April 23, 1998
PR No. 87/1998

M/s. Presto Finance Ltd.

Investigation, Enforcement & Surveillance Dept.

TEXT

M/s. Presto Finance Limited perpetuated a fraud of circulating fake and duplicate share certificates in the market. Shri H.B. Vasa, Managing Director of the Company has admitted that he had issued fake / forged share certificates of Presto Finance Limited. The Company and its Promoters thus cheated the investors and damaged the creditability of the stock market. While the forgery aspect is already before economic offences wing of Crime Branch of Mumbai Police, SEBI thought it appropriate to take action against the promoters from the Securities Regulation point of view. Subsequent to an opportunity of personal hearing to the Directors of M/s. Presto Finance Ltd submissions made and documents on record the following entities namely ; Shri Himanshu Patel, Shri Jayendra Ambalal Shah, Shri Prakash B Vasa and Shri Hitendra Vasa have been found guilty for having received payments for issue of such shares of the Company which were fake and forged. This act of the Directors is detrimental to the interest of investors and securities market. Therefore in the interests of investors in the securities market, SEBI has passed orders under Section 11 B of SEBI Act,1992 debarring the promoters namely Shri Himanshu Patel, Shri Jayendra A Shah, Shri Prakash B. Vasa and Shri Hitendra Vasa and other group companies of M/s. Presto Finance Limited from accessing the capital market for a period of next five years with effect from 22.04.98.