Kathmandu. Shivam Cement issued a general share IPO at a premium price on July 15, 2018. At that time, the company issued shares at the rate of Rs 200 per share to the project-affected locals by adding a premium of Rs 100 to the face value.

At that time, the company had set different prices for the general public and the project affected people. A premium of Rs 200 was added to the face value for the general public.

After that, the companies started issuing shares at a premium price. In addition to manufacturing companies, hydropower companies, insurance companies, etc. started issuing shares at premium prices. Some companies are preparing to issue shares at a premium price.

However, the companies have not been able to issue shares at the premium price after the meeting of the Accounts Committee on January 1, 2080, gave instructions to the Securities Board on December 15, 2018. The financial statement submitted by the company issuing the premium IPO to the Securities Board also appeared to be incorrect and the securities board had reduced the time period for issuing shares at the premium price from three years to two years at that time.

The Accounts Committee has said that questions have been raised about the functioning of the regulatory bodies as they did not discuss with the concerned bodies while amending the provisions of the regulations. The accounts committee had also said that the board had allowed various companies to bring IPOs at a premium price in an unwanted and opaque manner by making financial manipulation at that time.

The meeting seems to have exercised discretionary powers while allowing the accounts committee to issue shares at a premium price. According to the committee, the companies going to liquidation were allowed to issue shares by increasing the valuation on their own. The Securities Board has amended the rules to re-evaluate the company and increase the price and issue the IPO. After the Accounts Committee sent a letter to the Securities Board mentioning the matter, the board has now stopped the IPO issuance permission at the premium price.

At that time, there was a lot of controversy over the financial details of Ghorahi Cement and Sonapur Cement, which had issued shares at a premium price. Ghorahi Cement had given fake days to show that the IPO was more than the demand on the day of the IPO issuance.

They tried to attract investors by making fake applications. Sonapur’s IPO, which was issued despite the loss at that time, was repeatedly extended due to lack of application as per the demand.

The dispute has started since the IPO was issued at a premium price in Nepal. The securities board, the regulatory body, has also not been spared from the controversy. After the government adopted the policy of bringing the production price companies to the stock market, some manufacturing companies entered the market. It was arranged to bring the company’s reputation earned over the years, at a premium price so that the profit of the company could not be given to the general public at the face price. Dozens of companies are now affected by the misconduct of some companies.

Ghorahi Cement has issued an IPO at Rs 400 per share to the project-affected people and Rs 435 per share to the general public. Sonapur Mineral and Oil Limited has issued an IPO at Rs 225 by adding a premium of Rs 125 to the face value for the project-affected local and foreign employment Nepalis. The IPO has been issued at Rs 249.84 by adding a premium of Rs 149.84 to the face value for the general public.

Citizens Life Insurance has issued an IPO at a premium price among the insurance companies. The company had issued shares at Rs 290 per share by adding a premium of Rs 190 to the face value. IME Life Insurance has issued an IPO at Rs 276 per share by adding a premium of Rs 176 to the face value, Sun Nepal Life Insurance has added a premium of Rs 150.55 to the face value and Reliable Nepal Life Insurance has issued an IPO at Rs 212 per share by adding a premium of Rs 112 to the face value.

Similarly, Bhagwati Hydropower limited had issued shares at Rs 116 per share by adding a premium of Rs 16 to the face value and Mandu Hydropower at Rs 248 per share by adding a premium of Rs 148 to the face value. Jagdamba Steel has issued shares at Rs 300 per share, Chhaya Devi Complex at Rs 400 per share, Maruti Cement at Rs 377 per share, Shaurya Cement at Rs 264.51 per share and Riddhisiddhi Cement at Rs 214.1 per share.

Similarly, Century Energy and Numbur Himalaya Hydro have sought permission to issue shares by adding a premium of Rs 275.11 per share at the face value and Rs 218 per share at the face value. Similarly, Shivam Cement has a premium of Rs 210 at the face price, Jagdamba Steel at the face price of Rs 300, Sourya Cement at the face value of Rs 264.51, Maruti Cement at the face value of Rs 377, Riddhisiddhi Cement at the face value of Rs 214.10, Ambe Steel at the face value of Rs 303, Hulas Infra at the face price of Rs 333.56, Hams Hospital at the face value of Rs 288, Nepal Broadcasting Channel at the face value of Rs 50. Kailash Helicopters is in the board’s pipeline to bring an IPO by adding a premium of Rs 327 to the face value.

The Securities Board has stopped bringing the IPO at these premium prices, citing the decision taken by the Accounts Committee on December 1, 2080. No official of the board wants to speak officially on this issue. They say they are only studying when they try to get a response. On the other hand, there has been a dispute between the two committees that the Accounts Committee has encroached on the scope of the Finance Committee. Sebon, which has been saying that the accounts committee has stopped, has not stopped registering the files coming to go to the IPO. The board of directors has not even sought a solution to the problem by sitting with the accounts committee. More than a dozen companies have been in the board’s pipeline for more than a year due to mistakes made by some companies.

The state’s policy of bringing productive, good companies into the stock market has been put on hold by various state agencies. The concerned bodies have expressed dissatisfaction over this.