Street signs: P-notes surge, grey market frenzy, and Zee exposure trim

P-notes surge: FPIs navigate overdrive in offshore derivatives

Frantic activity was observed by foreign portfolio investors who issued offshore derivative instruments — commonly referred to as participatory notes (P-notes) — on Friday. The block deal data reported by both the National Stock Exchange and BSE showed trades worth nearly Rs 30,000 crore. These trades were reported under large FPIs such as Société Générale, Marshall Wace, and BNP Paribas. Market players mentioned that some of the activity was due to arbitrage trading, while the rest could be attributed to the new, tighter disclosure norms introduced by the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India, which come into effect on February 1.

Grey market frenzy: BLS E-Services IPO sees shares double

Shares of BLS E-Services, an e-governance services enabler, are in high demand in the grey market ahead of its Rs 311 crore initial public offering (IPO). According to market players, shares of the company were seen changing hands at Rs 280, over 2x its IPO price of Rs 135. The company’s IPO opens on Tuesday and closes on Thursday. BLS E-Services, an arm of visa application outsourcing firm BLS International, reported a net profit of Rs 15 crore on revenues of Rs 156 crore during the quarter ended September 2023. At the IPO price (upper end), the company will be valued at Rs 1,226 crore.

Zee exposure trim: FPIs adjust ahead of market turbulence

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) reduced their stake in Zee Entertainment Enterprises by over 6 percentage points to 28.2 per cent during the three months ended December 2023. Meanwhile, mutual fund holdings in the broadcaster rose by 2.4 percentage points to 32.5 per cent, and retail shareholdings increased by 1.38 percentage points to 12.41 per cent. So far this year, shares of Zee have plummeted more than 40 per cent as the $10 billion merger with Sony Pictures Networks India collapsed. Market players mentioned that some FPIs were savvy enough to exit as cracks developed between the two broadcasters following the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India’s action against Zee promoters in the middle of last year.