Brightcom promoter's accounts temporarily freezed, revoked after NSDL directive
The accounts were frozen by SEBI due to technical reasons on 21 November 2022.
Refuting rumours about the accounts of its promoter being frozen due to technical reasons, the Brightcom Group has clarified that although the accounts were frozen following SEBI orders, the company has informed the exchanges, following which the authorities instructed that the accounts be unfrozen with effect from 29 November 2022. The company has officially declared to all its stakeholders that “there is no freeze on promoter shares”.
It may be mentioned here that according to the official information on the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) website, all accounts of Reddy have been frozen with effect from the order dated 21 November 2022. The website states that the accounts have been frozen based on intimation received from the Stock Exchanges, as per the SEBI Circular no. SEBI/HO/CFD/CMD/CIR/P/2020/12 dated January 22, 2020 _NSE Email dt. 21.11.2022.
The action was taken after it came to light that 19 crore shares of this Hyderabad based digital marketing solutions company, which were held by Reddy and other company promoters, had gone “missing” from the shareholding pattern that was shared with stock exchanges.
According to the insider trading rules, whenever promoters sell or transfer shares, they have to inform the stock exchanges about this change of hands, giving complete details of new and old owners. However, there was no communication to this effect to the exchanges from Brightcom in the first quarter of January to March 2022, despite over 17 per cent of the promoter holding changing hands.
However, the company says that the matter has been resolved and the authorities have instructed that all accounts be unfrozen with effect from 29 November 2022. In an official communication released by Company Secretary and Compliance Officer A Mahipal Reddy, the delay happened “in connection with the delay in the joining date of the new company secretary. The accounts were frozen on 25 November as per sect 6 of SEBI LODR, 2015.”
The communication further states - “However the company secretary was already appointed on November 12, 2022 board meeting and the company informed the exchanges. Post which, the authorities instructed that the accounts be unfrozen on November 29, 2022.”
