Sebi free to freeze accounts of Sahara, says Supreme Court

New Delhi, February 06, 2013

                   The Supreme Court on Wednesday told market regulator Sebi that it was free to freeze accounts and seize properties of Sahara group’s two companies for defying court orders by not refunding Rs. 24,000 crore to investors. A special bench of Justice KS Radhakrishnan and Justice JS Khehar also pulled up Sebi for not taking action against the companies - Sahara India Real Estate Corporation(SIREC) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation (SHIC) - in accordance with its August 31, 2012 order that allowed the regulator to attach properties and freeze companies’ bank accounts in case of a violation.
Acting on Sebi’s contempt petition, the bench also issued notice to the group and gave it four weeks time to respond as to why contempt action should not be initiated against the companies for not complying with its order.
”What steps are you taking? You are not taking any action. The judgement tells you what to do but you are not doing it,” the bench told
Sebi counsel arguing the contempt petition. It wasn’t satisfied by Sebi’s contention that the market regulator had approached civil court in Bombay for freezing the companies’ bank accounts. The regulator added it had also issued notice to the Sahara companies.
“Why you gave notice and did not take action. You have to execute our order,” the bench said.
It also made clear that proceedings pending before it on contempt plea against the companies would not come in the way of Sebi taking action against the group.
The Sahara group, however, maintained that large portion of the amount had already been redeemed to investors before the judgement was delivered. Sahara, represented by senior advocate Ram Jethmalani, also said that nothing is due and it is difficult to deposit Rs. 10,000 crore.
    The SC had on August 31 last year directed the two companies to refund around Rs. 24,000 crore to their investors within three months with 15% interest per annum for raising the amount from its investors in violation of rules and regulations.



Touhid Hussain
PGDM 2nd Semester

Panasonic shares soar nearly 17% on earnings

Panasonic
           shares soared nearly 17 percent on Monday as investors reacted to the Japanese electronics giant's latest earnings, while rivals Sony and Sharp also spiked on upbeat sentiment.Panasonic closed 16.89 percent higher at 692 yen in Tokyo, following the company's announcement after the close of Friday's session that it posted an operating profit of 121.95 billion yen ($1.32 billion) in the nine months to December, and a 61.4 billion yen net profit in the last three months of 2012.That marked a huge reversal from a net loss of 197.6 billion yen a year earlier, with Panasonic citing aggressive cost-cutting as part of a massive corporate overhaul aimed at stemming record loss.


Arusi Singh
PGDM 1st year 

Peerless Mutual Fund launches cash investment facility

Allahabad Bank

BSE

155.10

-4.45 (-2.79%)

Vol:184226 shares traded

NSE

155.15

-4.30 (-2.70%)

Vol:1937096 shares traded

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MUMBAI: Mutual fund house Peerless Mutual Fund has started the option of cash investment to tap the un-banked customers in retail mutual fund schemes through select Allahabad BankBSE -2.79 % branches.

This initiative is in accordance with Sebi's guidelines of allowing cash investments by investors up to Rs 20,000 per investor, per mutual fund every financial year.

"We aim to cater to the un-banked customers in tier-III and tier-IV locations through this facility.

"Allahabad Bank has a strong presence in these markets and synergy of both organisations will help customers, who wish to take advantage of the growing capital markets through our schemes," Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Peerless Funds Management Company, Akshay Gupta said in a release.

The cash purchase facility is available immediately at select Allahabad Bank branches and will be further extended gradually to 2,500 branches across the country, he added.

According to the company, the combination of cash investments coupled with non-requirement of PAN for such investors will widen the reach of mutual funds among semi-urban and rural segments.

 Priya

PGDM 1st year

 

 

 

 

Govt may go for strategic sale in IFCI

 

 

 

 

 

NEW DELHI:

 After acquiring a majority control in IFCI, the government may opt for a strategic sale as part of its plan to dilute its stakeholding in what was the country's oldest financial institution. Sources said the view in government is that the Centre has managed to realize a good value on its investment of Rs 900 crore, which was given to IFCI by way of convertible shares at the start of the millennium.

But given that it does not have a business plan for it, the best route would be to sell it to another player, especially when development financial institutions that specialized in offering term loans are no longer seen to be relevant.

In fact, when IFCI shareholders tried to rope in a strategic investor five years ago, the uncertainty over how the government would deal with the convertible shares had resulted in muted response. In fact, with Sterlite being the only remaining player in the fray, the sale process was abandoned. 

 

AVINASH KUMAR

 PGDM 1 st year

 

 

 

Stock market update

Mumbai: At 14: 14 p.m.: * The 30-share BSE index Sensex is up 0.17 percent while the 50-share NSE Nifty index rises 0.1 percent.
* Tata Motors Ltd gains 4.8 percent after briefly plunging as much as 10 percent on Friday because of a technology trading glitch from brokerage Religare Capital Markets.
* Power Finance Corp Ltd and Rural Electrification Corp Ltd shares gain over 4 percent each on speculation the government is preparing to offer new incentives to revive stalled power projects.
* ICICI Bank adds 1.8 percent after falling 3.4 percent in the previous two sessions.
* Bank of Baroda shares fall 6.5 percent after the bank's October-December earnings disappointed investors.
* Shares in IDFC fell 4.5 percent after the lender and consultant for infrastructure projects registered a weak loan growth in the December quarter.



Kushnak Singhal

Stock market update

Mumbai: At 14: 14 p.m.: * The 30-share BSE index Sensex is up 0.17 percent while the 50-share NSE Nifty index rises 0.1 percent.
* Tata Motors Ltd gains 4.8 percent after briefly plunging as much as 10 percent on Friday because of a technology trading glitch from brokerage Religare Capital Markets.
* Power Finance Corp Ltd and Rural Electrification Corp Ltd shares gain over 4 percent each on speculation the government is preparing to offer new incentives to revive stalled power projects.
* ICICI Bank adds 1.8 percent after falling 3.4 percent in the previous two sessions.
* Bank of Baroda shares fall 6.5 percent after the bank's October-December earnings disappointed investors.
* Shares in IDFC fell 4.5 percent after the lender and consultant for infrastructure projects registered a weak loan growth in the December quarter.


PGDM 2nd
Kushank Singhal

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