Rights issues and creeping acquisitions in India

We analyze the extent to which promoters of firms listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange are using rights issues to circumvent regulatory provisions related to creeping acquisitions. We find that promoters use rights issues that do not have specific objectives for purposes of realizing an increase in their shareholdings. We find that a rights issue often follows a year in which the promoter has realized a loss of shareholdings. The results are especially true for firms belonging to a business group.