Trade Board clarifies on demutualisation

Indore, Feb 15(UNI) The National Board of Trade (NBoT), a Commodity Exchange and initially functioning as non-profit distributing guarantee company without share capital, has clarified that the demutualisation process has commenced for obtaining the status of National Commodity Exchange and in compliance with the conditions, prescribed by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs.

Recently the apex body related to soybean farmers, industrialists and traders, Soybean Processers Association of India (SOPA), alleged irregularities in share allotment and demutualisation process.

SOPA urged the Forward Markets Commission and the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to intervene and stop NBoT and Ruchi Soya Industries Chairperson Kailash Shahara from making the NBoT his pocket organisation.

NBoT, in a release issued here, said the Governing Board of NBoT, since its inception, comprise of Directors nominated by Government and Directors as Public Representatives. The directions given to NBoT for demutualisation were segregating the ownership rights from the trading rights. To do this, the process of creating a share capital company was commenced.

There were 119 trading members at the time when NBoT was a guarantee company. All 119 members did not become shareholders in the demutualised company and all of them continued to remain trading members despite offer given to all of them. There is no change in the situation pre or post demutualisation, the release added.

It said the company was formed by following all the prescribed legal process in compliance with the regulations of Ministry of Company Affairs and Ministry of Consumer Affairs. Whatever was communicated to the NBoT by the appropriate authorities, wherever applicable, was complied with by the NBoT in completing the process of demutualisation with full transparency.

All trading members are legally and validly registered with the NBoT. In connection with the allegation of financial irregularity to the tune of crores of rupees in the NBoT, it said the share capital of the company is Rs One crore. The total capital deployed in the NBoT is less than Rs 10 crore.

Each shareholder of the NBoT has successful business track record and has been allotted shares in a transparent manner by following the best corporate governance procedures, it added.

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