Even the promoter of Infosys Technologies would not have imagined that the private limited

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company they were incorporating in 1981 as Infosys Consultants Private Limited, would not only change their lives but will go long way in re-defining the standards of corporate growth and corporate governance in India.

It changed its name to Infosys Technologies Private Limited in April 1992 and to Infosys Technologies Limited in June 1992, when it became a public limited company.

Infosys completed its initial public offering of equity shares in 1993. Retail investors gave it a lukewarm reception. The reason was the timing. The IPO had come at a time when most of

the investing public in India was still reeling from the stock scam

of 1992.

But if any one with foresight had invested just Rs 10,000 in the IPO, and had remained invested, the value of his or her investment on Wednesday’s closing price of Rs 2,686 would be Rs 2.35 crore. This takes into account one stock split in 2000 and five bonus issues announced in 1994, 1997, 1999, 2004 and 2006.

Not many companies in the world can boost of creating shareholders wealth of this magnitude and with such transparency in such a short span of time. There is probably little change many original allotees remain on the shareholders list. Exceptions would of course be the promoters, and some employees. Infosys has come a long way in creating wealth, even for those who had invested in the stock after the world had discovered the company in year 2000.

It is the only software stock on the bourse, which has been able to cross the high of Rs1,659 touched in 2000 at the peak of dotcom boom.

It has strongly out performed the broader market in the past one year touching an intra-day high of Rs 2,700.10 to cross the previous high of Rs 2,413 which it had touched in Feb 2007.

With Infosys now sitting on a cash balance of $3 billion, it is likely that the company might once again reward its shareholder with a bonus, unless it opts for a large acquisition. That would raise the level of wealth it has created to an even greater high.

(The writer is consulting editor of Financial Chronicle and director of an independent brokerage)