Saturday, October 30, 2021

TEXT OF SUGGESTIONS GIVEN TO SEBI ON IPO REFORMS

SMALL  INVESTORS’ WELFARE ASSOCIATION

Regn No. F-72744 (M)

Email : SirenBajao@gmail.com

Ref. Consultation paper on review of price band and book building framework for public issues

       Please abolish the Price band system: Why insist on price bands? Why not abolish it completely and simplify the process? This has served no purpose. If  at all, it has served negatively . A normal educated person just cannot apply independently.   

2.       Please simplify the process of making an application in IPO: although the amount of information to be filled has been greatly reduced to minimal, the main problem stems from the price band. How to calculate the lot size and number of shares to be subscribed. One will need an expert to do that. Under the present regime of price band system, for making an application in an IPO, one must take the help of brokers and experts. You may try it out in your office like a fun game and see how many of the officer who volunteer to participate in the exercise are able to complete an IPO application and how much time it takes to fill it up,

3.       Just as a legal compulsory compliance, a miniscule price difference is made in IPO:   the issuers/merchant bankers have to give 2 price points, without there being much difference in the upper and lower price. SEBI has recently directed  that there should be greater difference in the price bands. But why insist on price band at all. All successful IPO are always on the upper price bands. Even in unsuccessful IPOs when price bands were revised lower, the ultimate subscription was on the upper price band.

4.       Please abolish the Lot size in IPO: With the electronic mode of trading, there is no concept of lot size as it was under the vintage OUTCRY system. One can easily sell even 1or13or189 or 1000 shares with equal ease. When there is no lot size for trading in the market, why have lot size for IPO application? Lot size has been made only because of price bands and the desire of SEBI to help small investors. Thus the lower integer number obtained by dividing 15000 by the price is declared as lot size.  

5.       Allow investors to make an informed decision- make future projections compulsory:  As a mischief legislation, projections and all forward looking statements were banned by SEBI.  As a consequence, the investors have to play blind. When we buy even a bottle of shampoo, we read the promise that it will make our hair soft and silky etc. but the issuers are able to collect thousands of crores without making any promise or any obligation on themselves that how they will make investors’ money grow! Today, investment in IPO is just because of the euphoria created by the brokers and grey market premium. In our guess not even 10% of the investors in Zomato would not know that the company is not likely to report profit in the next couple of years. If projection was made compulsory, such euphoria could not have been created.

6.       Mandate proper information in the IPO announcements:  Please check again any 50/100 announcements that appear in Newspapers for IPO and see what value an investor derives from it? These statutory announcements are actually advertisements for merchant bankers etc. Kindly check   percentage of space dedicated to information that will help an investor make a decision. It will not be more than 20%.

7.       Make KEY INFORMATION MEMORANDUM mandatory:  This should be short and crisp. Some basic information like area of operation, products, competitors, key customers, geographies that it caters to, GPM, EPS, PE, Industry PE, a statement from the management why a person should invest in the company and any other information thought fit by you.

Our pointwise suggestions in the desired format is given below. In case you plan to have any formal meeting and discussion, we shall be happy to participate in the same.

 

Sr. No.

Reference Para of the consultation paper

Suggestion/ Comments

Rationale

1

4.1

The price band system should be abolished completely

As given in detail above

a.       Serves no purpose

b.       Makes the process of share application very complicated

c.       Failed to live up to its expectations

d.       Does allow calculation of simple ratios like PE etc.

e.       Neither the investors nor the issuers find it useful but just abide as legal compliance  

2

4.1.1

No need for minimum price band in public issue

Serves no purpose

 

3

4.2

Yes. This is a very good move. NII category may be further divided into two sub-categories.

But we differ on the Band and allocation

 

i Sub-category 1: 50% of the allocation earmarked for NIIs shall be for application sizes ranging above INR 15,001 and upto INR 10 lakhs.

 

 

ii. Sub-category 2: 50% of the allocation earmarked for NIIs shall be for applications above INR 10 lakhs.

 

 

This will enable self funded midsized investors get better allocation.

There are many small investors who do not realise that in a heavily oversubscribed issue and application of minimum 15000 or upto 2,00,000 will hold the same chance of allotment under the present system of allocation.

We therefore suggest that

a.       small investors / Retail category should have only one size 15,000

 

b.       NII Sub-category 1 INR 15,001 and upto INR 10 lakhs

c.       NII Sub-category 2 above  INR 10 lakhs

 

 

This suggestion is mainly from the angle of making the equity culture more popular and distributing available opportunity for gain to larger number of people rather than allowing smaller number of people earning large profits.

4

4.3

proportionate allotment in case of NII category should not be discontinued

SEBI’s one of the objectives is to grow the capital market. Proportionate allotment will make many more happy investors. No one will consider himself unlucky, or manipulation  because it is a sheer mathematical calculation. On the other hand draw of lots will make some very happy and many very frustrated. A repeat of non- allotment may wean away many investors from the capital market. 

5

4.3.1

Yes, NII category be subdivided into two, with one sub-category exclusively for not so large NIIs.

As explained in para 3 above.

6

4.3.2

50%

As explained in para 3 above.

7

4.3.3

Sub-Category-1 INR 15,001 and upto INR 10 lakhs.

 

Sub-category 2: above INR 10 lakhs.

Note- there must be a cap on the maximum size of one single application. No application can be for more than the size reserved for that category.

 

As explained in para 3 above.

 

In sub-category -2 if the maximum size cap is not there, it may lead to some kind of manipulation. I am remined of the manipulated issued of Bharat Rodd Networks.  The matter was reported to SEBI my the undersigned but unfortunately no corrective action was taken and investors lost heavily. The promoter Group SREI, is now under liquidation.

8

4.3.4

Allotment methodology for NII category – should be Proportionate.

Draw of lots makes IPO a game of chance, even for larger amount. Moreover it is against the basic objective of SEBI to grow a healthy capital market. More number of allottees mean  higher participation by the population.

 

 

 


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