Bajaj Finance, India’s largest private sector non-banking financial company (NBFC), on Wednesday launched a qualified institutional placement (QIP) to raise up to ₹11,700 crore ($1.25 billion), setting an indicative issue price of ₹1,025 per share, a 5 per cent discount to its last closing price on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). The indicative price is above the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi’s) floor price of ₹992.25 per share.
The company’s shares closed at ₹1,078.80 on the NSE on Wednesday.
On October 1, the company’s board approved plans to raise up to ₹17,500 crore through a combination of a QIP of ₹11,700 crore and a preferential issue of warrants worth ₹5,800 crore.
On November 10, Bajaj Finance allotted 57.43 million warrants to its promoter and holding company, Bajaj Finserv, at ₹1,010 apiece, aggregating approximately ₹5,800 crore, according to an exchange filing.
The NBFC could issue up to 114.1 million equity shares of face value ₹1 each through the QIP. The proposed issuance would result in a dilution of up to 1.8 per cent of its pre-issue paid-up equity capital of 6,225.95 million shares, according to the preliminary placement document dated November 11.
The proceeds will be used to repay deposits, loans, commercial papers (CPs) and non-convertible debentures (NCDs), along with interest payments on these borrowings, falling due after the allotment of equity shares. The remaining proceeds will be utilised for general corporate purposes.
The equity shares will be offered to qualified institutional buyers (QIBs), including resident Indian QIBs and eligible foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), subject to applicable regulatory requirements.
Morgan Stanley India, Kotak Mahindra Capital, J P Morgan India, IIFL Capital Services, JM Financial and Axis Capital are the book-running lead managers to the issue.
