MUMBAI : The coronavirus pandemic dealt a blow to the Union government’s plan to raise funds through major stake sales and initial public offerings.The government managed to raise just ₹42,871.94 crore so far this year, down 37% from the ₹68,176.57 crore it had raised in 2019, according to Prime Database, a data provider on capital markets.Divestments this year were led mostly by exchange traded funds (ETFs).
During the year, ETFs at ₹16,500 crore with a 39% share were the most-used mode, followed by central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) sale at ₹13,883 crore (32%), public offerings at ₹10,988 crore (26%), buybacks at ₹844 crore and remittances from Specified Undertaking of The Unit Trust of India at ₹600 crore (1%).Meanwhile, domestic.