The Indian security markets regulator’s bar on Future Retail CEO Kishore Biyani will not impact the proposed deal to sell Future Group’s retail, wholesale, logistics, and warehouse businesses to Reliance Retail.
The SEBI order said that during the period of restraint, the existing holding of securities including the units of mutual funds, of the concerned notices, shall remain under the freeze.
It added that debarment, restraint, freeze imposed under this order shall not apply to the existing holding of securities of such debarred entities, in respect of which any scheme of arrangement under Section 230-232 of the Companies Act, 2013, is approved by the NCLT, requiring extinguishment of such securities or receipt of other securities in lieu of such securities.
“In view of the above, the above order will have no impact on the ongoing Scheme of Arrangement of the Company,” Future Retail said in a regulatory filing.
The company further said that the relevant parties propose to challenge this order in exercise of their statutory right to appeal.
In August 2020, Biyani and the Future Group had entered into a Rs 25,000 crore agreement with Reliance Retail. As part of the pact, Future Group was to sell its retail, wholesale, logistics, and warehouse businesses to Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL).
Amid the legal tussle with Amazon, SEBI last month approved the deal between the Future Group and Reliance Industries.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday barred Biyani, among others, from buying, selling or dealing in the securities of Future Retail Ltd (FRL), directly or indirectly, in any manner whatsoever, for a period of two years, along with barring them from the securities market for a period of one year for insider trading in the scrip of FRL.
The other entities and individuals barred from the securities market are Future Corporate Resources Private Ltd (FCRPL), Biyani’s brother Anil Biyani, Rajesh Pathak, and Rajkumar Pande.
An investigation found that some of the entities traded in shares of Future Retail on the basis of unpublished price sensitive information (UPSI) violating SEBI norms during the period between March 10 and April 20, 2017.
SEBI, in its order, also asked Future Corporate Resources, Kishore, and Anil Biyani to jointly and severally disgorge an amount of over Rs 17.78 crore along with an interest at the rate of 12 percent per annum from April 20, 2020, till the date of actual payment.
