SECURITIES LENDING SCHEME
1. PRELIMINARY
(1) This scheme shall be called the Securities Lending Scheme, 1997
2. APPLICABILITY
(1) It shall come into force on 6th February 1997.
3. DEFINITIONS
(1) In this scheme, unless the context otherwise requires :-
(a.) "approved intermediary" means a person duly registered
by the Board under the guidelines/scheme through whom the lender will deposit
the securities for lending and the borrower will borrow the securities;
(b.) "Board" means the Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI) established under Section 3 of the Securities and Exchange Board
of India Act, 1992;
(c.) "borrower" means a person who borrows the securities
under the scheme through an approved intermediary;
(d.) "corporate benefits" shall include dividends(gross),
rights, bonus, redemption benefits, interest, or any other right or benefit
accruing on the securities lent;
(e.) "lender" means a person who deposits the securities registered
in his name or in the name of any other person duly authorised on his behalf
with an approved intermediary for the purpose of lending under the scheme;
(f.) "securities" has the meaning assigned to it in Section
2 of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956;
(g.) "scheme" means Securities Lending Scheme, 1997 for lending
of securities through an approved intermediary to a borrower under an agreement
for a specified period with the condition that the borrower will return
equivalent securities of the same type or class at the end of the specified
period along with the corporate benefits accruing on the securities borrowed.
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Words and expression used and not defined for the purpose of this
Scheme but defined in the Securities Contracts (regulation) Act, 1956 or
SEBI Act shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in that
Act or rule and regulations made thereunder.
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SCHEME
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The lender shall enter into an agreement with the approved intermediary
for depositing the securities for the purpose of lending through approved
intermediary as per the scheme and the borrower shall enter into an agreement
with the approved intermediary for the purpose of borrowing of securities
and as such there shall be no direct agreement between the lender and the
borrower for the lending or borrowing of securities.
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The agreement between the lender and the approved intermediary shall
provide that when the lender has deposited the securities with the approved
intermediary under the scheme, the beneficial interest shall continue to
remain with the lender and all the corporate benefits shall accrue to the
lender.
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The lender shall be entitled to deposit only those securities registered
in his name or in the name of any other person duly authorised on his behalf
with the approved intermediary for the purpose of lending.
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The lending of securities under the scheme through an approved intermediary
and the return of the equivalent securities of the same type and class
by the borrower shall not be treated as disposal of the securities.
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The approved intermediary shall issue a receipt to the lender acknowledging
the deposit of the securities by the lender.
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The approved intermediary shall unless otherwise provided in the agreement
with the lender, guarantee the return of the equivalent securities of the
same type and class to the lender along with the corporate benefits accrued
on them during the tenure of the borrowing. Even in case of failure of
the borrower to return the securities or corporate benefits the approved
intermediary shall be liable for making good the loss caused to the lender.
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The approved intermediary may retain the securities deposited by the
lender in its custody as a trustee on behalf of the lender.
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The approved intermediary shall in accordance with the terms of the
agreement entered into with the lender, be entitled to lend the securities
deposited by the lender to the borrower from time to time.
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Under the scheme, the title of the securities lent to the borrower shall
vest with the borrower and the borrower shall be entitled to deal with
or dispose of the securities borrowed in any manner whatsoever.
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The agreement between the borrower and the approved intermediary shall
inter alia provide that the borrower shall have an obligation to return,
the equivalent number of securities of the same type and class borrowed,
to the approved intermediary within the time specified in the agreement
along with all the corporate benefits which have accrued thereon during
the period of borrowing.
(11)The agreement between the lender and the approved intermediary
and the borrower and the approved intermediary, shall also provide for
the following terms and conditions :-
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the period of depositing/lending of securities,
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charges or fees for depositing/lending and borrowing,
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collateral securities for borrowing,
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provisions for the return including premature return of the securities
deposited or lent; and
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mechanism for resolution of the disputes through arbitration.
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The borrower shall not be entitled to discharge his liabilities of returning
the equivalent securities through payment in cash or kind.
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The approved intermediary shall be entitled to receive from the borrower
collateral security and fees for lending the securities.
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The borrower shall deposit the collateral securities with the approved
intermediary in the form of cash, bank guarantee, Government securities
or certificate of deposits or other securities as may be agreed upon with
the approved intermediary for the purpose of ensuring the return of the
securities.
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When the approved intermediary returns securities to the lender, the
approved intermediary shall issue a receipt to the lender.
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The approved intermediary shall maintain a complete record of the securities
deposited by the lender, securities lent to the borrower, the securities
received from the borrower and the securities returned to the lender by
the approved intermediary.
