MUMBAI: Dish TV will have to wait for infusing further capital to fund its aggressive growth plans. The issue up to Rs 7.5 billion worth of preference shares to the promoters has been put on hold due to regulatory issues.

"Consequent to recent amendments in regulatory guidelines relating to issue of preference shares, it has been decided to keep in abeyance the decision relating to issue of preference shares," Dish TV has told the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The board had earlier approved issue of non-cumulative, non-convertible redeemable preference shares of Rs 100 each up to Rs 7.5 billion on a private placement basis to the promoter group.

However, the government‘s norms for preference shares as laid down on 30 April states that foreign investment through non-convertible shares would be treated as debt or external commercial borrowings.

Reserve Bank of India had already said foreign investors will not be allowed to purchase additional shares in Dish TV India on account of FII shareholding reaching 49 per cent limit of the company‘s paid up capital, according to a PTI report.

Dish TV has also informed the BSE that the authorization proposed to be sought from its shareholders through the extraordinary general meeting, scheduled for 25 May, has been deferred.

The DTH business, however, has a dose of funding available as the promoters recently had offloaded nine per cent stake in the company to a few institutional investors to raise Rs 4.45 billion. The capital raised would be used to fund the expansion plans of the demerged distribution companies, Dish TV and Zee‘s cable company Wire & Wireless India Ltd.

Dish TV plans to pump in Rs 10 billion over two and a half years in a bid to ramp up its subscriber base.