In a board meeting called to discuss its quarterly results, IDFC said it was discontinuing discussions of merger with Shriram Group. Shriram Employee Trust, Piramal Group and Sanlam Group, which are large shareholders in Shriram Capital, were to become the largest holders in IDFC and drive the business, but the deal would have hurt the government, which owns a 16.38 per cent stake in IDFC.