‘Need to modify norms to bring in more stock exchanges’

Industry chamber Assocham has approached competition watchdog CCI with an allegation that the current structure of stock markets is curtailing competition and there is need to open more bourses, particularly for small enterprises.

“The present position in the country is very dismal as regards to competition and weighs in favour of the National Stock Exchange. The NSE which commands 98 per cent of turnover in futures and options and has about 70 per cent in cash section needs to be countered with competition,” Assocham said in a representation to the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

The chamber has demanded changes in guidelines of Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) as regards to opening up of exchanges so that the proposed exchanges are created with no hurdles.

This would also ensure better price discovery to investors specifically retail investors with much lesser transaction costs, it added.

Various reformative steps taken by SEBI in the last few years have not been able to bring value competition in the market place which has resulted in almost monopolistic status of National Stock Exchange, Assocham Secretary General D.S. Rawat said.