Tata Sons listing: RBI keeps its options open

MUMBAI: A day after the Reserve Bank of India’s deadline for the Tata Group to list its holding company, Tata Sons, passed, the central bank appears to be still weighing its decision, with governor Sanjay Malhotra’s comment leaving the matter open to interpretation.

Asked about the listing on the sidelines of Wednesday’s monetary policy committee meeting, Malhotra initially declined to comment. It was only on the third attempt that he offered a brief remark: “Any entity which has a registration, till it is not cancelled, will continue to do its business.”

Experts believe this suggests the RBI is still weighing its options.

“RBI seems to be still considering the matter. They may have given Tata Sons more time for now,” said HP Ranina, a senior Supreme Court lawyer.

Tata Sons did not immediately respond to Mint’s queries.

The RBI had mandated a public listing of Tata Sons by 30 September 2025, under its scale-based regulatory framework introduced in October 2022, which classifies non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) into four layers based on size, activity, and risk. Tata Sons, with its significant borrowings and heavy investments in group companies, was placed in the upper layer (NBFC-UL).

The Tata Group has so far resisted the RBI's push for listing. Tata Trusts, an umbrella entity that comprises 15 philanthropic entities, seven of which own shares in Tata Sons, directed chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran to explore all options to keep the holding company private.

“The chairman of Tata Sons is requested to exercise best endeavours to ensure that Tata Sons does not change its current status as an unlisted private company and that Tata Sons fully engages with the Reserve Bank of India in this regard," said a 28 July resolution passed by Sir Ratan Tata Trust, which is one of the two main trusts controlling Tata Sons.

In a bid to remain private, Tata Sons voluntarily surrendered its NBFC license in August 2024 and repaid over ₹20,300 crore in debt around the same time. The RBI has yet to formally grant an exemption or extension.

When the central bank released a list of 15 upper layer NBFCs for FY25 on 16 January this year, it included Tata Sons as well as Tata Capital. The inclusion of Tata Sons in the list was “without prejudice to the outcome of its application for de-registration, which is under examination,” the RBI had noted.

Tata Capital is set to go public, with its initial public offering (IPO) opening for subscription on 6 October and closing on 8 October. The company is expected to be listed by 13 October, two weeks after the deadline.

Other companies on the RBI’s upper-layer NBFC list include LIC Housing Finance, Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance, and L&T Finance. Most of the unlisted entities on the original list have either gone public or merged with listed group companies to comply with the central bank’s mandate.