Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Friday said as long as a non-banking finance company (NBFC) is classified in the central bank’s upper layer, it is required to list, hinting that Tata Sons may have to go for listing on the stock exchanges.The RBI has classified Tata Sons as a core investment company (CIC) within the NBFC framework.“As long as it’s an NBFC within our definition, it’s a CIC, it has access to funds, direct or indirect, it’s required to be registered,” Malhotra said when asked whether a restructuring or reorganisation of a company to avoid such listing would be acceptable.However, he avoided a direct reference to Tata Sons.“And if it is in the upper layer, then it is required to list,” he said while speaking at the NDTV World Summit in New Delhi.“NBFCs and CICs, like for example, Tata Sons and others… are required to be registered with us,” Malhotra said.“They are required to be registered because of the systemic risks, because they sit on top of group companies,” he said in the interactive session at the event.Also Read | Why Tata Sons’ IPO plan faces shareholder test, structural hurdlesMalhotra said public funds — whether held by banks or channelled through corporate bonds and other instruments — are at risk when these CICs engage in such activities.Story continues below this ad“It is for these reasons that these CICs, which are a type of NBFCs, are required to be registered.”He said such companies can and do leverage funds, and they use the balance sheets of the group companies to return those funds.At the September 17 board meeting of Tata Sons, directors decided to go ahead with listing of the company, as directed by the RBI, despite opposition from Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata.Tata Trusts have been arguing for keeping the company unlisted.Story continues below this adOn September 28, Tata Trusts sent a proposal to the Tata Sons board for the merger of Tata Electronics Systems Solutions Pvt Ltd (TESS) and Tata Consulting Engineers (TCE) with Tata Sons Pvt Ltd (TSPL).The move, if approved and implemented, would fundamentally alter the structure and nature of Tata Sons and could take it outside the regulatory framework that triggered the RBI’s listing directive.Tata Sons was unable to conduct the annual general meeting due to lack of quorum as the Charity Commissioner has slapped a restraining order on Sir Ratan Tata Trust. The trust could not recommend a joint representative due to the order. The power struggle between the Tata Sons board and Tata Trusts on the issue of listing has intensified with trustees Venu Srinivasan, who is also on the board of Tata Sons, and Vijay Singh filing complaints with the Charity Commissioner.Meanwhile, Malhotra said India’s economic growth remained broad-based, backed by resilient high-frequency indicators, while reiterating that price stability remained the central bank’s primary objective. He also said the RBI’s aim in the foreign exchange market was to prevent disruption and disorderly conditions, without targeting any particular level of the rupee.Story continues below this adOn inflation, the Governor said price stability remained a priority alongside the need to sustain economic growth. He pointed to supply-side pressures, particularly those arising from food and fuel, as important influences on the inflation trajectory.Asked about the rupee and the central bank’s approach to currency movements, Malhotra said the RBI did not target a specific price or exchange-rate level. Its objective, he indicated, was to ensure that the foreign exchange market functioned in an orderly manner.