IPO disclosures in AV format; SCI's demerged entity makes debut, and more

Coming soon: IPO disclosures in AV format

Investors may soon be able to consume disclosures made in IPO documents in an audio-visual format. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Tuesday floated a discussion paper seeking market feedback on the idea. “In order to create awareness among investors to not rely on unauthorized or unsolicited information about the public issues and based on inputs received from stakeholders, it has been decided that the disclosures made in the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) and RHP of public issues shall be made available in AV format for ease in understanding of the salient features of public issues,” the regulator has proposed. Sebi has said the AVs will have to be made in English and Hindi and should not exceed eight minutes. The AV will have to highlight the risk factors, capital structure, objects of the offer, financial information, litigations and material developments.

SCI spin-off debuts

Shares of Shipping Corporation of India Land & Assets (SCILAL), the demerged non-core entity of the state-run Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), finished at Rs 44.5 in their trading debut, giving the company a valuation of Rs 2,071 crore. This demerger is part of the government's strategic disinvestment plan to sell its majority stake in SCI. SCILAL, incorporated in November 2021, will hold SCI’s non-core assets. The demerger scheme, approved in February 2023, became effective on 14 March. SCI shareholders received one share in SCILAL for every share held in SCI.

Airtel arm, 3 others get IPO nod

Four companies, including Bharti Hexacom, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, have received approval from the market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), to launch their Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). In the IPO, government-owned Telecommunications Consultants will sell a 20 per cent stake of its 30 per cent holding. Bharti Airtel owns the remaining 70 per cent in Bharti Hexacom, a communications solutions provider in Rajasthan and the North East telecommunication circles. Solar engineering firm Jyoti Structures, engineering solutions provider Diffusion Engineers, and solar Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) company Rays Power Infra are the other three companies that have received Sebi’s nod for IPO.

Shares of Popular Vehicles drop 6% on debut

Shares of Popular Vehicles and Services, an automobile dealership firm, fell by over 6 per cent during their trading debut on Tuesday, adding to the list of recent IPO flops. The stock ended at Rs 276, down Rs 19, or 6.44 per cent, from its issue price of Rs 295. This marks the fourth consecutive IPO to list at a discount. Market players attribute the selloff in small-cap stocks as a factor weighing on recent listings. Popular Vehicles’ IPO was marginally oversubscribed with a 1.25 times subscription rate.