Q: What is Shelf Prospectus under Companies Act, 2013 ?

Ans: A shelf prospectus can only be issued by a company if it is raising funds through non-convertible debt bonds. A non-convertible debt bond can’t be converted into share capital. With the issue of a shelf prospectus, a company can issue securities to raise funds four times.
A prospectus is a legal document submitted by a company to SEBI that contains all the information regarding the securities issue. Every company must submit the prospectus before raising any funds. It provides a detailed outline of the company, the issue, the prices, dates, and features.
Among the various types of a prospectus, a shelf prospectus is issued by a company that is planning multiple issues of bonds for raising funds from the public. A shelf prospectus can only be issued by a publicly listed company, and it is done by filing an information memorandum in Form PAS-2.
Many companies generally raise huge funds to aid expansion and other efforts through Initial Public Offering, where a company offers its shares to the public for the first time. But what about a company that is already public and wants to raise funds further? That is when they use Bonds.
Bonds are debt instruments, which implies that they work on the principle of loans, where a company issues bonds to borrow money from the lender, also called the bondholder. The company promises the lender a regular predetermined interest on the principal amount. In bond terms, this interest rate is called a coupon.