Page 14 - Banking Finance March 2019
P. 14
HOUSING
HOUSING
PNB may sell its 22% Government to acquire RBI's Rs1,450-cr share capital
stake in housing finance in National Housing Bank
arm to General Atlantic Central Government approved payment of Rs1,450 crore towards subscribed
share capital of the National Housing Bank (NHB)
and Varde Partners to Reserve Bank of India (RBl) consequent to amend-
Punjab National Bank is planning to ments made to the NHB Act, 1987 last year.
sell its 22 percent stake in PNB Hous- NHB is an apex agency established to operate as
ing Finance to General Atlantic Part- the principal agency to promote housing finance in-
ners (GA) and Varde Partners for
stitutions in India. The wholesale financing role of
around Rs 3,500 crore.
NHB will get strengthened with the transfer of ownership to government,
PNB owns 32.79 percent stake in its thereby making possible augmented funding support to housing finance compa-
housing finance arm. The bank has nies. The change in ownership from RBI to Gol will also segregate RBI's role as
decided to hold a 10.7 percent stake banking regulator and as owner of NHB, a cabinet release stated. The expendi-
and sell the remaining shares to two ture of Rs1,450 crore is to be met out of gross budgetary support 2018-19. The
buyers instead of selling the entire beneficiaries are the RBI and the housing sector.
block to one suitor. Such a move would NHB is an all-India financial institution (AIFl), set up in 1988, under an Act of
ensure that no open offer for an addi- Parliament, viz,. the National Housing Bank Act, 1987 (Central Act No. 53 of
tional 26 percent of the company gets 1987). It is an apex agency established to operate as a principal agency to pro-
triggered following the share sale.
mote housing finance institutions both at local and regional levels and to pro-
In December last year, the bank re- vide financial and other support incidental to such institutions and for matters
vived its plans to cash out of the ven- connected therewith. Up till now, the authorised capital of NHB stands at
ture. Its initial plan was to sell 66 per- Rs2,000 crore, of which Rs1,450 crore has been subscribed by RBl.
cent along with private equity inves-
tor Carlyle. However, the plan was Japan's Softbank invests Rs 2,800 crore in Indiabulls
dropped in the wake of liquidity pres- Housing arm OakNorth bank
sure following a default by Infrastruc-
ture Leasing & Financial Services SoftBank has said that it will invest Rs 2,800 crore in
(IL&FS) in September-October 2018. Indiabulls Housing Finance's associate OakNorth bank,
a commercial bank based in United Kingdom. "Softbank
According to the report, GA may is investing Rs 2,800 crores of equity capital in its asso-
pick up another 12 percent in the ciate OakNorth bank, a commercial bank in UK," Indiabulls Housing Finance said
mortgage firm, taking its stake to in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. With this investment the total equity
around 22 percent. Varde is ex-
pected to acquire a 10 percent stake. capital in the bank will be Rs 7,000 crores, Indiabulls Housing Finance said in
the exchange filing.
14 | 2019 | MARCH | BANKING FINANCE
