Hindenburg saga

This refers to ‘Hindenburg shared Adani report with client 2 months before publishing it’ (July 8). SEBI’s allegations regarding the connection between Hindenburg and Kotak Mahindra Investments Ltd (KMIL) through a broker necessitate a deep investigation. Additionally, the potential Chinese link to Kingdon through the alleged spy Anla Cheng, especially in the context of strained India-China relations, also demands close scrutiny. KMIL’s claim that it did not act on any price-sensitive information, despite building a short position for 850,000 shares and squaring off these positions after the release of the report, seems highly coincidental. In spite of SEBI’s allegation against Hindenburg regarding undue enrichment, SEBI cannot ignore Hindenburg’s allegations that Adani was operating through a vast network of offshore shell companies. These claims must be thoroughly investigated.

Overall, SEBI’s investigation needs to be multifaceted to uncover the truth, especially considering the significant financial losses investors faced.

Srinivasan Velamur

Chennai

De-risking SME-IPOs

This refers to ‘NSE’s cap on SME-IPO to rein-in volatility, over-subscription’ (July 8). The revised listing guidelines setting a cap at 90 per cent on the opening price discovered during special pre-open session for IPOs on the “Emerge” platform of NSE, is a laudable step in preventing irrational speculation activity prevailing of late in small stocks. This new directive is supplementing the slew of recent additional disclosure and compliance requirements imposed by the capital market regulator, to de-risk SME-IPOs from price manipulation at the time of offer and trading level and to check the sudden surge in the speculation activities on SME-trading platforms. Considering the number of small companies tapping the market through this platform and the increasing volumes of participation by retail investors, this new initiative would be a corrective measure to prevent investor exuberance in making short-term gains defying the fundamentals of the companies and inculcates long-term investing planning which will lead to emergence of a sustainable stock market ecosystem.

Sitaram Popuri

Bengaluru

Popularising coffee

Apropos ‘Taking coffee to the masses’ (July 8), given the traditional attachment to tea, coffee may never become as popular as tea in the northern parts of India. But there is no doubt that people everywhere love coffee for its aroma, taste and its stimulating quality of giving rise to a feeling of freshness and a boost of energy. Coffee is considered to be a “special occasions” drink mainly due to the cost factor. Coffee “may be the cheapest in India”, but it is costlier compared to tea. The process of making coffee may not remain a big impediment, if the price is within the reach of common people, as filter coffee powders are readily available in the market, obviating the need for roasting and grinding of beans, though preferable for making a perfect cup of coffee. Coffee can be popularised, if the price is a bit moderated to suit the middle class pockets and effectively advertised showing the simple process of making filter coffee.

Kosaraju Chandramouli

Hyderabad