Tata Tries Old Funding Play
为筹集资本，一些印度公司使出了多年不用的招数：直接从民间集资。
In their search for capital, some Indian companies are calling a play they haven't used in years: taking cash directly from the public.
从其进展情况可以看出印度投资者在承受风险方面是否已经变得更加理智。
How they fare will shed light on whether India's investors have evolved to become savvier risk takers.
本周，在通过吸收存款来融资的公司中，Tata Motors Ltd.是最受关注的一家。它同意支付10%-11%的利率，计划筹资5.41亿美元。
This week, Tata Motors Ltd. became the highest-profile company to turn to deposits to raise funds, agreeing to pay 10% to 11% interest in the hope of raising as much as $541 million.
住房贷款公司HDFC和Fertilizers & Chemicals Travancore也接收存款，还有更多公司准备这么做。
Also offering deposits are home-loan company HDFC and Fertilizers & Chemicals Travancore. More could be in the pipeline.
定期存款机制源于印度社会主义时期；当时，印度企业基本没有接触全球资本市场的渠道，而国内市场内幕交易猖獗、缺乏透明度，将很多投资者拒于股市大门之外。
The fixed-deposit system is rooted in India's socialist past, when companies had little access to global capital markets, and rampant insider trading combined with a lack of transparency kept many out of the stock markets.
1991年的经济自由化政策改变了这种情况。企业可以获得较低成本的资金来源，小型投资者纷纷投资上市公司股票；外国基金的进入冲淡了国内经纪商价格操纵行为的影响。
Economic liberalization in 1991 changed that. Companies could access cheaper sources of funds and small investors flocked to exchange-listed stocks; the entry of foreign funds offset price manipulation by local brokers.
随着市场开放，印度的进口限制和壁垒也逐渐消除；而之前正是这些措施保证了投资者在企业存款的安全性。
With market liberalization came the demise of import bans and tariffs -- protective shields that had made companies safe places for investors to stash cash.
现在的定期存款机制与印度开放市场时一样意义不大；但即便如此企业仍决定吸收存款筹资，凸显出信贷危机对融资活动造成的影响。
The fixed-deposit system makes as little sense today as it did when India opened its markets. That companies are nonetheless seeking cash deposits highlights the extent to which the credit crunch has hobbled fund-raising.
印度尚未出现类似雷曼兄弟(Lehman Brothers)那样的破产案，但对印度一些大公司现金短缺的担忧十分严重。
India has yet to see a Lehman Brothers-caliber collapse, but fears of cash shortages at some of India's biggest companies are rampant.
承担这种风险的投资者可获得的回报率仅略高于9.5%-10.5%的银行存款利率。与股市投资不同，这种存款不存在资本升值机会。
In return for assuming this risk, investors are offered an interest rate only marginally higher than the 9.5% to 10.5% paid by bank deposits. Unlike in the stock market, there is no chance for capital appreciation.
民族自豪感也可能帮助Tata成功发行这种无担保金融工具，印度投资者可能为支持本土跨国公司而感到光荣；但并不是每家公司都能激起同样的爱国情绪。
National pride may yet ensure that Tata succeeds in offering this unsecured financial instrument. Indian investors may feel a sense of honor in supporting the homegrown multinational. But not every company will generate the same patriotic response.
Uday Khandeparkar
没有评论:
发表评论