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Miffed BSE brokers to move PMO on trade hours
The tussle between sections of brokers and the stock exchanges over extended trade timing, seems headed towards the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
The tussle between sections of brokers and the stock exchanges over extended trade timing, seems headed towards the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The BSE Brokers’ Forum may petition PMO with data that 79 per cent of brokers are not in favour of an early opening of the exchanges. Against this, another section that reportedly holds 60 per cent of client-base is in favour of the move.
The BSE Brokers’ Forum (BBF) on Thursday issued a release saying “it has decided to make further representations to the PMO (and) the Ministry of Finance (MOF), …” The Forum believes it merits a national debate.
“Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) gave a blanket permit to exchanges that they can increase their open and close timing; it has not directed them to increase trading hour expressly. So we want to explain our viewpoint. We are not opposing SEBI or the exchanges,” BBF chairman Bhanubhai Fozdar told Hindustan Times.
SEBI had proposed an extension of trading hours of stock exchanges to align the domestic bourses with international markets. The exchanges had last week proposed to open an hour early, but the move has been put off till January 4, 2010.
The section of brokers in favour of exchanges opening early holds 60 per cent of the client base and is ready to bear initial pains to facilitate smooth transition, said Dinesh Thakkar, CMD of Angel Broking. “It may appear that over 60 per cent brokers don’t favour this move, but I have spoken to top 20 brokers and they favour it. These 20 brokers account for over 60 per cent client base,” he told HT.
“Who’s benefit should we look at, brokers or investors? When trading hours are longer, risk can more effectively be mitigated and this aids investors,” Thakkar added, advocating longer trading hours and lesser holidays.
Brokers also do not see the non-alignment of market timing and banking hours as a problem. One broker, not wanting to be identified, said, “Bank have always taken time to come up the curve. Banking hours are still not aligned with out timings, but are we not continuing with our functions?”
