SYED BASHARAT
NEW DELHI, Sep 15: The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) is looking to take India’s capital market beyond major metropolitan centres by bringing more investors and companies from smaller cities and regions into the organised financial market, NSE Managing Director and CEO Ashish Kumar Chauhan said on Tuesday.
Chauhan made the remarks while responding to a question from Kashmir Despatch after the NSE press conference in New Delhi on its much-awaited Initial Public Offering (IPO).
Kashmir Despatch asked Chauhan how the NSE planned to take the ongoing capital market revolution beyond the metros and bring millions of investors from different parts of the country into the stock market. The question also specifically highlighted Jammu and Kashmir and the need to encourage more companies from the Union Territory to access national capital markets.
The question pointed out that J&K has J&K Bank as a prominent locally headquartered listed institution and sought to know how more companies from Jammu and Kashmir and other regions of the country could be encouraged to list on national stock exchanges, while simultaneously expanding investor participation.
Responding to the question, Chauhan said that broadly, the two major responsibilities of any stock exchange are to bring more investors into the market and enable more companies to raise funds through listing.
He highlighted the rapid expansion of India’s investor base, noting that more than 13 crore people are now participating in the capital market, with women accounting for around 25 per cent of the investor base. He said the number of investors was increasing rapidly, aided by the widespread use of mobile phones and digital technology.
According to Chauhan, while considerable progress has been made in bringing more investors into the capital market, another important task is to encourage companies from different regions to participate, raise funds and become role models for wealth creation in their respective areas.
He said the NSE had created a platform for small and medium-sized companies to access the capital market and get listed. He pointed out that companies from places such as Guwahati and Jharkhand had already come forward to list on the exchange.
Chauhan said the NSE was undertaking awareness programmes and providing hand-holding support to local companies that have the required scale and potential to access the capital market.
He also gave a specific assurance regarding Jammu and Kashmir, saying the NSE would continue to engage with the region and work towards encouraging more local companies to seek listing on national platforms.
“We’ll come to J&K also many times. We have come in the past. We’ll come back again to also ensure that some of your companies come, list on national platforms like NSE,” Chauhan said.
He said companies from Jammu and Kashmir could use the national capital market to raise funds, expand their businesses and create greater economic opportunities in the region.
Chauhan said listing on a national platform could enable companies to give “wings to their dreams” and achieve a scale that may not have been possible without access to funds generated through the capital market.
The NSE chief also underlined the need to bring companies from regions that have traditionally had a relatively limited representation in the country’s capital markets. He specifically referred to the North-East and states such as Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, saying the NSE wanted more companies from such regions to come forward and list.
His remarks are particularly significant for Jammu and Kashmir, where several established businesses have traditionally relied on conventional banking and private sources of finance for expansion. Greater awareness about the capital market and the requirements of public listing could open new avenues for financially sound local companies seeking funds for growth.
A listing on a national stock exchange can provide eligible companies with access to a much wider pool of investors, greater visibility and an opportunity to raise substantial capital for expansion. It can also encourage stronger corporate governance, financial transparency and professional management.
For Jammu and Kashmir, the NSE’s willingness to engage with local companies could therefore mark the beginning of a wider discussion on bringing the region’s established enterprises into the national capital market.
The challenge, however, will be to identify companies with the necessary financial strength, governance standards, transparency and growth potential to meet listing requirements and sustain themselves as publicly traded entities.
Chauhan’s response also reflected the broader transformation underway in India’s capital market, with investor participation expanding rapidly beyond traditional financial centres and digital platforms making market access increasingly accessible to people across the country.
The NSE’s message from New Delhi was that the next phase of India’s capital market growth cannot remain confined to the metros. Investors and companies from regions such as Jammu and Kashmir, the North-East and other traditionally under-represented areas will increasingly have to become part of India’s expanding capital-market ecosystem.
