FIIs need RBI nod to buy further shares in Kotak Mahindra Bank

Mumbai: Foreign shareholding in private sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank has hit the trigger limit for foreign institutional investors (FIIs), and any further purchases of bank’s share by them will be allowed only after the Reserve Bank of India’s approval.

RBI has been monitoring the foreign investment limit under the portfolio investment scheme (PIS) in the bank which has hit the trigger point.

“Hence, further purchases of equity shares of this company would be allowed only after obtaining prior approval of the RBI,” the central bank said in a release on Wednesday.

As per the data available on the BSE, FIIs held 31.68% shares in Kotak Mahindra Bank as of quarter ended 31 March 2014.

FIIs, non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origins (PIOs) can invest in primary and secondary capital markets in India through PIS.

RBI monitors the ceilings on FII/NRI/PIO investments in Indian companies on a daily basis. To effectively monitor the limit, RBI has fixed cut-off points two percentage points lower than the actual ceiling.

The shares of the bank closed at Rs.960, up 2.19% on the BSE.

Kotak Mahindra Group