SEBI may ease PN curbs to pep up Dalal St

SEBI may ease PN curbs to pep up Dalal St

The government and financial regulators are set to ease some of the restrictions imposed on foreign portfolio investors last year. The move is part of an effort to bolster capital inflows which have been slowing down lately, according to persons familiar with the matter. Capital market regulator the Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is likely to discuss a proposal to this effect at its board meeting on Monday.

Foreign institutional investors (FII), who were barred from holding more than 40% of their assets in participatory notes (PNs), could be given some flexibility on this count in the backdrop of the changed scenario in the domestic financial market. The 18-month deadline — ending in March 2009 — to unwind certain PN positions is also likely to figure at the meeting, sources close to the development said. In October 2007, Sebi had placed a ban on either fresh issuance or renewal of PNs by foreign portfolio investors or their sub-accounts in cases where the underlying Indian securities were derivatives. These investors were then directed to wind up their current position over 18 months. It was also decided then to cap the percentage of PNs or offshore derivative instruments (ODIs) outstanding at 40% of the total assets under custody of a registered foreign portfolio investor. One option could be to extend the March 2009 deadline for winding up of positions in cases where PNs have been issued with derivatives as the underlying. A more rigorous know your client (KYC) norm may also be imposed to address concerns relating to money laundering and terrorism financing, if the proposal to ease the current restrictions goes through. With the seizure of credit markets abroad and the attendant squeeze on liquidity , capital inflows into India, be it in the form of portfolio inflows, foreign borrowings or private and venture capital, has been hit over the past few months. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have so far taken out close to $10 billion, while foreign borrowings have aggregated close to $10 billion so far compared to net borrowings of $22 billion during the last fiscal. Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows though have been robust at over $10 billion in the first quarter of this fiscal. Sceptics say impact of PN rules change limited However, given the assessment of significantly lower inflows over the next couple of quarters, the government, Sebi and RBI are considering whether to ease the October 2007 restrictions imposed on FIIs in the form of a ban on issuance of ODIs or PNs as they are popularly known, a person close to the development said. ODIs or PNs are derivatives issued against an underlying Indian security, which could be shares or derivatives, by foreign portfolio investors registered in India to overseas investors who are not registered here or seek to trade anonymously.


At that time, the government had defended the move, saying it was aimed at moderating inflows . Large inflows put pressure on monetary policy managem
ent in terms of containing growth of money supply (created through release of rupee funds into the system for mopping up of dollars) and the risk of higher inflation.

“The scenario has changed now. We need to weigh global factors and attract inflows,” said a person associated with the review exercise. Even in October 2007, the finance minister had said that there was no move to completely ban PNs and that the restrictions were to moderate inflows. He had said that the move was in the interests of all categories of investors. However, in the past, RBI had made it clear its discomfort on the issue of PNs and when inflows soared to over $10 billion in September 2007, sought a ban on fresh or incremental issuance of PNs. RBI’s concern also related to the identity of the beneficiary of this instrument.

The central bank has consistently been sceptical about PNs compared to Sebi and the finance ministry. After the ban came into force, the share of PNs in total portfolio inflows is reckoned to have fallen from over 51% in August 2007 to almost half. Since January 2008, the Indian market has fallen in line with global trends. Morgan Stanley estimates that capital inflows have declined to $30-35 billion during April-August 2008 compared with $108 billion in the fiscal year 2008. There are enough sceptics who feel that tweaking the rules now may not have much of an impact in the short term. Their reasoning is that given the redemptions being faced by many hedge funds and the fact that some of the biggest issuers of PNs — such as Merrill Lynch — themselves are in trouble, the impact of a change in policy could be quite limited. But there are others who counter this by saying that the growth story is still attractive.

Coupled with this is the fact that the market is perceived as well-regulated. The data collected after imposing restrictions on PNs would be placed before the board on Monday. Though, the board had held some discussions on the matter at its last meeting also, it wanted to deliberate more on the issue before taking a decision.

Policymakers are of the view that capital flows should be eased to take some pressure off the rupee which has been slipping against the dollar. The finance ministry has already eased some restrictions that were imposed on external commercial borrowings last year in order to increase capital flows into India as well as address the fund requirement of the corporate sector. Sources in the government also said more measures that could boost capital flows into the country could be considered.

Source:ET