Regulatory updates

SEBI received various representations to expand the definition of ‘QIB’ in order to increase the potential investor base for issuers of debt securities and for further developing the debt markets. In this regard, on 16 May 2023, SEBI issued a consultation paper on expanding the definition of QIB for debt securities (the consultation paper).

Some of the entities which have been proposed to be covered within the definition of QIB include:

• Multistate cooperatives with net worth of more than INR500 crore
• Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFC) and Housing Finance Companies (HFCs) regulated by RBI
• Regulatory authorities, autonomous bodies, authorities, boards or commissions or agencies, authorities, organisations or entities established, owned or controlled by the Central Government or a State Government
• Reinsurance companies regulated by IRDAI
• SEBI regulated entities with net worth of more than INR500 crore subject to guidelines specified by SEBI, etc.

The comment period ended on 29 May 2023.

To access the text of the consultation paper, please click here

The Unpublished Price Sensitive Information (UPSI) defined under SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations, 2015 (PIT Regulations) means ‘any information, relating to a company or its securities, directly or indirectly, that is not generally available which upon becoming generally available, is likely to materially affect the price of the securities and shall, ordinarily include but not be restricted to, information relating to the following:

• Financial results
• Dividends
• Change in capital structure
• Mergers, de-mergers, acquisitions, delistings, disposals and expansion of business and such other transactions
• Changes in key managerial personnel.

SEBI, in its board meeting dated 29 March 2023 had approved the proposal for review and rationalisation of the disclosure of material events or information by listed entities.

Further, it was observed that certain information/events which are disclosed as material events in accordance with the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015 (LODR Regulations) and should have been categorised as UPSI were not done so by the listed entities, thus highlighting that companies were not exercising due care in this regard.

Consequently, on 18 May 2023, SEBI issued a consultation paper, proposing that the current definition of UPSI be amended and the disclosures as required under Regulation 30 of the LODR Regulations be considered and disclosed as UPSI under the PIT Regulations.

The comment period ended on 2 June 2023

To access the text of the consultation paper, please click here

In November 2018, SEBI introduced Unified Payment Interface (UPI) as an additional payment mechanism with Application Supported by Blocked Amount (ASBA) for retail individual investors and prescribed the timelines for listing within six days of closure of issue (T+6), ’T’ being the day of the closure of issue.

Over the last few years, SEBI has undertaken a series of systemic enhancements across all the key stakeholders of the Initial Public Offering (IPO) ecosystem to streamline the activities involved in processing of public issues. In this regard, on 20 May 2023, it issued a consultation paper on reduction of timeline for listing of shares in public issue from existing T+6 days to T+3 days.

The comment period ended on 3 June 2023.

To access the text of the consultation paper, please click here