Year 2021: Buzzing IPO, Ban on Cryptocurrencies to Drive Airfares – Top 5 Business News of the Year
Year 2021: The year 2021 has proved to be the best IPO year for the Indian primary market in the last 20 years. A total of 63 companies have been listed so far in the calendar year 2021, which have raised Rs 1.18 lakh crore through IPOs, the highest in a year. IPO activity in India grew 156 per cent year-on-year to reach 110 deals in 2021. The year 2021 also saw public issues by internet companies like Paytm, Zomato, Nykaa, Policybazaar, amid the coronavirus-triggered pandemic. , Apart from the IPO, Tata Sons acquired Air India, a bill banning all private cryptocurrencies was one of the top business news that discussed in 2021.
Let’s take a look at the top 5 business news of 2021:
1: The IPO that rocked the market
zomato
Food delivery platform Zomato made a great debut in the stock markets on 23rd July. During the three-day period, Zomato IPO received bids for 27,51,27,77,370 shares against an issue size of 71,92,33,522 shares. The price band was set at Rs 72-76, valuing the company at $9 billion. Zomato’s IPO was India’s biggest initial share sale offer since March 2020. The IPO was open for subscription on July 14 in the price band of Rs 72-76 per share. It closed on 16 July. Zomato shares got listed at Rs 116, which is a premium of 53 per cent over the IPO price of Rs 76. The company’s market cap currently stands at Rs 99,790 crore. Incorporated in 2008, Zomato is present in 525 cities in India with 3,89,932 active restaurant listings as well as presence in 23 countries outside India.
hero
Nykaa, formally known as FSN E-Commerce Ventures Ltd., the stock listing made investors rich and promoters rich, with the stock almost double the IPO price. Even after the listing of the company, Falguni Nair and his family hold 56.56 per cent. The price band for the Nykaa IPO was set at Rs 1,085-1,125 per share, with the company valued at Rs 53,204 crore or about $7.1 billion at the upper end. With a market capitalization of $14 billion, Nykaa has comfortably entered the club of top 100 most valuable companies in India. Furthermore, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Falguni Nair, the founder and CEO of Nykaa, became India’s richest self-made female billionaire. The company’s market cap currently stands at Rs 95,780 crore.
Paytm
The IPO of Paytm’s parent company One97 Communications was open for subscription from November 8 to 10. The Rs 18,300 crore IPO was the biggest IPO in the corporate history of the country. However, the issue did not get the expected response from the investors. On December 27, PayTM shares closed at Rs 1,344.75, down 37.45 per cent. Its issue price was fixed at Rs 2,150. The company’s market cap currently stands at Rs 87,000 crore.
Policybazaar (PB Fintech)
The IPO of PB Fintech (PolicyBazar and Paisabazaar operator) started well in November with a premium of 17.35 per cent in the stock markets. The IPO of India’s largest online insurance aggregator was subscribed 16.59 times. The price band was set at Rs 940-980 per share, valuing the company at Rs 44,051 crore. The company’s market cap currently stands at Rs 44,000 crore.
2: Back in the cockpit of Tata Air India
They say it’s too late than ever! After more than two decades and three attempts, the government has finally sold its flagship national carrier Air India, and it’s déj vu for the Maharaja as it returns to the home of its founding father, the Tata Group. For Tata, the original owner of Air India, getting the airline back in its hands is worth the wait. Salt-to-software conglomerate Tata has won the bid to acquire debt-ridden state-run Air India with an offer of Rs 18,000 crore to acquire 100 per cent stake. Tata Sons beats SpiceJet promoter to overtake Air India
The ‘Maharaja’ is back! Tata group wins bid for Air India
However, Tata Group’s acquisition of loss-making national carrier Air India is likely to be delayed by a month till January as the completion of processes takes longer than expected. In October, the government accepted the highest bid made by Tata Sons Company for 100 per cent equity shares of Air India and Air India Express as well as its 50 per cent stake in ground-handling company AISATS – the first privatization in 20 years. . At the time, the government had said it wanted to complete the transaction by the end of December, which involved paying Tata Rs 2,700 crore in cash. However, some regulatory approvals are yet to come for the handover and some formalities are yet to be completed. The official, on condition of anonymity, said the process would be completed by January.
3: Bill to ban all private cryptocurrencies
With an estimated 15 million Indians holding digital currencies, the Center was all set to introduce a bill banning all private cryptocurrencies in India.
First, a Lok Sabha bulletin in January said that the Center would introduce a bill that would ban all private cryptocurrencies. In the Budget 2021 session, which was presented on February 1, the Center had planned to introduce a bill to ban all private cryptocurrencies in India and the framework for an official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India. Will prepare. , The new bill was titled ‘The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2021’. But in the end the bill is not introduced.
Second, in November, the Center once again appeared likely to introduce a bill banning cryptocurrencies during the winter session of Parliament. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in the Rajya Sabha that the government is preparing a new bill on cryptocurrencies which will be tabled in the ongoing session of Parliament after the approval of the Union Cabinet. However, the bill was again delayed as the government was reportedly considering changes to the proposed framework.
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stands firm on its issue of banning private cryptocurrencies as it poses an immediate risk to the safety of customers and the risk of fraud. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its Financial Stability Report released on Wednesday said that private cryptocurrencies pose an immediate risk to the safety of customers and are prone to fraud and extreme price volatility.
“Private cryptocurrencies pose immediate risks to protect customers and combat anti-money laundering (AML)/financing of terrorism (CFT). They are also prone to fraud and extreme price volatility, given their highly speculative nature. happened,” it said.
4: FASTag mandatory at all toll plazas
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) had issued orders to make FASTag mandatory at all toll plazas from February 15, 2021 across India. FASTag is an electronic toll collection system operated by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in India. The decision was taken to promote fee payment using digital mode, reduce waiting time and fuel consumption. This fee will also provide a seamless passage of vehicles through the plaza. As per the NH Fee Rules 2008, if a vehicle which is not equipped with a FASTag or a vehicle which does not have a valid, functional ‘FASTag’, enters the ‘FASTag lane’ of the fee plaza, it will have to pay the same fee . Two times the fee applicable in that category.
5: DGCA hikes domestic airfares
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had announced an increase in air travel fares on February 11, 2021. The fare was increased to Rs 5,600. The government had highlighted that the fare hike was necessary due to the opening up of the aviation market. Whereas the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) had said that the fare hike was a regular change. There was a 30 percent increase in the upper price band on 180-210-minute flights. This amounted to a price hike of Rs 5,600. In this way the price increased from Rs 18,600 to Rs 24,200. Whereas the lower band of the shortest route had increased by 10 per cent. This resulted in an increase of Rs 200. The domestic fare band was also increased. The lower price band for domestic flights increased from Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,200, while the upper price band increased from Rs 6,000 to Rs 7,800. For the highest fare band, the minimum fare increased from Rs 6500 to Rs 24,200, while the maximum fare increased from Rs 18,600 to Rs 24,200.
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