Adani’s NDTV open offer to start on Nov 22 as SEBI gives nod

After a delay of few weeks, market regulator SEBI has finally given an approval to Adani Group’s open offer. The Adani Group will be buying 26 per cent stake in NDTV from the open market.

The open offer starts on November 22 and closes on December 5. The price is set at ₹294 per share.

The open offer is a result of Adani’s acquisition of a company called Vishvapradhan Commercial Pvt Ltd (VCPL) in August this year. VCPL had given ₹403 crore interest free loan to NDTV promoters Prannoy and Radhika Roy in 2009 and held convertible warrants in NDTV as underlying, which constituted 29 per cent stake in the channel. The Roys could not return the loan.

After Adani purchased VCPL, it triggered the conversion of warrants and hence the open offer. SEBI had likely delayed its permission for the open offer pending its appeal in the Supreme Court against an order by the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT). The regulator has ruled that VCPL’s deal with the Roys led to a change in control of the news channel, which SAT did not agree with. SEBI moved the apex court on this.

But now, the regulator believes its appeal in the Supreme Court will not impact the open offer made by Adani. The Hindu BusinessLine