India’s Ministry of Steel has sold 10% of the paid-up equity capital of state-controlled National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) – the country’s largest iron ore miner – for approximately US$1.1 billion. The transaction was conducted through an offer for sale (OFS), a regulated securities transaction designed to help majority shareholders of Indian public companies to reduce their shareholdings to 75% to meet new regulatory requirements. Shares were sold on the National Stock Exchange of India and the Bombay Stock Exchange.
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This is the second OFS by the Indian government. The earlier sale of a 5% stake in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation is one of India Business Law Journal’s Deals of the Year (see page 43). The Indian capital markets should see a slew of similar transactions as majority shareholders in the country move to reduce the size of their holdings. (For more on this topic, see page 39.)
Amarchand Mangaldas advised the brokers – Citigroup Global Markets India, DSP Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs (India) Securities, Axis Capital and ICICI Securities – on the deal. The firm was led by partner Prashant Gupta, principal associate Aarti Joshi, principal associate-designate Sayantan Dutta and senior associate Manjari Tyagi. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton acted as the international legal counsel to the brokers.
ALMT Legal and Morrison Cohen advised the Indian government on Indian and international law, respectively.
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