Listed companies can conduct their annual general meetings (AGMs) through video conferencing while banks and insurance companies have been given the option of submitting only the standalone numbers instead of consolidated financials.
Further, norms related to sending physical copies of annual reports or publishing certain statutory advertisements have also been relaxed due to COVID-19 pandemic.
As part of the relaxations given to companies and market intermediaries, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) announced a fresh set of waivers on Tuesday. Incidentally, the relaxations in terms of conducting an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) was announced by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in April and was later extended to AGMs on May 5.
Meanwhile, the regulator has received representation from listed companies that banks or insurance companies as well as those that have banks and insurance companies as subsidiaries are facing challenges in preparing consolidated financial results.
The regulator has made it voluntary for banking and insurance companies to submit consolidated results for June quarter though such entities still have to submit standalone numbers.
Attendance forms
Among other things, the regulator has waived the requirement of companies sending physical forms for proxy attendance if the meetings are held electronically.
The exemptions related to publishing certain statutory advertisements in newspapers till May 15 have been extended until June 30.
