Municipal Bonds

Sebi to take measure for F&O segment soon; calls for tax breaks on bonds

Capital markets regulator Sebi is expected to take measures regarding the Futures and Options (F&O) segment very soon, in a bid to enhance investor protection, its senior official said on Tuesday. In addition, Sebi has urged the government to introduce tax breaks for subscribers of municipal bonds, which are crucial for funding infrastructure development. The regulator will make a case for a tax break for municipal bonds during a meeting with the finance commission, the regulator's whole time member Ashwani Bhatia said here. Since 1997, municipalities have raised Rs 2,700 crore through bonds for infrastructure projects. Talking about F&O, Bhatia said," Sebi is very soon going to do something about F&O. Study has come (recently)". The regulator, in its consultation paper recently, proposed seven measures to tighten the rules for index derivatives-- revise the minimum contract size and require upfront collection of option premiums intra-day monitoring of position limits, ...

Provide credit enhancements for civic bodies: Sebi ED Rao to NaBFID

The National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) should provide credit enhancements for civic bodies which will help increase investor interest in municipal bonds, a senior Sebi official said on Thursday. The municipal bodies have an investment grade rating, but very few of them are rated AA and above which is considered essential by institutional investors like insurance and pension funds, Sebi's executive director Pramod Rao said. "NaBFID providing credit enhancements to such municipalities will be able to ensure that we have strong investor interest which comes in," he said at an event on infrastructure finance here. He said only 100 of the 5,000 civic bodies are rated which leaves a "long tail" of bodies which can raise the money it helped with the credit enhancement. The government has notified NaBFID as a public financial institution. The senior official from the capital markets regulator also said that this will not be working in perpetuity for any ci

Market regulator Sebi plans to boost municipal bond participation via ARCL

ARCL is a settlement and clearing provider for the tri-party repo, backed by Sebi and funded by asset management companies, launched last year to provide a common platform for market participants

Chhattisgarh's Raipur Municipal Corporation plans to issue green bonds

The RMC is seeking to raise Rs 200 crore. The proposal is in the final stages. And, a detailed project report has been prepared to utilise the funds raised from the bonds, an official said

Uttar Pradesh government to tap capital markets with municipal bonds

A bond is a debt security issued by a government agency or municipality to finance capital expenditure

TMS Ep400: SC on bank frauds, rising interest rate, markets, municipal bond

Why did RBI fail to convince SC on bank frauds? What should borrowers do amid rising interest rates? Which sectors should you bet on in FY24? What are municipal bonds? All answers here

What are municipal bonds, and why do investors prefer them over corp bonds?

Municipal bonds are primarily issued to raise money for financing infrastructure projects like building parks, libraries, schools, police departments and community centres

G20 push: Over 30 big cities on list to tap municipal bond market

Surat, Vizag may issue bonds soon as Centre renews urban infra focus

NSE Indices launches country's first ever Nifty India Municipal Bond Index

NSE Indices Ltd, an NSE arm, on Friday said it has launched the country's first ever municipal bond index. The new Nifty India Municipal Bond Index will track the performance of municipal bonds issued by Indian municipal corporations across maturities and having investment grade credit rating, NSE Indices said in a statement. The index was launched at a Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) workshop on Municipal Debt Securities in Bengaluru. Presently, the index has 28 municipal bonds issued by 10 issuers all having credit rating in the AA category. The index constituents are assigned weights based on their outstanding amount. The Indian municipal bond market has seen a resurgence of issuances after Sebi's Issue and Listing of Municipal Debt Securities Regulations, 2015 came into effect and a renewed emphasis on municipal finance by policymakers. Raising money from capital markets incentivises municipal corporations to fund new projects and improve civic infrastructure whi

Markets regulator Sebi launches information database on municipal bonds

Markets regulator Sebi has launched an information database on municipal bonds. As part of efforts to develop the bond markets, an outreach programme on municipal bonds and municipal finance was organised by Sebi in the national capital on January 20 and 21, according to a release on Sunday. Representatives from various stakeholders, including the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, municipal corporations, stock exchanges, credit rating agencies, merchant bankers and debenture trustees, participated in the programme. At the event, Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch emphasised the potential of municipal bonds in infrastructure development and nation building. The information database was launched at the event. "The information database contains a wide range of information in the form of statistics and regulations, circulars, guidance note and Frequently Asked Questions issued by Sebi in respect of municipal debt securities," it said. According to the release, the repository con

Cut I-T, review capital gains tax in Budget 2023-24: CII to govt

FM Nirmala Sitharaman's pre-Budget consultations from today

Indian cities will need $840 bn investment over 15 years: World Bank

Municipal bonds account for a marginal share in debt financing, says the report

RBI prods Indian civic bodies to issue municipal bonds for funding

India's local city governments must consider issuing municipal bonds to meet their funding requirements as the demand to ramp-up infrastructure in the Asia's third-largest economy grows

Moving on the infrastructure agenda

Globally, municipal bonds are an established and major source of funding for urban infra. However, the municipal bond market is quite underdeveloped in India, notes Vinayak Chatterjee

PM Modi's Varanasi constituency to float municipal bonds of Rs 200 crore

Lucknow Municipal Corporation earlier in December become the first city in North India to list at BSE

Best of BS Opinion: Municipal bonds, signals from market, and more

Here are the best of Business Standard's opinions for today

Step forward for cities

Municipal bonds can help push local development

Lucknow raises Rs 200 cr on BSE muni bond listing; more UP cities to follow

Ghaziabad, Pragyaraj, Varanasi, Agra and Kanpur to issue bonds next, says Yogi Adityanath.

Lucknow Municipal Corporation garners Rs 200 crore on BSE Bond platform

The municipal corporation received 21 bids on BSE BOND platform for Rs 450 crore

Sebi extends compliance deadline for municipal bonds to July 31

The relaxation pertains to submission of investor grievance report, financial results and accounts maintained by issuers under ILDM Regulation, Sebi noted in a circular