A source of funds for financing expansion of existing capacity and for fresh investment out of territory
External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) refer to commercial loans availed from non-resident lenders
ECB includes:
commercial bank loans
buyer’s credit
supplier’s credit
securitized instruments such as floating rate notes
fixed rate bonds
credit from official export credit agencies,
ECB includes:
Commercial borrowings from the private sector
Window of multilateral financial institutions such as IFC, ADB, AFIC, CDC etc.
Investment by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) in dedicated debt funds
Why ECB
Scarcity of fund in domestic market
Cheaper than domestic debts
Regulation
Clause (d) of sub-section 3 of section 6 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA)
With section 6 of Notification No. FEMA 3 / 2000-RB dated May 3, 2000 (amended)
Policy
Permitted by the Government as a source of finance for Corporate to expand their existing capacity & for fresh investment
An annual cap or ceiling on access to ECB, consistent with prudent debt management
Greater priority for projects in the infrastructure, Power, oil, telecom, railways, Roads & Bridges, Ports, Industrial parks, urban Infrastructure & export sector.
Ways of raising ECB
Automatic route
Approval route
Automatic Route
ECB for investment in real sector -industrial sector, especially infrastructure sector-in India, are under Automatic Route, i.e. do not require RBI permission
Government approval. In case of doubt as regards eligibility to access
Automatic Route, applicants may take recourse to the Approval Route.
Eligible Borrowers
Corporate (registered under the Companies Act except financial intermediaries)
Units in Special Economic Zones (SEZ) are allowed to raise ECB for their own requirement.
Individuals, Trusts and Non-Profit making organizations are not eligible to raise ECB.
For ECB up to $ 5 m - minimum equity of 25% held directly by the lender
For ECB more than $ 5 m - minimum equity of 25% held directly by the lender & debt-equity ratio not exceed 4:1
(The proposed ECB not exceeding four times the direct foreign equity holding).
Amount & Maturity
Maximum ECB which can be raised is $ 500 m or equivalent during a financial year.
ECB up to $ 20 m or equivalent in a financial year with minimum average maturity of three years .
ECB above $ 20 m and up to USD 500 million or equivalent with a minimum average maturity of five years.
Utilization
Import of capital goods (as classified by DGFT in the Foreign Trade Policy), by new or existing production units, in real sector - industrial sector SME and infrastructure sector
Power, Telecommunication, Railways, road including bridges, sea port and airport, industrial parks, urban infrastructure (water supply, sanitation and sewage projects)
Overseas direct investment in Joint Ventures (JV)/Wholly Owned Subsidiaries (WOS)
Restricted Areas
Utilization of ECB is not permitted for on-lending or investment in capital market or acquiring a company (or a part thereof) in India by a corporate
Utilization of ECB is not permitted in real estate
Utilization of ECB is not permitted for working capital, general corporate purpose and repayment of existing Rupee loans.
Parking of ECB
Deposits or Certificate of Deposit or other products offered by banks
Deposits with overseas branch of an authorized dealer in India
Treasury bills and other monetary instruments of one year maturity
Rating of above institution – AA (-) by S&P/Fitch IBCA or Aa3 by Moody’s
The funds should be invested in such a way that the investments can be liquidated as and when funds are required by the borrower in India.
Prepayment
Prepayment of ECB up to $ 500 m is allowed without prior approval of RBI
Minimum average maturity period is applicable to the loan.
Refinancing
The fresh ECB is raised at a lower cost than the existing
Maturity of the original ECB is maintained.
Procedure
No prior approval of RBI is required
The borrower must obtain a Loan Registration Number (LRN) from RBI before drawing down the ECB.
The procedure for obtaining LRN is detailed in para II (i) (b). of FEMA
Approval
Route
FI’s dealing exclusively with infrastructure or export finance such as IDFC, IL&FS, Power Finance Corporation, Power Trading Corporation, IRCON and EXIM Bank are considered on a case by case basis.
Banks & FI’s which had participated in the textile or steel sector restructuring package as approved by the Government are permitted to the extent of their investment in the package and assessment by Reserve Bank based on prudential norms. Any ECB availed for this purpose so far will be deducted from their entitlement.
Eligible Borrowers
Eligible Borrowers
ECB with minimum average maturity of 5 years by NBFCs from multilateral financial institutions reputable regional financial institutions, official export credit agencies and international banks to finance import of infrastructure equipment for leasing to infrastructure projects.
Corporate in services sector viz. hotels, hospitals and software companies can avail ECB for import of capital goods
Eligible Borrowers
Special Purpose Vehicles, or any other entity notified by the Reserve Bank, set up to finance infrastructure companies / projects exclusively, will be treated as Financial Institutions and ECB by such entities will be considered under the Approval Route.
Multi-State Co-operative Societies engaged in manufacturing activity satisfying the following criteria
i) the Co-operative Society is financially solvent and
ii) the Co-operative Society submits its up-to-date audited balance sheet.
Corporate engaged in industrial sector and infrastructure sector in India can avail ECB for Rupee expenditure for permissible end-uses.