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In the event of the failure of the borrower to return the securities
in terms of the agreement, the borrower shall become a defaulter and the
approved intermediary shall have the right to liquidate the collateral
deposited with it, in order to purchase from the market the equivalent
securities of the same class and type for purpose of returning the equivalent
securities to the lender. The approved intermediary shall be entitled to
take any action as deemed appropriate against the defaulting borrower to
make good its loss, if any.
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The approved intermediary shall notify defaults by any borrower to the
Board, the concerned stock exchange and the concerned authorities for initiation
of appropriate action against the defaulter.
5. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR APPROVED INTERMEDIARY
No person shall act as an approved intermediary unless a certificate
of registration has been obtained from the Board.
For the grant of a certificate of registration the Board shall take
into account the following:
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whether the applicant is a person with minimum networth of Rs.50 crores;
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if the applicant is a clearing house or a clearing corporation and it
has the networth specified by the Board after consulting the stock exchange;
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whether the applicant has adequate infrastructure facilities like office
space, equipment and manpower experienced in dealing in securities to effectively
discharge its activities.
6. OBLIGATIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF APPROVED INTERMEDIARY
An approved intermediary shall comply with the following obligations
and responsibilities:-
(1) The approved intermediary shall abide by the scheme and the
guidelines issued by the Board from time to time with respect to its activity
of securities lending.
(2) The approved intermediary shall comply with the requirement of
eligibility criteria for the lender and the borrower with the eligibility
criteria, if, specified by the Board.
(3) The approved intermediary shall specify in the respective agreement
the fees payable to the lender and the fee to be charged from the borrower.
(4) The approved intermediary shall specify the amount and type of
collateral acceptable for the purpose of securities lending as well as
the norms for the valuation of securities. It may also specify the mechanism
of sharing the income on collateral with the borrower.
(5) The approved intermediary at the request of lender shall issue
a receipt acknowledging the deposit of the securities by the lender. The
receipt shall include the complete details of securities deposited such
as name of security, quantity, face value, certificate number and folio
number of the lender along with the date from when the lender has become
the registered holder of the security. Similarly, when securities are returned
to the lender by approved intermediary, it shall issue a receipt containing
the above details to enable the lender to use the same as a proof of continuity
of his holdings.
(6) The approved intermediary shall maintain a complete record of
the securities deposited by the lender, securities lent to the borrower,
the securities received from the borrower and the securities returned to
the lender by the approved intermediary. The records of the approved intermediary
shall be open for inspection by the Board or any other person duly authorised
by the Board for this purpose.
(7) The approved intermediary shall maintain and make available to
the Board such information, documents, returns and reports as may be specified
from time to time.
(8) The approved intermediary shall abide by the code of conduct
as may be specified by the Board.
(9) Nothing in this scheme shall exempt the approved intermediary
from discharging any obligations placed on it by any law, regulations and
guidelines.
7. GUIDELINES FOR APPROVED INTERMEDIARIES
Terms of Registration :
(a) The registration shall be for an initial period of
three years.
`The approved intermediary as a condition of registration
shall be required to pay fees as specified by the Board.
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The Board shall have the right to suspend/cancel the registration
of the approved intermediary in case of violation of the terms of the scheme.
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Notwithstanding anything contained above, no action shall
be initiated by the Board without following the principles of natural justice.
SCHEDULE OF FEES
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The Securities Lending Scheme provides for registration of approved intermediaries.
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The registration shall be valid for 3 years and can be renewed thereafter.
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The application fee shall be non-refundable - Rs.10,000/-.
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The initial registration fee shall be Rs.10 lakhs. On renewal after 3 years,
the renewal fee shall be Rs.5 lakhs.
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The annual fee shall be Rs.2 lakhs per annum.
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The annual fee shall be payable yearly in advance and in the first instance
should be payable (pro-rata) for the financial year ending 31st
March 1998.
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Approved intermediaries are requested to send the fee payable, as stated
above by means of a demand draft favouring "Securities and Exchange Board
of India", payable at Bombay.
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A receipt shall be sent to the approved intermediaries after the realisation
of the demand draft.
CODE OF CONDUCT FOR APPROVED INTERMEDIARIES
An approved intermediary will be deemed to be guilty of misconduct or
unprofessional conduct if it violates intentionally or otherwise any of
the following provisions of the Code of Conduct:
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The approved intermediary herein agrees and undertakes to perform its duties
as an approved intermediary with the highest standards of integrity and
fairness in all its dealings.
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The approved intermediary shall abide by the obligation as specified under
the securities lending scheme and the terms of the agreement entered into
by the approved intermediary with the lender / borrower.
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The approved intermediary shall inform the client before taking up any
assignment that it is obliged to comply with the Code of Conduct and it
shall deliver a copy of the Code of Conduct to its client, if the client
is not aware of the same or does not have it.
