Aurobindo Pharma gets USFDA nod for pain reliever Ibuprofen; launch in Sept

Quoting Nielsen data, Aurobindo Pharma said the estimated market size of ibuprofen capsules OTC is $164 million for the twelve months ending March 2018

Aurobindo Pharma has received final approval from the US health regulator to manufacture and market Ibuprofen capsules, used to relieve pain and reduce fever.

The approved product is a generic equivalent of Pfizer's Advil Liqui-Gels Capsules. The product will be launched in September 2018.

"The company has received final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to manufacture Ibuprofen capsules OTC, 200 mg," Aurobindo Pharma said in a BSE filing.

Also Read : Aurobindo Pharma Ltd Share Price.

Quoting Nielsen data, Aurobindo Pharma said the estimated market size of ibuprofen capsules OTC is $164 million for the twelve months ending March 2018.

The pharma company said it has now a total of 373 ANDA (Abbreviated New Drug Application) approvals (340 final approvals, including 17 from Aurolife Pharma LLC and 33 tentative approvals) from the USFDA.

Stock of Aurobindo Pharma was trading 0.61 per cent higher at Rs 610.25 on BSE.

Tata Steel to get 45% stake in Thyssenkrupp joint venture: Sources

The changes happened after Thyssenkrupp's activist shareholders pressured management to squeeze better terms from the deal, which was originally a 50-50 split

Thyssenkrupp AG and Tata Steel Ltd. are closing in on a European steel joint venture after a last-minute change to the deal terms that won approval from Thyssenkrupp’s union.

In the revised deal, Thyssenkrupp will own about 55 per cent of the equity in the new company and Tata will have 45 per cent, according to people familiar with the matter. The changes happened after Thyssenkrupp’s activist shareholders pressured management to squeeze better terms from the deal, which was originally a 50-50 split. The voting rights will be equally split.

The talks over the joint venture have dragged on for more than a year and faced opposition from labour representatives, as well as activist shareholders. Thyssenkrupp’s labour representatives said on Thursday they would vote in favour of the joint venture, paving the way for it to go through.

Elliott Management Corp. and Cevian had argued that the terms needed to be improved after a long slump in Tata’s European steel profits. The new agreement represents an increase of more than 600 million euros ($695 million) for Thyssenkrupp shareholders compared with the previous deal, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the details aren’t public.

Changes to the deal follow weeks of mounting pressure on Thyssenkrupp’s Chief Executive Officer Heinrich Hiesinger by activist shareholders and labour representatives to get a better deal after profits plunged at Tata’s European steel business.

Even though the union will approve the deal, Thyssenkrupp shouldn’t be "scrapped like a used car," said Wilhelm Segerath, chairman of the General Works Council and a member of Thyssenkrupp’s supervisory board.

Equity investors and labor unions are equally represented on Thyssenkrupp’s supervisory board, giving them both influence over the deal.

Under the new terms, Tata also agreed to pay for potential environmental risks at a coke oven of its Port Talbot plant in Wales and for investments, should it be necessary, the people said.

Check Market Price : Tata Steel Share Price

Will Reliance Jio be able to hit 400 million subscriber target by 2020?

Jio is in a neck-and-neck battle with Airtel, which added a similar number of subscribers as Jio in the 15 months from February 2017 to April 2018

It took Reliance Jio just 170 days to hit the 100 million subscriber mark since its launch in September 2016.

But it took the company 15 months to grab the next 100 million, according to sources. Fighting a bitter battle with older telcos, the company reached the 200 million milestone in the middle of May this year. And, they are in a neck and neck battle with Bharti Airtel, which added a similar number of subscribers as Jio in the 15 months through a combination of new customer additions as well as the acquisition of rival telcos including Telenor (36 million) and Tata Teleservices (29 million, pending government nod).

Despite the bruising price war, the Vodafone-Idea combine also added 38 million customers during this period.

Clearly, all the big boys grabbed customers from the smaller players — Aircel, Reliance Communications, TTSL, and Sistema — whose share of the pie fell by half from 33 per cent in February 2017 to 16 per cent in April 2018. With Telenor already having joined Airtel and TTSL about to join, that percentage is likely to come down even more dramatically.

Also Read : Reliance Infrastructure Share Price

The reason for the longer haul for Jio to reach the next 100 million is simple, and that raises questions on whether they would be able to hit the 400 million target by 2020.

