MMTC may complete stake sale in ICEX by end of FY18

State-run trading entity MMTC Ltd is looking at completing the sale of its residual 9.55 per cent stake in Indian Commodity Exchange Ltd (ICEX) by the end of this fiscal year. A source close to the development said, the MMTC had already invited expressions of interest (EoIs) from interested bidders to acquire its stake in the commodity exchange.

MMTC aims to divest 32 million equity shares, of face value of ~5 each, through a competitive bidding process. It has appointed Keynote Corporate Services Ltd as the consultant and investment banker for the transaction.

Ved Prakash, MMTC chairman and managing director, did not respond to phone calls or text messages asking for his comments.

The divestment of 9.55 per cent equity would mark MMTC’s exit from the bourse. The trading entity is currently the third-largest shareholder in ICEX after Reliance Exchange Next, which has 26 per cent stake, and Indiabulls Housing Finance, which holds 10.45 per cent. Other key corporate shareholders are Abhinay Trading Pvt Ltd (8.36 per cent), Indian Potash Ltd (eight per cent), Adventz Finance (4.48 per cent), Krishak Bharti Cooperative (four per cent) and IDFC Bank (2.99 per cent). Bharti Infratel Chairman Akhil Gupta holds five per cent stake in ICEX which also has actors Aamir Khan (0.6 per cent) and Ranbir Rishi Kapoor (0.3 per cent) as shareholders.

MMTC is exiting ICEX, as being a minor equity participant, it would be deprived of any say in decision-making. Besides, the commodity exchange did not take off in a big way with trading being suspended for three years.

ICEX, however, has restarted with diamond futures contracts. The exchange also has approvals for light sweet crude oil and Brent crude oil contracts.