The Hindu Business Line : Indian cos raise $8.3 b on Nasdaq Portal in 2007

Mumbai, Feb 13 Twentyfive Indian companies raised a total of $8.3 billion on the Nasdaq Portal Market in 2007, a senior Nasdaq official said today. They include Reliance Industries, Suzlon Energy, Axis Bank, DLF, Power Finance Corporation, Idea Cellur, IDFC and Mundra Ports.

The Nasdaq Portal Market facilitates trading in those securities that are not registered with the US market regulator SEC and are referred to as 144A securities. The securities through this portal can be sold only to Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) and secondary trading in 144A securities also takes place only among QIBs, which are generally defined as investors with at least $100 million in assets under management.

Since 1990, Nasdaq has been operating the Portal for 144A Securities and in August 2007, the exchange launched the Portal Market Trading System for secondary trading in 144A securities among qualified brokers, dealers and QIBs.

This has brought visibility and trading functionality to the portal market, which has over 750 portal-designated equity securities, Mr Ghanshyam Dass, Managing Director (Asia Pacific), The Nasdaq Stock Market, said.

“The Nasdaq Portal Market facilitates faster raising of capital in the US market. Usually it takes 24 weeks to raise money through the IPO route and only 10 weeks by listing on the Nasdaq Portal,” Mr Jeffrey H Singer, Senior Vice-President, Head of International Corporate Client Group, The Nasdaq Stock Market, said.

Incidentally in 2007, Indian companies raised a total Rs 23,400 crore through Qualified Institutional Placements (QIPs).

Altogether, 70 companies from India are listed on the Nasdaq Portal Market. Among important Indian companies that raised money on Nasdaq portal in 2007 included DLF ($2.3 billion), Axis Bank ($653 million), Idea Cellular ($555 million), IDFC ($520 million) and Mundra Ports ($451 million).

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