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The approved intermediary shall maintain true and correct record of the
securities lending transactions undertaken by it under the scheme and in
particular the records in respect of:-
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the securities held by it on behalf of the lenders,
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the securities lent by it to the borrowers,
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the time and tenure of such lending,
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the return of equivalent security by the borrower after the tenure of lending
to the approved intermediary, and
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the return of equivalent security by the approved intermediary.
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The approved intermediary shall ensure that the lending of security is
not misused or disguised by the lender or borrower for the sale of security
or for avoidance of capital gains tax.
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The approved intermediary shall render at all times high standards of service,
exercise due diligence, ensure proper care and exercise independent professional
judgment. The approved intermediary shall disclose to the clients its possible
sources or potential areas of conflict of duties and interest and provide
unbiased services.
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The approved intermediary shall maintain confidentiality of information
about a lender or borrower which has come to possess as a consequence of
dealings with it and shall not divulge the same to other clients, the press
or any other interested party.
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Being fully aware of its obligations, the approved intermediary shall endeavour
to ensure that true and adequate information is provided to the SEBI, Income-Tax
Department, any other Government authority.
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An approved intermediary shall abide by all the provisions of the Act,
Rules, Regulations, Guidelines, Resolutions, Notifications, Directions,
Circular, etc. as may be issued by the Government of India and Securities
and Exchange Board of India from time to time as may be applicable to the
approved intermediary.
ANNEXURE A
FORM OF APPLICATION TO BE SUBMITTED BY THE APPROVED INTERMEDIARY
UNDER THE
SECURITIES LENDING SCHEME TO SEEK REGISTRATION FROM THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE BOARD OF INDIA
UNDER THE SEBI ACT, 1992
Name of the Applicant
.
Contact Person
Telephone No.
__________________________________________________________________
INSTRUCTIONS
(i) This form is meant for use by the applicant for the application
for the grant of registration to act as an approved intermediary. .
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Applicants should complete this form and submit it along with all supporting
documents and the appropriate application and registration fee to the Securities
and Exchange Board of India at its Head Office at Mumbai.
(iii) It is important that this application form should be read in
conjunction with the terms of the agreement entered into by the approved
intermediary and the lender/borrower as well as the Code of Conduct for
approved intermediaries.
(iv) Applications for registration will only be considered provided
it is complete in all respects.
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All answers must be legible.
(vi) Information which needs to be supplied in more detail may be written
on a
separate sheet which should be attached to the application form.
(vii) The application must be signed and all signatures must be original.
2. Applicants details
2.1 Name of the Applicant:
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If the applicant is already registered under any other regulations under
the Act, please mention the registration number and the period of validity
of registration and other details.
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Whether the applicant is a member of a clearing house or clearing corporation.
(If yes, details of its activities).
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Net worth of the applicant _______ (Paid up capital plus free reserves
minus the profit and loss debit balance minus intangible assets)
2.2 Address of registered office:
Pin Code:
. Telephone No.
.
Telex No.
Fax No.
Address for correspondence:
Pin Code:
. Telephone No.
Telex No.
Fax No.
..
Address of Branch offices, if any:
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Organisation Structure
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Objectives, memorandum and articles of association to be annexed
3.2 Date and place of incorporation:
Place Date Month Year
3.3 Nature (e.g. limited company - private / public, unlimited company,
partnership, others)
3.4 Particulars of all directors / partners / proprietors:
Name Qualification Experience Share in applicants firm / company
3.5 Particulars of key management personnel:
Name Qualification Experience Date of Appointment Functional
Areas
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Details of infrastructure such as office space, computers and others
3.7 Names and activities of associate companies / concerns:
Name of Address Phone Nos. Type of activity Nature of
company/firm handled interest
4. Business information
4.1 Experience in dealing in securities (period to be indicated)
4.2 Indicate type of activity
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Experience in other financial services rendered (period, area and date
of commencement of activity)
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Business handled during the last three years:
5. Client information
5.1 List of clients
__________________________________________________________________
Name Services rendered
6. Financial information
Please enclose three years of audited annual accounts. Where unaudited
reports are being submitted, give reasons.
1/We warrant that I/we have truthfully and fully answered the questions
above and provided all the information which might reasonably be considered
relevant for the purposes of my/our registration and I/We will promptly
notify SEBI of any changes in the information during the period that my/our
registration is being considered and if my/our registration is accepted,
thereafter.
I/We understand that misleading or attempting to mislead SEBI on any
point will be deemed an act of misconduct and may render the applicant,
if registered, liable to disciplinary proceedings.
I/We declare that the information supplied in the application form is
complete and correct.
For and on behalf of _____________________________________
(Name of Applicant)
___________________________ ____________________________________
Director/Partner or Sole Trader Director/Partner
___________________________ ____________________________________
Name in Block Letters Name in Block Letters
___________________________ ____________________________________
Date Date
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