If Tata Sons is listed, the special veto rights of Tata Trusts, under Article 121A, may have to go away.
A decision is likely to be taken soon on whether Tata Sons, the holding company of the salt-to-software conglomerate, will get listed, it is learnt.
At a time when Tata Trusts -- majority owner of Tata Sons with a 66 per cent stake -- is being rocked by controversies, a stocks market listing of the holding company is expected to bring stability to the group, sources close to the development pointed out.
While there are indications that the status of Tata Sons as an upper-layer non-banking finance company (NBFC) may be on the table, the Reserve Bank of India has not commented on any specific company issue.
The RBI had in 2022 categorised 15 entities, including Tata Sons, as upper-layer NBFCs, mandating them to list by September 30, 2025.
Tata Sons had subsequently, in a request to the RBI, sought to surrender its Core Investment Company (CIC) registration by becoming net debt-free to avoid the mandatory listing requirement.
The RBI has not made any public comment on the subject even as Tata Sons has remained a private company beyond the mandated IPO (initial public offering) date of September 30, 2025.
On Wednesday, April 8, 2026, during the post-policy conference, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said a revised framework for classification of NBFCs would come out very soon.
Earlier, the RBI categorised NBFCs into four layers based on a scale-based regulation framework, rolling it out in October 2022 for stricter regulations.
Since then, the RBI released the names of 15 upper-layer NBFCs every year.
The last list came in January 2025, when the RBI said, 'inclusion of Tata Sons Private Limited in the list of NBFC-UL is without prejudice to the outcome of its application for de-registration, which is under examination.'
While answering a query on when this year's upper layer list will come out, Malhotra spoke about the new framework.
The new framework is expected to indicate if Tata Sons will continue to be categorised as an upper-layer NBFC or not.
Based on that clarity, Tata Sons will possibly take action on listing, a source said.
Within the Tata universe, the view on listing the holding company is split.
While Tata Sons had sought an exemption from mandatory listing by turning net debt-free more than a year ago, its opinion on the issue seems to be guarded now, according to a person in the know.
Tata Sons' largest shareholder, Tata Trusts, is also a divided house on listing.
Tata Trusts Vice-Chairman Venu Srinivasan was quoted in the media on Thursday, April 9, 2026, supporting listing of Tata Sons.
Some other trustees are also learnt to be backing Tata Sons listing.
However, Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata reportedly asked Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran (Chandra as he's popularly known) in February to give an assurance that Tata Sons would remain a private unlisted company.
Noel Tata also raised questions over financial viability of some of the group businesses, linking it to Chandra's tenure getting renewed.
This came just months after Tata Trusts recommended a third five-year term for Chandra as executive chairman of Tata Sons starting February 2027.
If Tata Sons is listed, the special veto rights of Tata Trusts, under Article 121A, may have to go away.
The Shapoorji Pallonji Group, the second largest shareholder in Tata Sons with an 18 per cent stake, has been pushing for Tata Sons listing.
The company was caught in a lengthy legal battle with the Tata group after Cyrus Mistry (scion of the Shapoorji Group) was ousted as Tata Sons chairman in 2016.
Shapoorji Group, keen to monetise its stake in Tata Sons to reduce its debt, called the listing of Tata Sons a moral and social imperative to ensure transparency as well as unlock value.
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff