Tata promoters need money!

Promoters of three more Tata group companies, including Tata Communications, today disclosed their share pledging details, taking the total amount raised by promoters of the nine firms to nearly Rs 10,000 crore, for meeting the group's long-term fund requirements.

In aggregate, the value of the 123 crore shares pledged by the promoters has been estimated to be about Rs 10,000 crore as per today's closing price of the nine firms -- Tata Communications, Tata Tea, Tata Chemicals, Tata Motors, Tata Coffee, Tata Steel, Tata Power, Tata Teleservices (Mah) and Indian Hotels.

Yesterday, six Tata group firms had revealed their share pledging details.

Meanwhile, the group's holding entity Tata Sons had yesterday said: "It (share pledging) is not a new practice; it has been existing since the age of joint stock companies. It has been done primarily for long-term funding requirements of Tata Sons."

Tata Communications today said two of its promoters, Tata Sons and Pantone Finvest, have pledged three crore shares, representing a 10.53 per cent stake in the company.

Estimated at today's average market price, the shares pledged would have fetched Tata Sons over Rs 1,329.65 crore.

Meanwhile, Tata Tea said its main promoter Tata Sons has pledged 70 lakh shares, representing 11.32 per cent stake in the company with lenders.

Calculated on the basis of the current market price of Tata Tea scrip, the pledging would have fetched the promoters over Rs 389 crore

Also Tata Chemicals earlier today had said three of its promoters -- Tata Tea, Tata Investment Corporation and Tata Sons -- have pledged 4.70 crore shares or 20.02 per cent stake in the company with lenders.

Calculated on the basis of current market price of Tata Chemicals, the promoters would have received over Rs 705 crore from lenders via the share pledge.

Aggregating the total shares pledged by the remaining six Tata Group companies, the promoters have raised about Rs 7,500 crore.

In the bull phase of the market, the Tata Group was on expansion spree and had made significant acquisitions then.

Starting from August 2006, the group had undertaken major acquisitions including a 30 per cent stake in US-based Glaceau (Energy Brands) for USD 677 million, steel maker Corus and British luxury brand Jaguar-Land Rover.

Tata group has 27 listed entities. However, TCS, Tata Sponge Iron, Tata Investment Corporation are among the Tata Group companies which are yet to disclose the promoter share pledging in respective firms.