Sebi shortens timelines, eases advertising requirements to ease issue of debt securities

The announcements were made on June 27

Market regulator SEBI has introduced various measures to ease the public issue of debt securities and non-convertible redeemable preference shares, including reducing timelines for various processes and flexibility in advertising the issue.

After meeting with its Board on June 27, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) announced measures to improve flexibility for the issuers.

The press statement said, "With a view to facilitate ease of doing business and provide flexibility to Issuers, the Board has approved the proposal to streamline the public issue process for debt securities and NCRPS to provide:

1. Faster access to funds to issuers through:

1a. Reduction in the period for seeking public comments on the draft offer documents from 7 working days to 1 day for issuers whose specified securities are already listed and 5 days for other issuers.

1b) Reduction in the minimum subscription period to 2 working days from 3
working days.

1c) Reduction in the listing timeline to T+3 working days from T+6 working
days (as an option to issuers for a period of one year and on a mandatory
basis thereafter such that all listings occur on a T+3 basis).

2. Flexibility to issuers by providing discretion to issuers with regard to
advertisement of public issues through electronic modes subject to a window advertisement (containing a QR Code and Link to the full advertisement) in newspapers.

3. Harmonisation of the procedure of applying in public issue of debt securities and NCRPS through intermediaries with that in case of specified securities by mandating UPI for individual investors where the investment is up to Rs 5 lakhs. Further, choice of individual investors to avail other modes (Viz. through SCSBs and Stock Exchange Platform) for making an application remains unchanged.