SME Exchange is having robust mechanism and is fundamentally sustainable, experts maintained. SME Exchanges are poised to throw various opportunities and have immense potential, the speakers noted while expressing their opinion on SME listing issues.
ICSI Western region has recently organized a seminar on 'SME Listing: Opportunities', jointly with Chamber of Marathwada Industries and Agriculture (CMIA) and Bombay Stock Exchange.
Commenting on SME 's listing issues, Ashish Chauhan, MD & CEO of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), said,"SMEs are the largest employer after agriculture sector in India. Currently, eleven SMEs are listed on BSE and they are the role models for the sector. BSE is also encouraging other companies for listing. The government and regulators have also recognised this fact and introduced various policy measures to help SMEs grow including activation of SME listing platform."
Mahavir Lunawat, chairman, ICSI western region said,"We are committed to support SMEs and help them grow. It is our endeavour to unleash initiatives for better and wider awareness of the SME listing and numerous benefits it extends. This sector provides support for competitiveness and employs about 75 million people in India. There are about 30 million operating SMEs out of which is 80 per cent are micro enterprise. They contribute 9-10 per cent of our GDP."
He added, "SMEs are poised to become the next big opportunity in the Indian markets given that they produce nearly half of the manufactured output and also are the largest employers of workforce in India. The government and regulators have also recognised this fact and introduced various policy measures to help SMEs grow including activation of SME listing platform."
The Prime Minister's Task Force has recommended a dedicated stock exchange or platform for SMEs. With such provisions for listing of specified securities under the SME platform, the sector would allow the SME’s to access capital markets easily, quickly and at lower costs.
Besides Chauhan and Lunawat, other speakers at the seminar included K Kumar, president & director of Endress+ Houser Flowtech (India) Pvt Ltd, Sunil Raithatha, CMIA president, Milind Kank, vice-president, CMIA and Mahesh Singhi, chairman of Aurangabad chapter office of ICSI.
