The Securities and Exchange Board of India, or Sebi, on Thursday relaxed the deadline for listed Indian firms to announce their financial results in the wake of surging Covid-19 cases.
The capital markets regulator gave multiple relaxations to Indian companies, including market intermediaries and depositories, in terms of filing of financial details, disclosure on fund utilisation and updating client records.
In a circular, Sebi said listed Indian companies, which are currently required to announce their quarterly financial results within 45 days from the end of the quarter or by May 15, are now allowed to file their March quarter results for fiscal 2021 by June 30.
The deadline for filing annual audited financial results too has been extended by the markets regulator. Currently, all companies are required to file their audited financials within 60 days from the end of the financial year, i.e., by May 30.
This deadline has been extended till June 30 by the markets regulator.
“Sebi is in receipt of representations from listed entities, professional bodies, industry associations, market participants, etc., requesting an extension of timelines for various filings and relaxation from certain compliance obligations under the LODR (listing obligations and disclosure regulations) norms due to ongoing second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and restrictions imposed by various state governments,” the regulator said in its circular.
So far, 170-odd listed companies in India have announced their financial results for the March quarter and fiscal year 2021.
Sebi has also extended the deadline for companies to file their annual secretarial compliance report by a month till June 30.
Also, the deadline for submitting the statement of deviation or variation in the use of funds (along with the financial results) has been extended by a month till June 30.
In order to ensure that companies observe safety and social-distancing guidelines to avoid contracting the deadly Covid-19 virus, until December 31, all listed entities are allowed to use digital signature certifications for authentication of filings/submissions made to the stock exchanges, according to the Sebi circular.
In line with the relaxations made for listed companies, Sebi has extended the compliance timelines for trading members, clearing members, depository participants and KYC or know-your-customer registration agencies as well.
Among many other relaxations, the deadline for submission of the internal audit report for the half-yearly earnings (at the end of March-2021) and the net worth certificate for members has been extended till July 31 by the capital markets regulator.