Wipro on Wednesday said it has allotted 38,663 equity shares for Rs 2 a share to JP Morgan Chase Bank, as underlying shares that can be traded in the form of American Depository Receipts (ADRs).
ADRs are financial instruments that allow American investors to purchase shares in a foreign company. Wipro is in the process of reducing promoter shareholding in the company, and industry watchers feel that these are efforts by the company to comply with SEBI guidelines on promoter holdings.
Wipro founder and promoter Azim Premji along with his promoter group companies hold 78.31 per cent in the company as on September, according to BSE data.
This is the second time in December that the company has issued equity shares as ADRs.
Earlier this month, the Karnataka High Court directed Wipro Ltd to hold a shareholders’ meeting to transfer its non-core businesses to Azim Premji Custodial Services.
On December 14, the Wipro board allotted 2,034 equity shares of par value of Rs 2 to JP Morgan Chase Bank.