Bajaj Finance Promoter To Invest Rs 1,189 Crore Through Preferential Issue

Bajaj Finance Ltd. has approved the allotment of 15.5 lakh warrants to its promoter, Bajaj Finserv Ltd., to raise Rs 1,189 crore.

The issue price has been set at Rs 7,670 per warrant, according to an exchange filing on Thursday.

Following the issue, the promoter's stake will rise to 52.57% from the pre-allotment of 52.45%.

An amount equivalent to 25% of the consideration shall be payable at the time of subscription and allotment of warrants, and the remaining 75% on the exercise of options against each warrant.

Each of the warrants is convertible into an equivalent number of equity shares within a period of 18 months from the date of allotment, the statement said.

In September, the non-banking financial company's board approved proposals to raise up to Rs 10,000 crore through a combination of preferential issues and qualified institutional placements. The plans received shareholder backing in an extraordinary general meeting held on Oct. 31.

Bajaj Finance aims to utilise up to Rs 8,000 crore for repayment of loans, commercial papers, non-convertible debentures, and interest payments through the proceeds of warrant issues and QIP.

The remaining Rs 2,000 crore will be used for general corporate purposes, according to its EGM notice.

Staying Well-Capitalised

Bajaj Finance's plans to raise capital will help improve its book value and growth outlook on profit and assets under management, according to HSBC Global Research.

In its September note, HSBC estimated a capital infusion of approximately 12–15% of the net worth in the first quarter of the current financial year, ranging between Rs 7,000 crore and Rs 8,000 crore. That implied a dilution of approximately 1.6–1.7% in the number of shares, the brokerage said.

A fundraising effort of almost $1 billion could lower the NBFC's return ratio, according to Jefferies. While return on equity may fall to 22% in the current fiscal as compared with 23% in the previous fiscal, the company's return-on-asset ratio will remain unchanged at 4.7% for the current fiscal, the brokerage said.

However, the fundraise will keep Bajaj Finance well-capitalised with a tier-1 capital adequacy ratio of 23%. The planned capital raise is primarily expected to be for "upfronting of capital to support strong AUM growth" of 32% in the first quarter, Jefferies said.

With a "healthy" tier-I capital adequacy ratio of 23%, the NBFC has geared up to diversify the risk on its balance sheet, according to PhillipCapital.

Shares of Bajaj Finance closed 0.27% lower ahead of the announcement on Thursday, as compared with a 0.77% advance in the BSE Sensex.