LIC to Tata Steel, listed firms step up rumour verification disclosures

Following the rumour verification regulations announced by the market regulator, several listed companies have come on record to issue clarifications on media reports in the last fortnight. The norms kicked in for the top 100 listed companies from June 1. Since then, companies like Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, and Saurashtra Cement have issued clarifications on news reports in the first fifteen days of the new norm being made effective.

While Bajaj Finance, which was the first to issue a clarification under the norms, confirmed plans for a public offer of Bajaj Housing Finance, LIC said it had not initiated any formal proposal to enter the health insurance market "through" a private health insurer.

Many other companies have voluntarily issued clarifications. For instance, restaurant aggregator Zomato confirmed it was holding discussions with fintech player Paytm for its movies and ticketing business.
 

According to the rules notified by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), companies need to verify, deny, or clarify media reports that trigger significant price movement in shares. The market regulator has also specified standards for defining price movement, the stage of the reported transaction, and a mechanism to consider the unaffected price for deals.
 

However, exchanges continue to seek clarifications from companies beyond the top 100 on news reports that lead to a surge in volumes.