Unit II
Unit II
UNIT II
II B/COM GEN- A&B
DR.J.CHITHRALEGA
Debentures Meaning
Debentures refer to long-term debt instruments issued by a government or corporation to
meet its financial requirements. In return, investors are compensated with an interest income
for being a creditor to the issuer.
They are usually an unsecured form of borrowing from the public and have a lengthy tenure,
usually exceeding ten years.
According to Section 2 (30) of the Companies Act, 2013, “Debenture includes debenture
stock, bonds and any other instrument of a company evidencing a debt, whether constituting a
charge on the assets of the company or not”.
Types of Debentures
From the point of view of security:
1. Secured or Mortgage Debenture: Debentures are secured by a charge on the fixed
assets of the company. If the company fails on payment of the principal amount or
interest amount, assets under charge are sold to repay the amount due to debenture
holders.
2. Unsecured Debentures: These debentures are not secured by any charge on asset.
They do not have a security.
2. From the point of view of Tenure:
1. Redeemable Debentures: These are debentures which are to be repaid within a
stipulated period.
2. Irredeemable Debentures: These debentures do not have any fixed period of
redemption. These debentures are redeemable at the time of winding up.
3. From the Point of view of Convertibility:
1. Convertible Debentures: These are the debentures which can be converted into
equity shares or other securities after a specified period, at the option of the debenture
holders. This can be further categorize into two parts:
a. Partly Convertible Debentures: These are the debentures where only a part of the
debenture amount is convertible into equity shares.
b. Fully Convertible Debentures: These are the debentures where whole amount of
debenture is convertible into equity shares.
2. Non-Convertible Debentures: The holders of these debentures have no right to
convert them into equity shares
4. From the point of view of Registration:
1. Registered Debentures: These debentures have a record of name, address and
particulars of holdings of debenture holders in the register of the company. These
debentures are not freely transferable.
2. Bearer Debentures: These debentures are transferable by mere delivery. The
company keeps no records of such debenture holders. Payment will be made only to
the bearer of the debenture. Coupons are provided by the company with these
debentures for the payment of interest.
5. From the point of view of Coupon Rate:
1. Specific Rate (Coupon rate) Debentures: These debentures are issued with a
specific rate of interest, which is called the coupon rate. The specified rate may either
be fixed or floating. The floating interest rate is usually tagged with the bank rate.
2. Zero Coupon Debentures: These debentures do not carry a specific rate of
interest. Such debentures are issued at substantial discount and the difference between
the nominal value and the issue price is treated as the amount of interest related to the
duration of the debentures.
REDEMPTION OF DEBENTURES
MEANING
Redemption of Debentures means repayment of debentures to the debenture holders.
It implies of the principal amount as well as interest due on debentures to the
debenture holders. In other words, it refers to the discharge of liability on debentures
in accordance with the terms of issue.