Policy · Agriculture & Food Systems
Ministry fines Growpital ₹1.48 crore over debenture ads
By Startup Enthusiast ·
- Date
- Company
- Growpital
- What it does
- Farmland investment platform
- Kind
- Policy
- Amount
- ₹1.48 Cr
- Founded
- 2020
What they do
Growpital raised money for farm projects and also sold unlisted debentures paying 19% a year to 183 holders
What happened
The corporate affairs ministry fined it ₹1.48 crore in June 2024 for promoting those debentures publicly online
Why it matters
The ruling said a YouTube session on fundraising platform Tyke Invest broke rules on advertising private share sales
The details
- The Ministry of Corporate Affairs fined Growpital ₹1.48 crore in an order dated 3 June 2024.
- It found Growpital had publicly marketed unlisted non-convertible debentures.
- The debentures, about ₹1.47 crore in total, went to 183 holders at 19% a year.
- They were issued through the fundraising platform Tyke Invest.
- Rituraj Sharma pitched the company in an online Q&A on YouTube, which the ministry cited.
The bigger picture
- Companies Act rules ban public ads for privately placed securities.
- The fine came months after SEBI barred Growpital from markets.
- Growpital had advertised returns as high as 20% on some deals.
About the business
- Growpital pooled money to lease land and farm it.
- It was founded by Rituraj Sharma and Krishnna Joshi.
- It promised investors tax-free returns.