Older telcos, initially stumped by the Jio onslaught, are hitting back — matching tariffs and offering devices at similar prices as the Rs 1,500 feature phone of Jio. Also, the overall telecom market shrunk between February 2017 and April 2018, with 39 million lesser subscribers. This is a clear indication that the market has now matured and additional consumers will become a trickle.

Airtel saw its market share go up since the launch of Jio from 24 per cent to crossing 30 per cent in April end (after the Telenor acquisition). That share will go up further once the TTSL deal is cleared.

Vodafone, which had a 17.8 per cent market share when Jio launched in September 2016, had a market share of 19.74 per cent in April. Idea saw a sharp increase in its market share, up from 16.60 per cent in February 2017 to 19.27 per cent in April 2018, as it was able to grab a lot of 2G customers who were shifting from smaller incumbent players.

Lenders choose Tata Steel as preferred bidder for Bhushan Power & Steel

Tata Steel has already bagged Bhushan Steel, which has a capacity of 5.6 million tonnes

The committee of creditors (CoC) for Bhushan Power & Steel has decided on Tata Steel as the preferred bidder. The battle for Bhushan Power & Steel was closely fought between UK-based Liberty House, which submitted a late bid, and Tata Steel. People in the banking sector said that both bids were in close range initially.

"The difference was in the range of Rs 5-10 billion. Tata had offered around Rs 175 billion and Liberty Rs 180 billion as immediate upfront to financial creditors. But if you consider operational creditors, including employees, the Tata Steel bid looked slightly better. There is no standardised format to decide on what basis to select the bid," they said. Tata Steel's bid also has an additional capital infusion of Rs 75 billion. Subsequently, the CoC wanted comfort that Liberty House and Tata Steel can bring in the cash.

ALSO READ: Tata Steel Share Price : Live NSE/BSE Stock Price Today

"In the case of Liberty House, finances were not fully tied up and the CoC felt the Tata bid was better, as it was fully backed by financial arrangement. The matter has been referred accordingly to the tribunal, which has to take a call," said the people cited above. They added that in terms of track record, the CoC felt Tata Steel was a more established player. A Liberty House spokesperson said there was no information on the bid.

The matter was slated for hearing in the National Company Appellate Law Tribunal (NCLAT). Last week, Liberty had presented bank guarantees before the lenders. The NCLAT, where the matter is being heard, had asked the CoC to go ahead with the selection process and keep its decision in a sealed cover. The final decision would be subject to the outcome of the NCLAT verdict.

The CoC had filed an application seeking clarification in the process. Bhushan Power & Steel was a two-way race initially. Tata Steel and JSW Steel had submitted their bids within the deadline. However, Liberty House made a late bid. The CoC had rejected Liberty House's bid on grounds of late submission but the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) asked the CoC to consider it. Tata Steel had challenged the NCLT order in the NCLAT, but no stay on the proceedings was granted. If Tata Steel does bag Bhushan Power & Steel, it would likely make it the largest steel player in the domestic market.

Tata Steel has already bagged Bhushan Steel, which has a capacity of 5.6 million tonnes.

Tata Steel's capacity prior to the Bhushan Steel acquisition was around 13 million tonnes. Bhushan Power & Steel has a capacity of around 3 million tonnes and debt of around Rs 470 billion.

Bharti Airtel announces senior leadership appointments for its B2B unit

Ajay Chitkara has been appointed as Director and CEO, Airtel Business to spearhead the domestic and global enterprise business as one unit

Country's top telecom operator Bharti Airtel ltd has announced senior leadership appointments for its B2B unit.

Ajay Chitkara has been appointed as Director and CEO, Airtel Business to spearhead the domestic and global enterprise business as one unit.

Chitkara will continue reporting to Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, Bharti Airtel.

Airtel also announced the appointment of Pankaj Miglani as CEO - Global Business. Miglani will report to Ajay Chitkara. In his previous role, Miglani was CFO, Bharti Infratel and played a key role in the company's IPO in 2012.

Chitkara has been with Airtel since 2001 and is credited with building brand Airtel in the global wholesale segment. In his previous role as Director & CEO, Global Business and Nxtra, he was responsible for creating business strategies for Carriers, Global Enterprise and OTT segments, and implementing them globally through the regional teams. Under Chitkara's leadership, Global Business grew in topline to become a billion-dollar business, while EBIT margins jumped five-fold since 2013.

Pankaj Miglani, who is a Chartered Accountant, Cost Accountant and Company Secretary with over 25 years of experience, has earlier worked in Airtel for 10 years in various roles.