Eligible Borrowers
Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) by housing finance companies satisfying the following minimum criteria:
(i) the minimum net worth of the financial intermediary during the previous three years shall not be less than Rs. 500 crore,
(ii) a listing on the BSE or NSE,
(iii) minimum size of FCCB is USD 100 million,
(iv) the applicant should submit the purpose / plan of utilization of funds.
Eligible Borrowers
NGOs engaged in micro finance activities are eligible to avail ECB for Rupee expenditure for permissible end-uses. The maximum limit for NGOs are $ 5 m.
Such NGO
(i) should have a satisfactory borrowing relationship for at least 3 years with a scheduled commercial bank authorized to deal in foreign exchange
(ii) Would require a certificate of due diligence on `fit and proper’ status of the board/committee of management of the borrowing entity from the designated Authorized Dealer bank.
Recognized Lenders
ECB’s can be raise from international sources such as
(i) international banks
(ii) international capital markets
(iii) multilateral financial institutions (such as IFC, ADB, CDC
(iv) export credit agencies
(v) suppliers' of equipment
(vi) foreign collaborators
(vii)Foreign equity holders
Condition for Foreign Equity Holders
The minimum equity held directly by the foreign equity lender is 25 % but debt-equity ratio exceeds 4:1
(The proposed ECB not exceeding four times the direct foreign equity holding).
Borrowing from Overseas Organizations
Overseas Organizations proposing to lend ECB would have to furnish a certificate of due diligence from an overseas bank which in turn is subject to regulation of host-country regulator and adheres to Financial Action Task Force (FATF) guidelines to the AD bank of the borrower. certificate should contain
(i) The lender maintains an account with the bank for at least a period of two years
(ii) The lending entity is organized as per the local law and held in good esteem by the business/local community and (iii) that there is no criminal action pending against it.
Amount & Maturity
Maximum ECB which can be raised is $ 500 m or equivalent during a financial year.
ECB up to $ 20 m or equivalent in a financial year with minimum average maturity of three years .
ECB above $ 20 m and up to USD 500 million or equivalent with a minimum average maturity of five years.
Apart from above automatic route norms:
Additional amount of $ 250 m with average maturity of more than 10 years under the approval route
Corporate in infrastructure sector can avail ECB up to $ 100 m
Corporate in industrial sector can avail ECB up to $50 m
Corporates in the services sector i.e. hotels, hospitals and software companies can avail ECB up to $100 m
Amount & Maturity
Utilization
Power, Telecommunication, Railways, road including bridges, sea port and airport, industrial parks, urban infrastructure (water supply, sanitation and sewage projects)
Overseas direct investment in Joint Ventures (JV)/Wholly Owned Subsidiaries (WOS)
Import of capital goods by corporate in the service sector, viz., hotels, hospitals and software companies.
Restricted Areas
On-lending or investment in capital market or acquiring a company
Real estate
For working capital, general corporate purpose and repayment of existing Rupee loans.
Parking of ECB
Deposits or Certificate of Deposit or other products offered by banks
Deposits with overseas branch of an authorized dealer in India
Treasury bills and other monetary instruments of one year maturity
Rating of above institution – AA (-) by S&P/Fitch IBCA or Aa3 by Moody’s
The funds should be invested in such a way that the investments can be liquidated as and when funds are required by the borrower in India.
Prepayment
Prepayment of ECB up to $ 500 m is allowed without prior approval of RBI
Pre-payment of ECB for amounts exceeding $ 500 m would be considered by the Reserve Bank under the Approval Route.
(Minimum average maturity period is applicable to the loan.)
Refinancing
The fresh ECB is raised at a lower cost than the existing
Maturity of the original ECB is maintained.
Procedure
No prior approval of RBI is required
The borrower must obtain a Loan Registration Number (LRN) from RBI before drawing down the ECB.
The procedure for obtaining LRN is detailed in para II (i) (b). of FEMA
All-in-cost ceilings
Expenses paid in foreign Currency
Interest
Other fees & expenses
Expenses paid in Indian Currency
Commitment fee
Pre-payment fee
(The payment of withholding tax in Indian Rupees is excluded for calculating the all-in-cost.)
Expense Ceiling Average Maturity Period All-in-cost Ceiling over 6 month LIBOR* Three years and up to five years 200 basis points More than five years 350 basis points
Empowered Committee
A committee established to accept the proposal scrutiny it and forward application to RBI for permission for Approval route ECB
Compliances with ECB Guidelines
Contravention of the ECB guidelines will be viewed seriously
Penal action will be taken under FEMA 1999 (cf. A. P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 31 dated February 1, 2005)
The designated AD bank is required to ensure that raising / utilization of ECB is in compliance with ECB guidelines at the time of certification.
Conversion of ECB into Equity
The activity of the company is covered under the Automatic Route for Foreign Direct Investment or Government approval for foreign equity participation has been obtained by the company,
The foreign equity holding after such conversion of debt into equity is within the sectoral cap, if any,
Pricing of shares is as per SEBI and erstwhile CCI guidelines/regulations in the case of listed/unlisted companies as the case may be.
