MUMBAI, Sept 28: The Tata Trusts on Monday announced a reorganisation plan for the Tata Sons Private Limited (TSPL) in its bid to prevent public listing of the company. The Trusts said the rejig was meant to ensure that the “reorganised entity” would neither be a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) nor a Core Investment Company (CIC).

Tata Sons and Tata Trusts, which own 65.9% of Tata Sons, have developed major differences on the issue of public listing over the past few days. Trusts chairman Noel Tata, who is strictly against listing the firm by revenue, has told the board that he would block any such move.

The company was pushed towards a stock-market listing after the Reserve Bank of India rejected an application from Tata Sons to deregister as a non-bank lender earlier this month. However, Tata Sons would not have to comply to RBI rules once the company sheds its NBFC and CIC status, thus preventing a public listing.

The proposed reorganisation would lead to the merger of Tata Electronics Systems Solutions Private Limited (TESS) and Tata Consulting Engineers (TCE) with TSPL, the Tata Sons said in a press release on Monday. Such a move would mean the company would have its own operations and revenues.

The Trusts said its proposal to reorganise business and operations of TSPL was not a new pathway. “TSPL has, for almost 80 years out of its 100-year existence, always had operating businesses and operating revenues, which enabled it to fund its other, newer business ventures,” it said.

The proposed reorganisation is aimed at reverting the company to its previous operating model, with its own operations and revenues, in addition to being a holding company for the Tata Group.

“This will also be in line with the previous classification (after 2004) by RBI of TSPL as a non-banking, non-financial company,” the Tata Trusts said.

The conflict between Tata Sons and Tata Trusts over public listing of TSPL erupted during the September 17 Tata board meeting. Opposing the prospective listing, Noel Tata said the Tata Sons board, led by the late Ratan Tata, had “unanimously” agreed that the company would stay “unlisted”.

Suggesting a restructuring exercise at the board meeting, Noel Tata reportedly proposed splitting the company into multiple entities, in a bid to prevent the listing of the Tata's holding firm.

Another point of contention was the board's “unanimous” vote to re-appoint N Chandrasekaran as executive chairman of the group. Noel called the move a “legal nullity” while emerging as the only board member to have voted against the re-appointment.

‘Tata model has to be saved’: Noel Tata pushes against public listing of Tata Sons

MUMBAI, Sept 17: Tata Trusts has pushed back against Tata Sons’ move towards a public listing, with chairman Noel Tata saying it would be a mistake for the firm.

Noel's statement comes after Tata Sons announced the re-appointment of N Chandrasekaran as executive chairman for another five years, following his current term ending on February 20, 2027.

In a statement on Thursday, the Tata Trusts chairman stated that a public listing “would destroy the character and strike at the heart of this principle” of the Tata House.

Adding that the Tata Model “needs to be saved,” Noel Tata stated that, under Ratan Tata, the matter of a public listing had reached a consensus in March 2024: the company will remain unlisted.

“In July 2025, the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust, also unanimously passed resolutions that the Company should remain unlisted, and the same was duly communicated to Tata Sons for necessary action. Accordingly, the position of the Tata Trusts has remained consistent and unchanged,” the statement from Tata Trusts added further.

“What makes the Tata operating structure unique is that it is premised on trust, and its majority shareholder is a charity. That charity funds hospitals, universities, and research from the dividends it receives. It exists for public purpose and for nation building,” the statement says, with Noel Tata adding that this was not a sentiment but rather the operating model of the House.

As per Noel Tata, if Tata Sons is publicly listed, the rights of Tata Trusts as a major shareholder will be “seriously impaired.”

“A listed Tata Sons would be accountable to institutional and foreign shareholders whose legitimate interest is financial return. It is doubtful that such shareholders would sanction the deployment of capital to rescue a Group company in distress, or the funding of a greenfield venture whose returns lie fifteen years away. That is not a criticism of them. It is a description of their mandate, which is not ours,” he told board members.

