Mindtree board to meet again on Mar 26; to decide on share buyback

The board of Mindtree, which Wednesday deferred a decision on share buyback, will meet again on March 26 even as it faces a Rs 10,800-crore hostile takeover bid from L&T.

The board of the IT company had met on Wednesday too, but no decision was taken on the agenda item at hand - the proposed buyback of equity shares - and the firm had informed the stock exchange that the meeting has been adjourned to a future date.

In a fresh filing on BSE Thursday, Mindtree said, "This is to inform that the adjourned board meeting is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, March 26, 2019".

On Monday, diversified L&T made an offer to buy up to 66 per cent stake in Mindtree for around Rs 10,800 crore - a move that Mindtree promoters have vowed to oppose.

L&T has entered into a deal to buy Cafe Coffee Day owner V G Siddhartha's 20.32 per cent stake in Mindtree and has also placed an order with brokers to pick up another 15 per cent of the company shares from the open market. Further, the group would make an open offer to buy additional 31 per cent stake in Mindtree.

Siddhartha was a director of Mindtree since 1999 and resigned in March 2018. He and Cafe Coffee Day group firms have 20.32 per cent stake in Mindtree and that shareholding is to be acquired by L&T.

On Tuesday, Mindtree CEO and promoter Rostow Ravanan said the company's board would deliberate on the buyback or the open offer within the framework of the laws.

"Obviously there are laws - what the board can do and cannot do under the circumstances," he had said.