New Delhi: The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has allowed certain unlisted companies to directly list on a foreign stock exchange with effect from 30 October, showed an official order. The facility was introduced in the Companies Act by way of an amendment in 2020. This provision allows certain classes of public limited companies to get listed on a foreign bourse before getting listed on an Indian exchange. The provision introduced enables the government to make rules to specify which are the types of public limited companies which can opt for this facility and the kind of securities that may be allowed to be listed abroad. The government will also decide which are the overseas markets where direct foreign listing will be allowed. These finer details will be specified by way of rules. In July, Mint that the union government is planning to allow Indian companies to list overseas directly. Speaking at an event in Mumbai, the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government has decided to allow companies to list at the International Financial Services Center (IFSC) GIFT City to start with before expanding this to other countries. Allowing direct listing of public limited companies in select foreign markets will enable new-age companies with disruptive business models to raise capital abroad if they feel domestic investors are taking time to develop an interest in them or have limited risk appetite. Such companies can get listed abroad on their own strength. The move seeks to improve the ease of doing business. Public limited companies are those which are subject to higher reporting and compliance obligations than private limited companies, which benefit from a simpler regulatory regime. The government had first announced the foreign listing plan of Indian companies in 2020, as part of a pandemic relief package. Currently, Indian companies can raise money abroad through American Depository Receipts (ADR) and Global Depository Receipts (GDR).