Gopal Vittal, MD & CEO (India and South Asia), Bharti Airtel said, "I am delighted at Ajay's appointment to lead Airtel's B2B business as an integrated entity, which will help us leverage our global reach and deep relationships in the enterprise segment. I am also pleased to welcome back Pankaj after his successful stint with Bharti Infratel."

Check Bharti Airtel Ltd Market Price : Bharti Airtel Share Price : Live NSE/BSE Stock Price Today

HDFC MF gets Sebi go-ahead for IPO after nearly two months on backburner

It will be entirely an offer for sale by promoter HDFC and UK's Standard Life, who currently hold 57% and 38% respectively

HDFC Mutual Fund has obtained a go-ahead to launch its initial public offering (IPO), two investment bankers handling the issue said.

“Sebi has issued final observation on the offer document. The company will have to respond to the market regulator,” said an investment banker, adding that the asset manager is looking to launch its IPO in the second or third week of July.

HDFC MF couldn’t be immediately reached for a confirmation.

The processing status of draft offer documents filed with Sebi, uploaded on June 22, featured names of 26 companies that are awaiting approval. The list didn't include the name of HDFC MF.

Among the companies awaiting a nod for their IPO include Lodha Developers, Mazagon Dock and Srei Equipment Finance. As per Sebi’s website, the IPO of Lodha Developers, country’s leading real estate company, has been “kept in abeyance for examination of past violations.”

According to an update on Sebi’s website on April 27, HDFC MF’s IPO was kept abeyance for past violations.

“Sebi needed clarity on some issues, which were provided to them,” said a banker.

Nomura, Kotak Mahindra Capital, Axis Capital, BofA Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, CLSA India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Securities, IIFL Holdings, JM Financial, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley are the investment banks handling HDFC MF’s IPO.

HDFC MF’s IPO will be the second by a domestic asset manager after Reliance Nippon MF. HDFC MF’s offering will be entirely an offer for sale by promoter HDFC and UK’s Standard Life, who currently hold 57 per cent and 38 per cent respectively. In the IPO, HDFC is selling 4 per cent and Standard Life is offloading 8 per cent stake. The IPO size is expected between Rs 35 billion and Rs 38 billion. The maiden offering could value the asset manager at Rs 307 billion.

HDFC MF currently manages assets worth over Rs 3 trillion making it the second-biggest fund house in the country after ICICI Prudential MF.

Check here : HDFC Bank Ltd Share Price.

Here's why India's life-saving plan for IDBI Bank makes no sense

It's hard to see how the transaction could bolster the reputation of any of India's three financial regulators

Rescuing a dying bank with taxpayers' money is often the only way to prevent a costlier contagion. But nursing a deposit-taking institution by tapping life-insurance premiums of policyholders? That's like allowing a localized infection to spread all over, hoping the natural immunity of an otherwise healthy body will help beat back the germs.

India's plan to sell a majority stake in IDBI Bank Ltd to Life Insurance Corp of India is not modern medicine. It's bureaucratic quackery. New Delhi hasn't found a genuine private-sector buyer for the ailing IDBI for more than two years. Hence, the stage is being cleared for state-owned LIC, the government’s preferred buyer of stuff nobody wants.

If LIC cares about its fiduciary responsibility to policyholders, it will pass this one up. But then, it can never say no to New Delhi. LIC already owns about 11 percent of IDBI, thanks to its previous participation in rescue missions. The new proposal is for it to take roughly half of the government’s 81 percent interest to become the majority shareholder. It could cost LIC around $3 billion to pay the government and top up IDBI’s capital for one year.

That's money down the drain.

At more than $8 billion, the bank’s gross nonperforming assets are nearing 28 percent of the total. If all IDBI’s distressed loans currently classified as standard assets have to be marked down, NPAs would rise to almost 36 percent, in India Ratings & Research Pvt.’s assessment.

Suppose NPAs do go up, but only to the halfway mark of 32 percent. The math is still stark: A 70 percent loss on 32 percent of the bank’s $29 billion loan book would translate to a $6.5 billion hit, of which only about $4 billion could be absorbed by existing loan-loss provisions. The remaining $2.5 billion would wipe out IDBI’s Tier 1 capital. Whatever price LIC pays for IDBI shares would be too much. Instead of buying from the government, LIC could purchase new stock in IDBI. However, that would dilute minority investors while generating zero cash for the government’s stretched budget.

It’s hard to see how the transaction could bolster the reputation of any of India’s three financial regulators.

Read more about : IDBI Bank LTD Market Price.