Uday Kotak reduces stake in Kotak Bank to 29.79%

Uday Kotak, head of Kotak Mahindra Bank, sold a less than one per cent stake in the lender in stock market transactions on Monday, complying with a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) order to cut his holding.

The RBI asked Kotak to lower his holding in the bank to 30 per cent by end-June, 20 per cent by end-December next year, and to 15 per cent by March 31, 2020. On Monday, Kotak sold 18 million shares in the lender for Rs 1,687 crore, lowering his ownership of the bank to 29.79 per cent, according to a regulatory filing.

In March, Kotak sold an about 1.5 per cent stake in the bank to Canada's two largest pension funds — CPPIB and CDPQ.

Earlier this month, the bank raised about Rs 5,800 crore by selling new shares to funds, diluting Kotak's holding further. 

Ahead of the deal on Monday, Kotak owned 30.74 per cent of the lender. Shares in Kotak Mahindra Bank, which has the third-highest market capitalisation among India's banks, closed 0.4 per cent higher at Rs 941.25 on Monday.

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