The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has issued an "administrative warning" to Piramal Enterprises Ltd with regard to the sale of its 8.34 per cent stake in Shriram Finance Ltd.

The Ajay Piramal-company on June 21, 2023 sold over 3 crore shares of the non-banking finance company (NBFC) through a block deal on the NSE at Rs 1,545 per share. The sale marked Piramal’s exit from the company.

However, the market regulator has now warned Piramal Enterprises saying that it did not consider the transaction as unpublished price sensitive information (UPSI).

PEL said in a regulatory filing that the market regulator has issued an administrative warning, which was received through the BSE on April 2, 2024.

Sebi in its letter stated that the Shriram Finance transaction was not considered UPSI by the company. Sebi also sought the company’s stand on the reasons why the transaction was not treated as UPSI.

The company added that in response to a query raised by Sebi earlier, it informed the regulator of its stated position on the stake held in the Shriram group. It is not clear as to when the regulator had raised this query.

PEL disclosed that since 2019, it has in various fora including investor conference calls (the most recent before the transaction was May 5, 2023), had publicly stated its intention to monetise its investments in Shriram group.

``Sebi has considered the above facts submitted by the company and has issued administrative warning to the company stating that the transaction was not considered as UPSI while treating it as material information under Regulation 30 of the Sebi Listing Regulations’’.

Regulation 30 says that every listed entity shall make disclosures of any events or information which, in the opinion of the board of the listed company, is material.