Shapoorji Pallonji Group Pushes RBI for Tata Sons IPO

Debt-laden Shapoorji Pallonji Group has taken its campaign for Tata Sons' stock market listing to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The 160-year-old conglomerate is the largest public shareholder in Tata Sons, holding an 18.37% stake in the unlisted entity.

The group has formally urged the RBI to support the initial public offering (IPO) of Tata Sons, arguing that a listing would benefit all stakeholders, reported The Economic Times (ET). The SP Group has also claimed it was not informed by Tata Sons about its plan to surrender its Upper Layer Core Investment Company (UL CIC) status to the RBI.

Tata Sons was classified as an NBFC-UL by the RBI in 2022, which mandates a public listing within three years—by September 2025. However, reports indicate that in 2024, Tata Sons applied to deregister as a Core Investment Company (CIC) under the NBFC-UL framework. To avoid inclusion in the RBI’s 2023 NBFC-UL list, the company reportedly cleared all debt from its balance sheet.

The RBI has yet to make a decision on Tata Sons' current NBFC-UL status.

Meanwhile, Tata Sons is moving ahead with the IPO of its financial services arm, Tata Capital Ltd.

Why SP Group Wants a Tata Sons Listing

The Shapoorji Pallonji Group, one of India’s oldest conglomerates, has been grappling with financial stress due to high debt and a liquidity crunch, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

To reduce its debt burden, the group has sold major assets, including stakes in Eureka Forbes and Sterling & Wilson Solar, and has monetised its real estate holdings.

The group is currently raising $3.3 billion from global lenders to refinance existing debt, using its entire 18.28% stake in Tata Sons as collateral.

However, concerns remain about the enforceability of these pledges, and the Tata Sons stake is not seen as a viable liquidity source at this time, according to reports.