Pentamedia Asks Bse Time Till Friday

Pentamedia Graphics has sought time from the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) until September 28, by which date it expects to retrieve the shares which are in the custody of Centurion Bank. These shares were issued in a private placement, with a lock-in clause. However, the shares apparently found their way into the open market and are currently lodged with Centurion Bank as security against loans.

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), to whom the matter was referred by the BSE and National Stock Exchange on Monday, has written to the National Securities Depository Ltd, the company's registrars Integrated Enterprises Ltd and Centurion Bank asking them to furnish details of the entire transaction and the current status. Sebi has asked for all documents related to the deal, sources said.

The company has earlier said that it would rectify the matter by September 20, but the deadline expired without any positive developments. The two exchanges are now contemplating some final decision with regard to the company.

The entire issue is over how the Rs 50 crore worth of preferential allotment made by Pentamedia to Malu Financial Securities in January this year could have found its way into the hands of Nikko Broker Pvt Ltd which allegedly pledged it with Centurion Bank. The shares are not supposed to be sold, transferred or hypothecated till January 2002. In the face of conflicting answers from Pentamedia and Malu, BSE launched its investigations into the deal.

While Pentamedia claimed that the shares were allotted to Nikko under instructions from Malu, the latter initially denied having instructed the company. They even filed a petition with the Company Law Board, Chennai against Nikko - but later withdrew it. They then retracted this stand and informed BSE in a letter that Nikko was their safe custodian and was holding the shares on their behalf. By this time the shares had been pledged with Centurion Bank, which refused to part with it until the money advanced against it was returned.