Bajaj picks up 1.42% in ICICI

Two and three-wheeler major Bajaj Auto today bought an additional 1.42 per cent stake in ICICI Bank for Rs 633.05 crore, raising its stake in the country's largest private sector bank to 4.13 per cent.

As per the shareholding pattern available on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), as on March 31, 2006, the Pune-based company held 2.71 per cent stake in ICICI Bank.

Bajaj Auto bought 68,04,926 shares at Rs 499.73 a share and 48,66,552 shares at Rs 499.43 a share. The bulk deals were reported on the stock exchanges, but the information on who the sellers were was not given.

ICICI Bank shares closed up 2.84 per cent at Rs 499.50 today. Any entity wanting to raise its stake in a bank to more than 5 per cent will need the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) permission.

The RBI regulations do not permit any single entity to hold more than 10 per cent stake in a bank. ICICI Bank is a widely held company with the total foreign shareholding at 73.87 per cent of the shares as on March 31, 2006.

The foreign holding limit in banks is 74 per cent.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) owned 46.59 per cent of the shares of ICICI Bank and American depository receipt (ADR) holders owned another 26.81 per cent.

Indian institutions own 15.07 per cent of ICICI Bank shares "" 2.13 per cent by mutual funds and 12.94 per cent by banks and insurance companies.