He was speaking after launching the dedicated SME platform 'Emerge' of National Stock Exchange (NSE).
Currently seven companies are listed on the SME platform of BSE and one company (Thejo Engineering) got listed on NSE platform today.
Stating that tapping the capital market is one of the ways for SMEs to grow, the Finance Minister said there are entrepreneurs who are willing to come to the market.
"...Small merchant bankers, public sector banks, rating agencies, ...All of them have to make that extra effort, take that extra step to handhold a large number of (small and medium) companies to come to the market," he said.
In the past attempts to bring them to market had failed.
The banks and other entities can help SMEs through underwriting of the issues, providing merchant banking services and picking up equity.
The minister said "it is not easy to bring SMEs into the market" due to reasons such as regulations of Sebi and other regulators scaring away small entrepreneurs.
"But I think the opportunities for the micro, small and medium enterprises to raise capital and to grow and to expand are so large that we must get over these obstacles and try to see that those who have the entrepreneurial quality are able to raise capital and grow," the Finance Minister said.
About 3.11 crore SMEs contribute 45 per cent to industrial output and 8 per cent to the GDP.
Sebi Chairman U K Sinha said the market regulator and the government should take into account not only the requirements of corporates and entrepreneurs to raise money but also ensure safety of the money invested by people. (MORE)
