NDTV to give two board seats to Adani group firm

Radhika Roy and Prannoy Roy can remain directors on the NDTV board by virtue of their 32.26% stake, market experts said.

NDTV has offered billionaire Gautam Adani's group two seats on its board of directors for the pre-open offer, 29.18% shareholding, the ports-to-energy conglomerate had acquired in the broadcaster, according to a stock exchange filing.

The Adani group acquired a 29.18% stake in NDTV by buying a company backed by the television network's founders, Radhika Roy and Prannoy Roy. Thereafter, it made an open offer to acquire an additional 26% from public shareholders.

The open offer found investors willing to sell over 53 lakh shares of New Delhi Television (NDTV) despite the deep discount on the stock's trading price. The stock tendered translated to an 8.26% shareholding, taking the total interest of Adani group in NDTV to 37.44% — higher than the 32.26% holding of founders Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy.

“The Board of Directors of New Delhi Television Limited (NDTV), at its meeting held on December 9, 2022, has approved a proposal to invite RRPR Holding Private Limited, an indirect subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Limited, holding 29.18% equity share capital of NDTV, to nominate two directors to the Board of NDTV,” the broadcaster said in a stock exchange filing.

The appointment, it said, shall be considered in the next meeting of the Board of Directors, scheduled to be held on December 23, 2022.

By virtue of it being the largest shareholding of NDTV, Adani Group has also got the right to nominate a chairman of the news broadcaster. But NDTV, in the filing, did not acknowledge Adani's shareholding post-open offer.

Prior to Adani group's hostile takeover, promoters held 61.45% shares in NDTV. This included 1.88 crore shares or 29.18% held by the RRPR Holding Pvt. Ltd.