3’s A Crowd! India Welcomes its Third Stock Exchange

If the launch of new trading venues in one of the largest global recessions of all time isn’t a sign from above then investors will be biting their nails with what’s yet to come. India is pleased to welcome its latest show piece in its list of stock exchanges. MCS-SX was granted approval from the government to start operations in February 2013. Portfolios have taken a dive since 2007 as the world economy started to flounder, however when there’s loss there’s bound to be profit and Asia is showing its position as the premier destination for economic growth and investments, and is the reason for the bullishness in Asia.

India, the largest democracy of the world, has been facing an uphill struggle to liberalise and modernise its capital markets structure. Post-independence India has had a mixed economic structure where capitalism and socialism worked together to boost trade which came with side effects (negative) and in 1991 the country implemented major reforms to change the poor performing policies. The last 30 years have seen phenomenal growth across the nation with electronic trading being the driver of innovation. Topped with foreign investment, India is now one of the top ten trading venues and continues to reach new highs.

The equity and equity derivative segments of MCX Stock Exchange (MCX-SX) will be inaugurated on February 9, 2013 by Shri P. Chidambaram, Hon’ble Union Finance Minister. Shri. U K Sinha, Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and Dr. Arvind Mayaram, Secretary- Dept of Economic Affairs will also be present at the function to be held in Mumbai. Live trading in this segment will commence from February 11, 2013.

Commenting on the development, Mr. Jignesh Shah, Vice Chairman of MCX-SX, said, “Inauguration of the MCX-SX equity segment will be a significant milestone not only for MCX-SX but the entire nation. Our exchange adds a new dimension to the exchange evolution by embedding growth and inclusion that are so critical for a country like India.”

Mr. Joseph Massey, MD & CEO, MCX-SX added “We will continue with our efforts to ensure equitable and inclusive growth of Indian Capital Market. In line with the regulator’s vision, our focus will be to increase the depth of markets, introduce new segments and strengthen participation of investors from across the country.”

MCX-SX was granted the status of a “recognized stock exchange” by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Government of India on December 21, 2012. It received “commencement certificate” from market regulator SEBI for trading in new segments such as Equity, Futures and Options on Equity, Interest Rate Derivatives and Wholesale Debt Market on December 19, 2012.

Earlier, MCX-SX received 700 applications for new membership, a world record for an exchange before going live during. A mock testing session for its Capital Market segment was held on the auspicious occasion of ‘Chhat’ festival on November 19, 2012 to familiarise participants with this new Trading Platform of MCX-SX.

Jagjeet Singh, Co-Founder of Tradenext a UK based financial services firm (also operates in India with local regulated entities), believes the move is a sign of India’s position as a regional hub, he says "during the last decade I have witnessed phenomenal growth in both equities and commodities, India is a huge market and we appreciate competition, I think MCX-SX will give a boost to the market and give us new technologies to enhance our trading".

At the iFXEXPO Asia Summit, India was one of the major talking points as financial services firms are desperate to do business in the 10th largest global economy. D K Aggrawal, Managing Director of SMC Trade a local FCM is bullish on India’s position as a regional hub in both commodities and equities.

Forex Magnates are reviewing Mumbai as a destination for future exhibitions and conferences and are keen to hear feedback.