employer would compute and deduct the tax on perquisite or salary resulting from allotment of shares to you under ESOP. The income and the perquisite tax deducted by the company thereon would be reflected in your Form 16. Furt