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Sebi moots Central Lisitng Authority, seeks more power

Securities and Exchange Board of India on Friday mooted a Central Listing Authority to look into listing agreements and carry out due diligence of companies while seeking more powers to punish wrong-doers.

"The model of National Listing Authority is being tried out in UK. Here, we are considering a Central Listing Authority, which will not be part of the regulator. It will look into listing agreements and carry out due diligence," Sebi chairman G N Bajpai said at Confederation of Indian Industry in New Delhi.

He declined to give a time frame for setting up such an authority saying, "it is still a thought".

"Today a company can list in a small stock exchange like Pune and get automatically listed in BSE and NSE," the Sebi chief said pointing to the loopholes and the lack of stringent listing agreements.

The proposal is in view of the lacklustre trade and dismal financial performance of thousands of companies that are listed in the country's 23 stock exchanges.

Highlighting this point, former Finance Minister P Chidambaram said there are over 10,000 companies listed in Indian stock exchanges of which 3,000-4,000 companies are not eligible to remain listed.

"The stock exchanges themselves can delist 3,000-4,000 companies. There is no need for a separate listing authority," he said.

The regulator also sought more powers to enforce its regulations and higher penalty limits for non-compliance.

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