<div><div>DLF Ltd shares fell to a record low on Tuesday, wiping out $1.2 billion in market value, after India's securities regulator banned the property giant from capital markets and raised investor concerns about how it will service its debt.</div><div> </div><div>DLF, whose shares slumped as much as 27 per cent in Mumbai, may be forced to sell assets to pay down its debt that reached 191 billion rupees ($3.13 billion) at end-June, analysts say.</div><div> </div><div>DLF's debt has been a longstanding investor concern, and it will not be the first time the company is offloading non-core assets.</div><div> </div><div>The ruling by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Monday marks the latest regulatory threat to the property developer, which is facing a probe from the antitrust watchdog and is also at the centre of a political controversy over sweetheart land deals in Haryana.</div><div> </div><div>"DLF's inability to access capital markets could impact its fund-raising program, both at the listed company level and potential listing of its commercial assets such as Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)," Macquarie research said. "DLF, in this case, would have to resort to large asset sales to reduce debt in the future."</div><div> </div><div>The ban follows what SEBI said was DLF's failure to provide key information on subsidiaries and pending legal cases at the time of its record-breaking 2007 initial public offering (IPO).</div></div><div> </div><div><div style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;">DLF is the largest real estate group in the country with nearly Rs 10,000 crore annual turnover and market value of over Rs 26,000 crore.</div><div style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;"> </div><div style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;">Its market cap had crossed Rs one lakh crore mark soon after its listing in 2007, but fell later.</div><div style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;"> </div><div style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;">DLF's IPO in 2007 had fetched Rs 9,187 crore -- the biggest IPO in the country at that time.</div></div><div> </div><div><span style="line-height: 1.4;">Sebi has barred the realty major as well as its six top executives, including chairman and main promoter K.P. Singh, from the securities market for "active and deliberate suppression" of material information at the time of its IPO.</span></div><div><div> </div><div>Besides Singh, those barred from the markets include his son <span style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;">Rajiv Singh (</span><span style="line-height: 1.4;">vice chairman), daughter Pia Singh (whole time director), Managing Director T.C. Goyal, former CFO Ramesh Sanka and Kameshwar Swarup, who was ED-Legal at the time of the company's public offer in 2007.</span></div><div> </div><div>DLF said in a statement on Monday the order dated October 10 came to its notice only on October 13 and it is being reviewed by DLF and its legal advisors.</div><div> </div><div><span style="line-height: 15.3999996185303px;">The company said it did not violate the law “either during its initial public offer or otherwise” and </span><span style="line-height: 1.4;">would defend its position against any adverse findings in the Sebi order.</span></div><div> </div><div>"DLF has full faith in the judicial process and is confident of vindication of its stand in the near future," the statement said.</div><div> </div><div>(Agencies)</div></div>
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