BSE shareholders vote for listing; dilution of stake via OFS

The shareholders of BSE on June 24 voted for the proposed initial public offer (IPO) of the exchange and are expected to offload at least 10 percent stake of the total BSE's equity through offer for sale.

The exchange held its annual general meeting (AGM) on June 24 to seek shareholders' approval for the listing.

"The shareholders have voted on the proposed IPO/OFS by the exchange and the results would be out in next three days," sources told PTI.

The IPO could be entirely an offer for sale (OFS) if BSE shareholders agree to offload at least 10 percent stake of the exchange's total equity, the sources said.

A maximum of 30 percent of BSE's equity can be offloaded.

The exchange has about 8,000 shareholders comprising brokers and institutions.

BSE (formerly known as Bombay Stock Exchange) has already appointed Edelweiss Financial Services as the lead merchant banker and AZB & Partners and Nishith Desai Associates as legal advisors to the issue.

BSE has also proposed to create an advisory committee that would consist of selling shareholders for transparency in the listing process.

The exchange said in March that it plans to come out with its initial share-sale program in the next six-nine months.

The announcement came after receiving in-principle approval from SEBI for listing.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) notified amendments to the Stock Exchanges and Clearing Corporations regulations on January 1. The new rules are aimed at making it easier for stock exchanges to list their shares through an IPO.

Soon after the amendments, the exchange had sought approval for launching the IPO, saying it is in compliance with all the requirements for listing.

It has been seeking nod to get listed for a long time, but necessary clearances were not forthcoming on one issue or the other.