IISCO-SAIL to merge shortly

9th June 2005: The long-awaiting merger of steel PSUs, IISCO and Steel Authority of India has been cleared by the Steel Ministry and the proposal is awaiting Cabinet nod, steel minister Ram Vilas Paswan said today. "The proposal for merger of IISCO with Sail has already been cleared by the Ministry. It has been sent to Cabinet for its approval," said Paswan.

He said the new entity would have at its disposal 35-40 million tonnes iron ore reserves lying with IISCO. Paswan said the Ministry was discussing proposal for merging other small companies like Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd with Sail but "this had not even reached the stage of examination, let alone consideration".

"After a complete study of all operational aspects, the proposals, if found feasible, will be implemented in a time-bound manner," he said. Paswan said the Ministry was holding discussions on whether to create two separate entities-- one for iron ore mining and other for steel production. "We are looking into the issue from management point of view and every proposal has its own pros and cons. So we are not in any hurry," he added.

Tata Motors okays Tata Finance Ltd (TFL) merger in 8:100 ratio

9th June 2005: Tata Motors’ shareholders, secured and unsecured creditors, have approved the scheme of reorganisation and amalgamation of Tata Finance Ltd (TFL) with the company.

Pursuant to the scheme of reorganisation and amalgamation, eight ordinary shares of Rs 10 each of Tata Motors will be allotted to the shareholders of TFL in exchange for every 100 equity shares of Rs 10 each of TFL, according to a company notice issued to The Stock Exchange, Mumbai (BSE).

The said exchange ratio was based on a valuation undertaken by BS Metha & Co which was further substantiated by a “Fairness Report” obtained from JM Morgan Stanley Pvt Ltd.

The company had earlier stated that the merger was expected to enable the vehicle financing business of Tata Finance to grow stronger by leveraging its synergies of the direct business model with the dealer driven business.

The merger will also allow TFL shareholders to participate in the growth of Tata Motors and thereby significantly gain with an upside of dividend and shareholder value creation, the company had then stated.

Indiabulls sells 42.5% in subsidiary to Amaprop

8th June 2005: Indiabulls Finance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Indiabulls Financial Services, has issued 32,33,396 equity shares of Rs 10 each to Amaprop Ltd, an entity managed by Amaranth Advisors LLC, representing 42.5% of the company for Rs 130.97 crore, Indiabulls informed the Bombay Stock Exchange.