Business
Independent directors must act responsibly: Sebi chief – The Times of India
MUMBAI: Tuhin Kanta Pandey, chairman, Sebi on Monday said that independent directors are expected to act responsibly, not make insinuations and keep things vague. The chief markets regulator’s comments came in the context of the recent resignation of Atanu Chakraborty as non-executive chairman of HDFC Bank, the largest private sector lender in the country.The markets regulator will be looking at all the aspects of the matter to bring out the facts leading to the resignation of the non-executive chairperson. Chakraborty, in the letter of resignation that came more than a year ahead of the scheduled end of his term at the bank, said that he was leaving because “certain happenings and practices within the bank” were “not in congruence” with his personal values and ethics. Chakraborty didn’t elaborate on the details of the ‘practices’ and ‘happenings’ in the bank that he did not agree with.Following the resignation of the chairman that came when the stock market was grappling with the impact of the war in West Asia, the HDFC Bank stock took a tumble. Since March 18, the night Chakraborty’s resignation was announced by the bank, to its March 23 close at Rs 744 on BSE, the stock has lost 11.3%. In comparison, BSE’s banking index has lost 7.3% while the PSU bank index has lost 5.2%.The Sebi chief said that as per listing and disclosure rules of the stock exchanges, in case there are issues and ethical concerns, the same should have been in the minutes of the meeting. Independent directors hold very important positions and they have explicit powers to question the management, he said.“No one is expected to make insinuations without proper evidence and recordings,” the Sebi chief told reporters at the media meeting after the regulator had a board meeting earlier in the day. He said there are codes of conduct for independent directors and there are processes under the rules which such directors should follow. “We can’t keep things vague,” he said.Pandey reminded that as per statutes, independent directors should act as the protectors of the interests of minority shareholders and should act ‘responsibly’.Since Chakraborty’s resignation, the bank’s market capitalisation has dipped by a little over Rs 1.5 lakh crore with its current value at Rs 11.4 lakh crore on BSE.
MUMBAI: The rupee closed at a record 93.98/$ on Monday, down 35 paise from its previous close of 92.63. In the process, it breached its prior low of 93.73 and briefly slipped past 94 after market hours. Sensing the impact of the West Asia conflict on the Indian economy through inflation, growth and current account deficit, investors dumped equities, bonds and the local currency as war fears stoked risks of prolonged energy disruption.Foreign portfolio investors pulled more than $11 billion from equities and bonds in March, marking the heaviest outflows since Oct 2024 and adding pressure on the rupee. The immediate trigger was US President Trump’s 48 hour deadline to Iran to open up the Hormuz Strait. However, post market hours, Trump announced postponing the deadline to strike Iran’s power plant leading to gains in financial markets.“The rupee traded sharply weaker below 93.95, declining by 0.37%, as escalating tensions in West Asia continue to weigh heavily on the currency. Rising crude oil prices have significantly weakened sentiment, with India’s position as a net importer leading to higher outflows and a widening import bill,” said Jateen Trivedi, analyst with LKP Securities. Since the Feb 28 onset of the Iran war, the rupee has dropped around 3%.
MUMBAI: The board of markets regulator Sebi on Monday approved some major changes to the disclosure rules governing the chairman, whole time members (WTMs) and other senior officials of the body. These changes, including public disclosure of their own assets and liabilities, and of their family members, were mostly based on the recommendations of the high-level committee (HLC) on conflict of interest of the senior officials and board members of Sebi.The market regulator’s board also approved changes to some of the rules governing foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) that would allow these investors to net out their trades in the equity cash segment of the market. Under the new disclosure norms, the Sebi WTMs will be categorised as ‘insiders’, the regulator said in a release. All these officials will have uniform application of restrictions on investments and trading (in equity and equity-related instruments, other than permitted investments in mutual funds etc.) as currently applicable to employees, the release said. Also, they could invest in any pooled vehicle, provided the scheme is professionally managed by a regulated market intermediary.The new rules also mandated that when an official joins Sebi as its chairman or a WTM, the official will have four options to choose from for existing equity investments. The official could liquidate all the investments, freeze them, sell the investments according to a trading plan or sell them without a trading plan with prior approval.“Investments in equity and equity-related instruments in commercial ventures (including unlisted companies) must be fully liquidated or kept frozen” during the tenure of the official. “Vested options, if any, must be exercised before joining Sebi,” the release said.The HLC was formed in April 2025, soon after Tuhin Kanta Pandey, then a top bureaucrat in the finance ministry, took over as top markets regulator. A panel on the issue was necessitated after there were allegations of conflict of interest with the previous Sebi chief, which were denied by the official.
Energy prices fall and stock markets rebound after the US president says “very good and productive” talks have been held.
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