The market watchdog, SEBI’s delayed action in the case of suspicious trading activities linked to Spright Agro Ltd may pose potential risks to investors as the company is considering a 10:1 bonus issue, as per the people in the know.
The regulator conducted searches at the company’s premises in June 2025. But company’s name was not disclosed in the media release issued by SEBI after the searches.
A preliminary investigation that followed led SEBI to prepare interim directions to curb alleged market manipulation. But the order has not been released yet due to regulatory back and forth, the people quoted above mentioned.
As reported by NDTV Profit on July 10, the markets regulator was probing possible violations in the company, related to preferential allotments, share splits, bonus issues, rights offerings, suspicious trading and offloading of shares by non-promoter entities, the people said. The alleged violations happened between August 2023 and April 2025.
Spright Agro’s board had previously approved a 1:10 stock split and a 1:1 bonus issue in February 2024, which took effect on March 18, 2024. This alone increased the company’s paid-up capital 20-fold to over 50 crore shares. Another 1:1 bonus issue followed in November 2024, pushing the paid-up capital further up to over 107 crore shares. In total, the company’s capital grew almost 40 times within a year.
Amid these actions, the company also issued 3.34 crore shares on a rights basis at Rs 13.40 per share in June 2024, raising approximately Rs 44.87 crore. However, 16 out of 35 original preferential allottees sold their rights and earned a combined profit of Rs 29.56 crore, raising questions about the intent behind the rights issue.
SEBI is also scrutinising a sudden and significant improvement in the company’s reported financials. Between the first quarter of FY21 and second quarter of FY24, Spright Agro’s net profit remained below Rs 51 lakh.
However, from November 2023 onward, around the time of the preferential allotment and warrant conversion, the company began reporting profit above Rs 5.5 crore per quarter.
While the company has been under the SEBI scanner, summons have likely not been issued in the case. Meanwhile, the company has come out with a detailed agenda for it upcoming board meeting.
A mail regarding the status of SEBI investigation has been sent to the regulator.
