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FII exposure set to touch 49% in HDFC

BS Banking Bureau

The Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC)is set to increase the FIIs investment level in the premier housing institution following the budget proposal of raising it to 49 per cent from the current 40 per cent. The present FII exposure in HDFC is pegged around 39.6 per cent. However, there may not be many changes in the FII investment in ICICI as it has already reached the 49 per cent mark through a combination of ADRs and FII investment.

"We will consider increasing the FII shareholding to the 49 per cent level at our next board meeting, which will be held sometime in the first week of May. HDFC right now has 191 foreign institutional accounts," Keki Mistry, managing director, HDFC said.

Kalpana Morparia, senior general manager, ICICI, said, "The level of FII investment along with ADRs has already reached the 49 per cent level, therefore, there cannot be any more rise in the level of FII investment. However, other companies which are now at the level of 40 per cent can increase it to 49 per cent."

The FII limit in HDFC has been hovering around the 40 per cent. The institution had taken shareholders approval in 1997 to increase the FII exposure from 26 per cent to 30 per cent and above, subject to the board approval. So the institution will not have to take a shareholder approval to increase its FII exposure limit and the same can be done with a board approval as and when the parliament passes the Finance Bill.

However, according to the special resolution, "the equity share holding of a single FII in the corporation shall not at any time exceed 10 per cent of the paid-up equity share capital of the corporation or any other as such limit permitted by law and approved by the board of directors of the corporation.

"In case of ICICI, the FII investment has already reached the 49 per cent level and therefore there may not be any scope for an increase in the FII level.

Source: Business Standard

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