In this special column, Ms. Geeta Dalal, Partner at Perry4Law and a Techno Legal Corporate and Business Restructuring Expert, is discussing the merger and acquisition trends of India in the year 2011.Merger and acquisition has seen many ups and downs in the year 2011 and many crucial developments took place in 2011.
Corporate mergers and acquisitions (M & A) in India are very common. India has been updating its corporate merger and acquisition regulations in India from time to time. Recently, Competition Commission of India (Procedure in regard to the transaction of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011 were formulated by the by Competition Commission of India. The main objective of the same was to regulated the combinations formulated in an anti competition manner in India.
Regulatory environment touching mergers and acquisitions in India was also streamlined in the year 2011 and stress upon and technological developments were made. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is planning to use electronic initial public offer (IPO) in India. Foreign investments in pharmaceutical in India has been liberalised by Reserve Bank of India. Similarly, foreign direct investment (FDI) in India has also been liberalised in many crucial areas. Naturally, lots of investments, IPOs, private equity funds exchange and many more collaborative and cooperative activities would take place in India in the year 2012.
The year 2011 envisaged an attempt by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to regulate banking related mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in India. With the clearance of the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011 by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, this may be the reality very soon.
Further, to streamline the banking transactions, an integrated banking law in India has been proposed. Similarly, the cap upon mobile banking financial transactions in India has been removed by the RBI. These reforms would help merger and acquisition transactions in India in the coming years.
Although there was a slow down in the merger and acquisition deals in India in 2011 yet India’s energy, mining and utilities sector witnessed a sound growth. The telecommunication sector faced the biggest setback in India and there were very few M&A dealing in this sector in 2011.
Perry4Law and Perry4Law Techno Legal Base (PTLB) would come up with the projected or forecasted merger and acquisition trends in India 2012 very soon.