$ 5 Million Scheme
AD banks are permitted to approve elongation of repayment period for loans raised under the
$ 5 m Scheme , provided
The overseas lender has given letter for such reschedulement without any additional cost.
Such approval with existing and revised repayment schedule along with the Loan Key/Loan Registration Number should be initially communicated to the Chief General Manager-in-Charge, Foreign Exchange Department, Reserve Bank of India, Central Office, ECB Division, Mumbai within seven days of approval and subsequently in ECB - 2.
Application
The complete application should be
submitted by the applicant through
the designated authorized dealer to the
Chief General Manager-In-Charge, Foreign Exchange Department, Central Office, ECB Division, Reserve Bank of India, Mumbai 400 001.
Documentation
(i) A copy of offer letter from the overseas lender/supplier furnishing complete details of the terms and conditions of proposed ECB.
(ii) A copy of the import contract, proforma/commercial invoice/bill of lading.
Month (2008) ECB Inflows $ (mn approx) May 0995.67 June 1446.08 July 2461.82 August 0897.59 September 2834.95 October 1125.23 SOURCE-RBI
Foreign Currency Convertible Bond
FCCB
Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCB) are debt instruments issued in a currency different than the issuer’s domestic currency with an option to convert them in common shares of the issuer company.
Features of FCCB
A debt instrument which can be converted into a company’s equity shares if the investor chooses to do so, at a pre-determined strike rate.
FCCB issues have a ‘Call’ and ‘Put’ option to suit the structure of the bond, both the options are subject to RBI guidelines.
The interest on FCCBs is generally 30% -40% less than on normal debt paper or foreign currency loans or ECBs. This translates to cost saving of approx 2-3 percent p.a.
Features of FCCB
FCCB can be secured as well as unsecured. Most of the FCCB issued by Indian Companies are generally unsecured.
FCCB can be converted into Indian Shares or American Depository Receipts (ADR)
FCCB are generally listed to improve liquidity, generally Indian issuer have listed at Singapore Stock Exchange and in many cases also on Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
Statutory Guideline & RBI Regulation
FCCB can be raised by two ways :
Automatic Route
Approval Route
Automatic Route
The automatic route is available to real sector i.e. Industrial sector, specially infrastructure sector-in India
Approval Route
Financial Institutions dealing exclusively with infrastructure or export finance such as IDFC, IL&FS, Power Finance Corporation, Power Trading Corporation, IRCON and EXIM Bank
Banks and financial institutions which had participated in the textile or steel sector restructuring package as approved by the Government are also permitted to the extent of their investment in the package and assessment by RBI based on prudential norms. Any ECB availed for this purpose so far are deducted from their entitlement.
Regulations
Minimum Average Maturity shall be 3 years for borrowing up to $ 20 m and 5 years in case it exceeds $ 20 m
The maximum amount of ECB to be raised in a financial year can be $ 500 m
Utilization
(a) Investment purposes like Import of Capital goods, New projects, modernization/expansion programs in Industrial and infrastructure sector
(b) Overseas direct investment in JV or wholly owned subsidiaries abroad
(c) RBI guidelines provide that funds received through FCCB should be parked abroad till the actual requirement arises in India.
Ministry of Finance Guideline for Listed Companies
Eligibility of Issuer – Only Companies who are allowed to raise capital from Indian market
Eligibility of Subscriber – Overseas Corporate Bodies (OCBs) who are eligible to invest in India through the portfolio route and entities allowed to buy, sell or deal in securities by SEBI
Pricing of FCCB
The pricing should be made at a price not less than the higher of the following two averages:
(i) The average of the weekly high and low of the closing prices of the related shares quoted on the stock exchange during the six months preceding the relevant date;
(ii) The average of the weekly high and low of the closing prices of the related shares quoted on a stock exchange during the two weeks preceding the relevant date.
Buy Back of FCCB
The buyback value of the FCCB shall be at a minimum discount of 25% on the book value
The funds used for the buyback shall be out of internal accruals, to be evidenced by Statutory Auditor and designated AD Category – I bank's certificate
The total amount of buyback shall not exceed USD 50 million of the redemption value, per company.
Issuance of FCCB By Indian Companies
FCCBs can be issued by Indian companies in the overseas market in accordance with Scheme for Issue of FCCB & Ordinary Shares (Through Depository Receipt Mechanism) Scheme, 1993.
The FCCB issue needs to conform to External Commercial Borrowing guidelines, issued by RBI vide Notification No. FEMA 3/2000-RB dated May 3, 2000 as amended from time to time.
Suzlon Energy Limited
May 16, 2007 launched and priced a Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) issuance for an amount of USD 300 million.
The FCCBs, which have a maturity of 5 years and 1 day, are convertible at a conversion price of Rs 1,800 per share.
The FCCBs is listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd.
Deutsche Bank is the Sole Bookrunner to the transaction; and Yes Bank Ltd. advisor to the Company.
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