Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), on Thursday proposed to ease norms for infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs) as a way to encourage firms to unlock capital.

In September 2014, the capital markets regulator had allowed firms to launch real estate investment trusts (REITs) and InvITs to help cash-strapped developers get easier access to funds while creating a new investment avenue for institutions and wealthy individuals. However, infrastructure companies have been slow to respond as they sought a relaxation in rules and clarity on taxation.

The appointment of senior lawyer Arun Sathe, who is also a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician and brother of the Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, as a part time member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has evoked strong views among various stakeholders in the market.

While some like former Sebi chairman Damodaran feel appointing a political person in itself does not amount to "overt or covert" politicisation of Sebi, others are critical about the BJP government's urge to have its "ideologists" in every institution in the country.

Coffee Day Enterprises, which runs the country's biggest coffee chain Cafe Coffee Day, has received markets regulator Sebi's go-ahead to raise Rs 1,150 crore through initial public offering (IPO).

The firm had filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with Sebi through its lead merchant banker Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Limited on June 26 this year.

The service tax department has got the nod from finance ministry to go ahead with its ongoing investigation against the stock markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for not paying service tax of Rs 250 crore since 2012.

In a letter on Wednesday, the ministry of finance has told the Mumbai service tax department to continue its investigation and initiate further course of action.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has told the Bombay High Court that it was investigating complaints against Financial Technologies and its connected entities and promoters including founder Jignesh Shah.

The complaints filed by investors of National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL) alleged several irregularities and violations of Sebi Act and alleged breach of Regulations such as (a) Insider Trading Regulations; (b) Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices and (c) Failure of disclosure under the Takeover Code and other issues.

Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley has informed Parliament that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has not published any list of more than 100 benami, bogus ponzy scheme companies.

He said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha that chit funds are regulated under the Chit Funds Act, 1982 and require previous sanction of the state governments. He also said that the Prize Chit and Money Circulation (Banning) Act, 1978 bans prize chits and money circulation activities is enforced by state governments.

Capital markets regulator Sebi has started cracking down on offshore units of major global banks for their suspected role in manipulation of share prices in the Indian stock market.

Top officials said the regulator is closely looking at possible instances where share prices of companies listed in the domestic stock market are being manipulated through offshore centres of foreign banks.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has banned Trinamool Congress MP Kanwar Deep Singh and his associates from participating in the market for alleged illegal fund raising by an entity called Alchemist Capital. The regulator has asked the company and people associated with it including Singh to refund over Rs 165 crore raised from investors with 15 per cent interest compounded half yearly. Sebi has said if the proof of compliance with the directions of refund were not submitted in three months' time, it would initiate criminal action against promoters and directors.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), equipped with the additional power of taking action in illegal mobilisation of funds through collective investment schemes (CIS), is yet to overcome the hurdle of local constraints, sources say.

According to people familiar with the matter, the markets regulator has adopted a pro-active approach to look into complaints of probable cases of CIS and taking action, but any such action leads only to half a crackdown.

Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has cautioned investors against investing money in companies that make a public offer without complying with the necessary legal and regulatory framework. Since January 2013, the capital market watchdog has taken action against 193 such entities, according to a press release issued on Friday.

“Some unlisted companies are luring retail investors by issuing securities, including non-convertible and convertible debentures/ non-convertible and convertible preference shares/ equity shares in the garb of private placement, without complying with the provisions of Companies Act, 1956 read with the Companies Act, 2013, Sebi (Issue and Listing of Debt Securities), Regulations, 2008, Sebi (Issue and Listing of Non-Convertible Redeemable Preference Shares), Regulations, 2013 and Sebi (Issue of capital and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2009,” said the release.

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