While offering the bonds to the public, AMC had promised to complete all formalities connected with the listing of the bonds within 70 days from the closure of the issue. But, one could not trace the bond listing within the stipulated period. At last, the listing took place on NSE on April 27, that is after 90 days from the closure of the public offer. On the day of listing, AMC's bonds were traded at a discount of 0.75 per cent to the face value, with twotrades accounting for Rs 1.50 crore in value. Incidentally, this is the first and the only quote that the bond has so far recorded on NSE. The status of the bonds on ASE is not known.

Unlike AMC, Welspun Syntex Ltd, which made a flexible public offer of 17.5 per cent fully convertible debentures (FCDs) and/or optionally convertible cumulative preference shares (OCCPSs) aggregating to Rs 43 crore in the first week of June has sprung a pleasant surprise on the market by listing the new instruments on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) within just 13 days from the closure of the public subscription list, though the issue miserably bombed at the box office! The flexible public offer of Welspun was closed two days later than the scheduled `earliest closing date' of June 8, and five days earlier than the `latest closing date' of June 15. The company finalised its basis of allotment on June 18, that is within eight days of closing the subscription list, and listed the shares on BSE barely five days later, onJune 23. However, though the listing has been prompt, no trade has so far taken place in the FCDs or the OCCPSs. The basis of allotment of Welspun indeed has an interesting reading. Of its Rs 43-crore public issue, the company had earmarked Rs 5.40 crore for firm allotment to specified banks and insurance companies. The balance Rs 37.60 crore being the public issue portion, was offered to resident Indians with a reservation of Rs 11.83 crore for Indian financial institutions/banks/mutual funds, and Rs 7.52 crore for foreign institutional investors/ overseas corporate bodies and non-resident Indians. The entire offer of Rs 37.60 crore was fully underwritten by IFCI (Rs 19.85 crore), IDBI (Rs 10 crore), UTI (Rs 5 crore), LIC (Rs 2.50 crore) and the lead managers, IFCI Financial Services (Rs 0.25 crore). Under normal circumstances, Welspun's issue, which opened for subscription on June 4, should have closed either on June 8 or June 15, that is on the earliest or the latest closing date. But, apparently inconsultation with the underwriters to the issue, the offer was closed five days before the scheduled final closing date. Obviously, the company recognised the futility of keeping the offer open till the last date as it could receive a total of only 73 applications from investors for an aggregate amount of a miserable Rs 1.79 lakh, constituting less than 0.05 per cent of the net public offer. From the basis of allotment, it is quite obvious that Welspun's issue devolved almost entirely on the underwriters, who had to collectively cough up as much as Rs 37.58 crore. This means that nearly the whole public float of Rs 43 crore is now in the hands of the financial institutions, insurance companies and banks.

Given this scenario, there is no wonder that no trade has taken place in the new instruments issued by Welspun. Moreover, with the identity of the FCD/OCCPS-holders now being an open secret, even the prospective large buyers need not go to the trading counter to acquire the instruments.

Meanwhile,The Jammu and Kashmir Bank (J&K Bank), whose debut on the bourses is eagerly awaited by the market, continues to play truant. The bank's Rs 70.30-crore premium equity offer, which closed for public subscription on May 20, was claimed to have been subscribed more than twice despite poor market conditions. The bank finalised the basis of allotment on June 20, that is within 31 days from the date of closure of the subscription list. While the swiftness with which the allotment was finalised has to be commended, the long delay thereafter in securing the listing sticks out like a sore thumb. Enquiries with the merchant banker as well as the bank reveal that the bank is still "in the process of submitting necessary documents" to its regional stock exchange at Ludhiana, to secure listing of its equity shares. Both the banker and the merchant banker however assure that the listing formalities will be completed within the stipulated time of 70 days. Nonetheless, the seemingly deliberate and inexplicable delay inlisting gives credence to the suspicion that the bank is probably waiting for the market sentiment to improve before listing its shares. Whatever may be the reason, the inordinate delay in listing after a quick allotment is bound to boomerang on the bank's image.

(Arranged by Investar -- The Aarthik News & Research Syndicate)