Securities And Exchange Board Of India (Depositories And Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2008 - F. No. 11/LC/GN/2008/20494 - SEBI

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA NOTIFICATION Mumbai, the March 17th, 2008 F. No. 11/LC/GN/2008/20494. In exercise of the powers conferred by section 30 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (15 of 1992), the Board hereby makes the following Regulations to further amend the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 1996, namely :- 1. These Regulations may be called the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2008. 2. They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette. 3. In the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 1996, in regulation 7, - (i) for clause (d), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:- (d) the sponsor shall, at all times, hold at least fifty-one per cent. of the equity share capital of the depository; (ii) in clause (e), the proviso and the Explanation shall be omitted; (iii) after clause (e), the following clauses and Explanation shall be inserted, namely:- (ea) no person other than a sponsor, whether resident in India or not, shall at any time, either individually or together with persons acting in concert, hold more than five per cent. of the equity share capital in the depository; Explanation : For the purposes of this clause, - (i) the expression person resident in India shall have the meaning assigned to it in clause (v) of section 2 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (42 of 1999); (ii) the expression persons acting in concert shall have the meaning derived from clause (e) of sub-regulation (1) of regulation 2 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations, 1997; (eb) the combined holding of all persons resident outside India in the equity share capital of the depository shall not exceed, at any time, forty-nine per cent. of its total equity share capital, subject further to the following:- (i) the combined holdings of such persons acquired through the foreign direct investment route is not more than twenty six per cent. of the total equity share capital, at any time; (ii) the combined holdings of foreign institutional investors is not more than twenty three per cent. of the total equity share capital, at any time; (iii) no foreign institutional investor acquires shares of the depository otherwise than through the secondary market; (ec) no foreign institutional investor shall have any representation in the Board of Directors of the depository; C. B. BHAVE, Chairman [ADVT. III/IV/69ZB/2008/Exty.] Footnotes: 1. The principal regulations, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 1996 were published in the Gazette of India, Part II on May 16, 1996 vide S.O. No. 345(E). 2. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 1996, were subsequently amended: (a) On February 7, 1997 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 1997 vide S.O. No. 91(E). (b) On September 5, 1997 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 1997 vide S.O. No. 640(E). (c) On January 5, 1998 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 1998 vide S.O. No. 18(E). (d) On January 21, 1998 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 1998 vide S.O. No. 76(E). (e) On May 20, 1999 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 1999 vide S.O. No. 357(E). (f) On July 7, 1999 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 1999 vide S.O. No. 546(E). (g) On September 21, 1999 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Third Amendment) Regulations, 1999 vide S.O. No. 775(E). (h) On December 26, 2000 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2000 vide S.O. No. 1160(E). (i) On May 29, 2001 by SEBI (Investment Advice by Intermediaries) (Amendment) Regulations, 2001 vide S.O. No. 476(E). (j) On September 27th, 2002 by SEBI (Procedure for holding Enquiry by Enquiry Officer and Imposing Penalty) Regulations, 2002 vide S.O. No. 1045(E). (k) On June 16, 2003 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2003 vide S.O. No. 696(E). (l) On September 2, 2003 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2003 vide S.O. No. 1014(E). (m) On October 1, 2003 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Third Amendment) Regulations, 2003 vide S.O. No. 1156(E). (n) On March 10th, 2004 by SEBI (Criteria for Fit and Proper Person) Regulations, 2004 vide S.O. No. 398(E). (o) On June 10th, 2004 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2004 vide S.O. No. 696(E). (p) On October 10th, 2007 by SEBI (Depositories and Participants) (Amendment) Regulations, 2007 vide No. 11/LC/GN/2007/4485.