Mumbai, Aug 31 (IANS) The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued observations on the National Stock Exchange’s (NSE) initial public offering (IPO)’s draft papers and is awaiting a response from its lead managers, a report has said.
As per analysis by Business Line, the regulator issued observations on NSE’s draft papers.
The exchange and its appointed merchant bankers are expected to respond before the regulator takes a final view on the proposal, it added.
The development comes a day after SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said the regulator was close to approving NSE’s draft papers, signalling progress in an IPO process that has faced delays for nearly a decade.
NSE had filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with SEBI in June for an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 148.9 million equity shares with a face value of Re 1 each.
The proposed share sale represents about 6 per cent of the exchange’s paid-up capital.
The issue does not include a fresh issue component and all proceeds from the offering will go to the selling shareholders.
NSE’s plans to go public have been held up for years due to regulatory concerns, including matters relating to the co-location and dark fibre cases.
The listing proposal gathered momentum earlier this year after the exchange received a no-objection certificate from SEBI following which its board approved the IPO plan.
Last month, SEBI in-principle agreed to settle applications filed by NSE in the co-location and dark fibre matters for Rs 1,491.21 crore.
According to the report, the exchange is currently estimated to be valued at around Rs 5 lakh crore in the unlisted market.
Apart from that, reports claim that the exchange NSE is exploring the ‘Permitted to Trade’ (PTT) route to allow its shares to be traded on NSE while remaining formally listed on the BSE.
–IANS
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