ZEE shares tumbled 14.8% on the BSE on Wednesday to close at Rs 164.50 apiece, after Bloomberg reported Sebi had found that about $241 million (Rs 2,000 crore) might have been diverted by the company promoters. This has added to the steep decline in the ZEE share price after Sony Group scrapped a $10-billion merger plan involving its India business. A key factor for the collapse of the deal was the Sebi finding.
Buyout funds KKR, TA Associates and Apax are among others that have been tapped since Peak XV initiated a plan to fully exit its nearly 13-year-old investment in Prataap and hired Deutsche Bank to sell the company. The transaction if successful will trigger an open offer for an additional 26% of the Indore-based company, which has been a laggard ever since its stock market debut in 2017 when it listed at a 33% premium. Prataap ended 1% down at ₹1,174.45 for a market value of ₹2,802.19 crore on Wednesday.
In India, CPI inflation was projected at 4.5% for the financial year 2024-25, a good 90 basis points lower than the estimated average for 2023-24. But, the large and repetitive food price shocks remained a concern, with geopolitical events and their impact on supply chains, and volatility in international financial markets and commodity prices posing upside risks.
The F&O contracts of any stock enter the ban period when the open interest (OI) on it crosses 95% of the market wide positions limits or MWPL. The ban on it is reversed only if the open interest falls below 80%.