Comment on the following: Private placement

Private placement or preferential issue means an issue of specified securities by a listed issuer to any select person or group of persons on a private placement basis and does not include an offer of specified securities made through employee stock option scheme, employee stock purchase scheme or an issue of sweat equity shares or depository receipts issued in a country outside India or foreign securities. Preferential issue means issuance of equity shares to promoter group or selected investors. It covers allotment of fully convertible debentures, partly convertible debentures or any other financial instruments that could be converted into equity shares at a later date. The investors could be institutional investors, private equity investors, high net-worth individuals, or companies. One of the biggest advantages of a preferential issue is that the company can raise money quickly and cheaply compared with other means of raising money, say IPO or issue of shares on a rights basis. On the other hand, preferential issues and private placement is only for selected class of investors and not for the retail investors. It is like a wholesale market, where institutions with financial clout are allowed to participate. This deprives investment opportunity to the retail investors.