According to a government notification late on Monday, Indian state-run companies will continue to be exempt from the minimum public shareholding (MPS) requirement, requiring listed companies to maintain a 25 percent public shareholding. Even if ownership or control changes after the MPS exemption is granted, the exemption will still be valid for a “specified period.”

Since years, India’s capital market regulator has exempted state-run companies from MPS. But extending that exemption to state-run companies in case they are privatized may entice investors to buy stock in them.

Last month, the regulator announced it would relax listing requirements when the federal government sells its majority stake to a private company.