India's IDFC First Bank slips, IDFC hits record high after merger approval

Housing Development Finance

04/07/2023 06:05

BENGALURU, July 4 (Reuters) - Shares of private lender
IDFC First Bank  IDFB.NS  fell as much as 6% on Tuesday, while
those of IDFC rose as much as 6% after the bank's board on
Monday approved a reverse merger of the two firms in a bid to
simplify their corporate structure and ease regulatory
compliance. 
    Under the proposed deal, non-bank lender IDFC's shareholders
will receive 155 shares of IDFC First Bank for each set of 100
shares they currently own in the former, valuing the deal at
127.02 rupees per share, a 16.3% premium to IDFC's last close.
    IDFC stock hit an all-time high, while IDFC First Bank had
its steepest intraday decline since December last year.
    The merger announcement comes days after Housing Development
Finance Corp  HDFC.NS  merged with HDFC Bank  HDBK.NS  in a $40
billion deal, the largest in India's corporate history.

($1 = 81.9550 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Varun Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita
Bhattacharjee)
 ((varunvyas.hebbalalu@thomsonreuters.com;))