Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) said on Wednesday that market regulator SEBI had granted it an exemption to list shares worth Rs 2,195 crore allocated to foreign portfolio investor Caladium Investment Pte Ltd. Subject to obtaining approval from the stock exchange, the Aditya Birla Group company has made an application to the stock exchange, which has approached SEBI, seeking an exemption from Rule 19(2)(b) under SCRR Rule 19(7) to the issue of Proposed listing of warrants has priority.

“In this regard, we would like to inform you that SEBI has sent a letter to the Exchange on September 7, 2022, that it has approved the company’s relaxation of the application of SCRR Rule 19(2)(b) on the issue of priority listing warrants,” it said, under SCRR Rule 19(2)(b), listed companies are exempt from public offerings of securities that are different from existing listed securities.

Earlier on May 24, ABFRL announced that it had raised Rs 2,195 crore from Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC. “GIC will now invest Rs 770 crore in stock options and warrants and then invest up to Rs 1,425 crore in tranches within 18 months after the exercise of the warrants. Upon completion of the entire investment, GIC will own 7.5% of ABFRL equity,” it added.

After the transaction, Aditya Birla Group will hold a 51.9% stake in the company. ABFRL is part of Madura’s fashion and lifestyle business, with leading apparel brands such as Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly and Peter England.

Its international brand portfolio includes India’s largest multi-brand retailer of global brands, The Collective, Simon Carter and a range of single brands such as Forever 21, American Eagle, Ralph Lauren, Ted Baker and Fred Perry. It also owns Pantaloons’s fashion retail chain, with more than 370 stores in 180 cities.