UPI charges of 0.4% to be levied on merchant transactions above ₹2,000

NEW DELHI, Sept 15: UPI payments above ₹2,000 made to merchants will attract a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate (MDR), according to detailed guidelines issued by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on Tuesday.

This comes after the Centre had on September 14 notified that UPI transactions up to ₹2,000 will attract zero MDR.

The new rules apply only to person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions above ₹2,000. There will be no charges on person-to-person (P2P) UPI transactions, irrespective of the transaction amount.

For transactions of ₹75,000 and above, the MDR will be capped at ₹300 per transaction, according to the notification.

The 0.4% charge will be shared among banks, payment apps and other partners in the payment ecosystem.

What is MDR?

MDR is a small fee that merchants pay to banks and payment companies each time a customer makes a digital payment. A customer pays a shopkeeper through a digital payment system, and the shopkeeper pays a small processing fee to the payment provider.

While that is the norm, in reality, many pass on MDR to customers, especially in high value card transactions where it does not have the same waiver as it does in UPI.

UPI had been exempt from MDR since 2020, a policy choice meant to push India away from cash and towards digital payments. However, now, a “nominal MDR of 0.4% will be levied on P2M transactions above ₹2,000”, says the government notification.

Certain essential sectors such as railways, telecom, insurance and fuel, will have a flat MDR of ₹5 per transaction for payments above ₹2,000.

Payments involving mutual funds, securities, stock brokers and dealers will attract a lower MDR of 0.02%, capped at ₹300.

In huge relief for small vendors, transactions of up to ₹1 lakh a month through UPI QR codes under the Person-to-Person-Merchant (P2PM) category will continue to have zero MDR on all transactions.

“This bridges informal street vendor setups with formal merchant acquiring accounts, promoting digital adoption in the unorganized sector,” said the notification.

The new framework also includes measures aimed at ensuring that customers do not have to pay extra for using UPI.

No platform fees: UPI apps will not be allowed to charge users any platform fee or hidden charges for transactions.

Merchants cannot pass on MDR: Banks have been advised to ensure that merchants do not recover the MDR from customers by adding it to the bill.

Unlimited free UPI transactions: Individuals will continue to have access to free UPI transactions without any monthly or transaction-volume limits.

Daily limits are not charges: Transaction limits of ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh, depending on the category, are meant only for security and risk management. They do not mean customers will be charged after reaching a certain number or value of transactions.

How will merchants be impacted?

Centre said that according to data analysis, the new MDR rate will only impact 4 percentage of merchant transactions because most of such transactions fall below the threshold of ₹2,000.

This would ensure that micro and small businesses remain shielded from cost burdens.

Future Of Trade Deal With US Hinges On Preferential Tariff Terms, Says Piyush Goyal

WASHINGTON, Sept 4: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said it will announce the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) only after Washington agrees to offer India preferential tariff terms over its competitors, pointing to a key sticking point in protracted negotiations between the two countries.

"As soon as the US is able to give us the preferential rate in comparison to our competition, we will finalise the BTA and announce the final details," Goyal said at a national workshop on leveraging free-trade agreements.

The minister pointed out that India is seeking a tariff treatment similar to what the US gives to its competitors, including Vietnam and Bangladesh, with rates either better or reduced to zero.

"We have to see the rate that Vietnam pays in another country and what Bangladesh goods are charged. Our rates will be better," he said.

On free trade agreements (FTAs) already operational and those coming into force, the minister said an ambitious target had been taken for the current year. He added that India had secured a good deal in all nine FTAs finalised to date, including those with the UK, New Zealand, and the European Union.

The remarks came at a time when India is seeking to balance its longstanding trade ties with Iran and Russia while also maintaining its relations with the United States.

Washington and New Delhi signed the announced finalisation of the framework for the first phase of the deal in February, but changes in the tariff landscape in the US under the Donald Trump administration have dragged out further negotiations between the two countries.

The US has imposed an additional 10 per cent tariff on several countries, including India, from July 24 after the US Supreme Court struck down its unprecedented reciprocal duties as unconstitutional.