The Hindu Business Line : ICICI Bank issue subscribed 12 times

Mumbai June 22 ICICI Bank's mega follow-on public offer ended with a big spurt on the last day with the total subscription crossing the Rs 1,20,000-crore mark, thus, over shooting the target amount by over 11 times.

But the issue elicited only a lukewarm support from the retail investors with this segment just about picking up the portion allotted to it.

In contrast, the issue met with robust response from the qualified institutional buyers (QIB) who had bid 23 times by early evening.

A research head with a private equity firm said, "It is certainly one of the successful issues in the recent past. Reliance Petroleum seems to have been more successful."

The amount mobilised by ICICI Bank fell short of the record created by Reliance Petroleum with the latter mopping up Rs 1, 43,000 crore in May 2006.

In a bid to attract retail bidders, the bank has offered part-payment option and a discount of Rs 50 per share for retail subscribers.

A banking analyst said that retail participation should have been higher than the current levels. "Retail investors may be sceptical about the issue, thinking that the issue price may be fixed at the higher end of the price band," she said. She alluded to the possibility that investors might consider the secondary market to be a better option.

Institutional support

"The response from institutional investors like GIC, Temasek and others to the follow-on public offer has been very positive. Banks like SBI and financial institutions like LIC have filed in big applications. These institutional investors tend to be invested for a longer period, so for a long time the stock price of the bank will not see any volatility. If there is some selling pressure at higher levels then it will be largely from smaller investors," said a market analyst.

Bids were received across the price band of Rs 885-950 for the issue. The follow-on public offer opened on June 19.

By late evening, the issue had received 113.58 crore bids, of which 3.31 crore bids were received at the cut-off price. The bank will decide the issue price on June 23.

The bank's scrip was up 0.43 per cent to close at Rs 953.75 on the BSE today, up from the previous close of Rs 949.70.

More Stories on : Private Banks | Public Offer | ICICI Bank Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Fresh `low' brewing as tropical storm crosses coast

It is end of the day for G-4: Kamal Nath

Inflation at 4.28%, hits 14-month low

Plan panel may soon submit views on Deepak Parekh report

Govt sops fail to sweeten sugar stocks

PM for easier capital access to SMEs

Honda plans India-specific small car

Intel's roadmap has no new fabs

Tough challenges ahead for Infosys' new CEO

TCS capex set to increase by 55% to Rs 1,800 cr

Tata Motors betting on capex plans

ICICI Bank issue subscribed 12 times