Tata Sons Private Ltd will have to soon draw up plans to get listed on the bourses as its bid for de-registration as a core investment company (CIC) has been rejected by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Rejection of Tata Sons application for de-registration as a CIC implies that it will continue to be in the list of Non-Banking Finance Companies in the Upper Layer (NBFC-UL), requiring it to list.
The RBI NBFC-UL list, released on August 6, had 17 NBFCs, including Tata Sons Pvt Ltd. Then the central bank said inclusion of Tata Sons in the list of NBFC-UL is without prejudice to the outcome of its application for de-registration, which is under examination.
This development comes amid Noel Tata’s bid to stamp his authority on Tata Sons via Tata Trusts and N Chandrasekaran’s mid-August decision to step down as the Chairman of Tata Sons when his current term ends in February 2027.
“The issue of listing Tata Sons has divided its key shareholders. Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata is in favour of keeping the group holding company private.
Greater scrutiny
“Tata Trusts control over 66 per cent of shares in Tata Sons and listing them would bring the holding company under greater scrutiny,” said sources.
The Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) group, which owns about 18 per cent stake in Tata Sons, supports the listing of shares as a way to unlock liquidity.
There have been discussions between SP group and Noel Tata on various ways to monetise the shares. As per reports various proposals are under consideration including a buyback or offering SP group shares in listed Tata group companies.
Tata Sons was also in the first list of NBFC-UL released by RBI in October 2022. As per the NBFC-UL framework, an entity has to get listed on the bourses within three years within three years of its name appearing in the list
An email sent to RBI seeking their confirmation remained unanswered at press time.
Published on September 12, 2026
