India’s capital market a ‘great story’, says Harvard professor

New Delhi

Indian capital market’s growth and the vital role played by regulator Sebi is a “great story” for the developed world to learn from, Harvard Business School professor Suraj Srinivasan has said. Srinivasan, who has done a case study on the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), said the country’s capital market is deep with potential to grow further.

“We (India) have a deep market and a market which has the potential for the growth. It is a great story of developing capital markets and the role that the regulator plays,” he told PTI in a telephonic interview from the US. For the case study, Srinivasan also interacted with former Sebi Chairman U K Sinha and many other officials. Noting that India’s capital market has grown rapidly, the Harvard Business School professor said there is also a robust market infrastructure and regulatory system that has been created to support the growth.

“I think there is a lot to learn from how the markets have grown in India but more specifically how the infrastructure has been put in by the government and the regulators … A terrific learning,” he said. When asked about legacy of Sinha, who demitted office after a six-year tenure earlier this month, Srinivasan said it was “terrific”.

“Sebi is a large organisation and Sinha has contributed to continuing and strengthening that legacy … It is a terrific legacy,” he said.

A former IAS officer, Sinha had the second longest tenure as SEBI Chairman after D R Mehta who served at the helm from 1995-2002. Citing various facilities like electronic voting option available for investors, he said that even developed markets can learn from the growth of the Indian capital market.

“For instance, there are things like the extent of KYC (Know Your Client) and electronic voting… in the Indian capital markets, it is so much easier,” Srinivasan noted. As part of continuing efforts to deepen as well as attract more investors into the market, Sebi has put in place various measures including easier KYC norms. Srinivasan, who is the Philip J Stomberg Professor of Business Administration, has published the study titled ‘Securities Exchange Board of India: Developing and Regulating India’s Capital Markets’ along with research associate Radhika Kak.