VSNL chairman and managing director SK Gupta is expected to ring the trading bell on August 15 (8:30 am IST) when trading in ADRs starts. A team of senior officials from VSNL and the ministry of telecommunications is expected to attend the first trade ceremony at NYSE.

VSNL director (finance) RSP Sinha confirmed the date, saying that listing the company at NYSE will help it to attract more investors and business. The company is converting its Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) into ADRs for the purpose of the level-II listing.

However, VSNL may continue trading of GDRs at the London Stock Exchange. "We are planning to convert about 95 per cent of the GDR holdings into ADRs. The remaining five per cent will also be converted into ADRs in a phased manner," he added. At present, the GDR-holders have about 30 per cent of the total equity of the company, while the union government holds about 52 per cent stake in VSNL.

VSNL, the largest Internet Service Provider (ISP) in the country, had roped in consultants like Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB) and Solomon Smith Barney to advise it on the conversion of the GDRs into ADRs.

Although companies like Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) are also looking at an overseas listing, it has not take off yet.

In fact, there have been news reports that there would be a delay in listing VSNL due to the controversy regarding its alliance with Flag. The reports had said that several institutional investors may ignore the ADR listing due to government policies.

An analyst with a stock broking firm said VSNL was not planning to raise any funds from the overseas market at present. Any additional disinvestment of the company requires the union government's approval. While the conversion will not have any impact on the ownership structure of existing shareholders, it should improve the liquidity of the issue.