Simplifying fundraising and reviewing compliance
Pandey addressed a Bharat Chamber of Commerce event celebrating the chamber's 125th anniversary and launching the Bharat Chamber Investors' Forum, according to The Tribune (ANI). He said SEBI was working to make India's capital markets more accessible, efficient and resilient.
Among the changes he highlighted were simpler initial public offering processes, shorter rights-issue schedules and revised listing requirements for large issuers. SEBI has also shortened the time needed to list public issues and allowed certain employee stock options after listing, subject to prescribed conditions.
For debt fundraising, Pandey cited provisions allowing securities with lower face values and easing mandatory merchant banking requirements for eligible issuers making private placements. He said these measures were intended to lower fundraising costs, remove unnecessary compliance burdens and improve operational efficiency.
SEBI is also reviewing its regulatory processes so that compliance obligations are more proportionate and risk-based, he said, while maintaining governance standards and market integrity.
Fundraising and investor numbers expand
Pandey put companies' average annual fundraising through equity and debt at more than Rs 10 lakh crore over the past decade. During that period, he said, India's market capitalization grew about 17 percent annually, while mutual fund assets increased around 20 percent a year.
In the first half of the current financial year, 189 IPOs raised more than Rs 98,000 crore, he said. Outstanding corporate bonds totaled approximately Rs 61 lakh crore.
Participation has broadened as well: Pandey said India's securities market now has more than 15 crore unique investors, four times the number recorded in fiscal 2019.
West Bengal's market participation
In West Bengal, the securities-market investor base has risen from roughly 12 lakh in fiscal 2015 to more than 90 lakh, according to Pandey. About 36 percent of those investors are younger than 30.
He said the state is home to the registered offices of 379 listed companies. More than 40 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises from West Bengal have also tapped the market, raising over Rs 1,400 crore through SME IPOs.
Protection alongside market growth
Pandey said support for businesses must be matched by safeguards for investors. "World-class markets must be not only efficient during normal times, but also resilient during periods of stress," he said.
He emphasized financial education as well as investor protection, describing informed investors as the first line of defense.
"Building world-class capital markets is not merely about achieving higher market capitalisation, larger trading volumes, or faster transactions. The real measure is how effectively markets connect savings with productive investment, support businesses in raising capital, and create opportunities for investors to participate in economic growth," he said.
Conditions for a Calcutta Stock Exchange revival
Separately, Pandey was asked about the West Bengal government's proposal to revive the Calcutta Stock Exchange. According to DT Next (PTI), he said the exchange would need enough trading activity, a viable business model and substantial investment in technology. He also said India's existing exchange infrastructure could accommodate larger trading volumes.
Trading at the Calcutta Stock Exchange has been suspended since April 2013 because of regulatory compliance issues. After the state government announced a revival plan in its budget, the exchange asked in July to put its exit application on hold.
