A recent study by India's markets regulator revealed a surge in royalty payments by listed companies from 2014 to 2023, prompting calls for stricter regulations. Notably, a quarter of firms paid RPs over 20% of net profits. SEBI highlighted concerns about companies favoring royalty over dividends. Despite meeting turnover limits, SEBI questioned the payments' impact on profitability. The study signals potential regulatory changes for a fairer financial environment.
India's financial landscape witnessed a significant uptick in royalty payments by listed companies, as revealed by a recent study published by the country's markets regulator. The study, encompassing data from fiscal years 2014 to 2023 and analyzing 233 companies, shed light on a key concern— the necessity for more stringent regulations in this realm.
Highlighted in the study was the fact that a quarter of the listed companies involved were disbursing royalties to their related parties (RPs) in excess of 20% of their net profits. Furthermore, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) noted that half of the companies making royalty payments either did not distribute dividends or allocated more in royalties to their RPs than in dividends to other shareholders.
Payments of this nature surged by 117 percent to ₹10,779 crore over the span of 10 fiscal years until FY23. Within this period, 1,538 instances of royalty payments, constituting less than 5 percent of the company's turnover (not necessitating majority shareholder approval), were observed across 233 listed firms. Of these, 1,353 instances involved profitable listed companies. In 25% of cases, companies paid royalties exceeding 20% of their net profits. Additionally, half of the firms paying royalties either did not issue dividends or allocated more funds to royalty payments for related parties than to dividends for non-related party shareholders.
Seventy-nine companies consistently disbursed royalties to related parties throughout the entire 10-year duration of the study. While the cumulative royalty payments by these entities initially aligned with the growth in turnover and net profits until FY19, the pace of royalty disbursements decelerated post-FY19. Eleven out of the 79 companies consistently allocated royalties surpassing 20% of their net profits throughout the entire decade.
In the Indian context, listed firms commonly make royalty payments to their parent companies or affiliated subsidiaries, often for services such as brand usage and technology transfers. The study's findings revealed that over the period of FY14-23, 63 companies incurring net losses made a total royalty payment of 13.55 billion rupees ($160.48 million) across 185 instances.
While these payments fell within the mandated threshold of 5% of turnover, SEBI expressed concerns over their disproportionate nature relative to the companies' profitability. The regulator raised pertinent questions regarding the need for tighter oversight, proposing that companies neglecting dividend disbursements in favor of high royalty payments warrant heightened scrutiny from shareholders.
SEBI clarified that while this study doesn't entail an immediate policy shift, it serves as a crucial indicator of potential regulatory directions. By flagging these trends and implications, the market regulator aims to foster a more transparent and balanced financial ecosystem for listed entities and their stakeholders.
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