FIIs need RBI nod to buy shares in Yes Bank

Foreign investors will need the Reserve Bank’s approval to buy equity in private sector lender Yes Bank as it has reached the limit allowed for overseas shareholding.

RBI said foreign shareholding limit in Yes Bank through FIIs/ Registered Foreign Portfolios Investors (RFPIs)/ NRIs/ Persons of Indian Origin/ Foreign Direct Investment/ American Depository Receipts/Global Depository Receipts has reached the trigger limit.

“Therefore, further purchases of equity shares of this bank would be allowed only after obtaining prior approval of the Reserve Bank,” RBI said in a release.

RBI monitors the ceilings on FII/NRI/PIO investments in Indian companies on a daily basis.

To effectively monitor the limit, RBI has fixed cut-off points two percentage points lower than the actual ceiling.

FIIs held 45.04 per cent shares in Yes Bank as of quarter ended June 2014, according to data on BSE.