SBI says lenders awaiting SEBI decision on Etihad offer for Jet Airways: paper

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The State Bank of India (SBI)-led consortium of lenders is waiting for the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to decide on a bailout offer by Etihad Airways for the financially stressed Jet Airways, SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said, the Business Standard reported on Saturday.

The UAE-based carrier, which is a major shareholder in Jet, is seeking an exemption from SEBI on preference pricing and open offer guidelines to increase its stake in the cash-strapped carrier.

"We are nobody to reject anybody's resolution plan. We are saying that there is a regulation governed by SEBI. What we have to see is that what SEBI says," Kumar was quoted by the newspaper as saying.

Etihad, which holds a 24 percent stake in India's second-largest airline, has made an offer to invest only at rupees 150 per share, which is 53 percent of Jet's closing price of rupees 281.35 on Friday.

(Writing by Neha Dasgupta; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)