Sebi top official bats for research in corporate governance

Observing that a lot of improvement is needed in corporate governance framework, Sebi whole time member G Mahalingam has called for more research work on this issue particularly in the area of board evaluation.

“Lot more research and work can be done in the area of corporate governance. Recently Uday Kotak came out with its set of regulations. What are the areas in corporate governance that need improvement is a fertile area for research,” Mahalingam said here late last evening.

“Board evaluation guidelines has been issued by Sebi but how is it functioning now is great area of interest. It is because contours of board evaluation are not clearly laid down. So if we can work a little more on that it would pave way for better corporate governance mechanism,” he added.

Mahalingam made the observations on the launch of a NSE’s e-book, which is regulation-wise compilation of all orders by Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) since its inception till March 31, 2016.

The Sebi whole time member noted that the e-book would be helpful for reference to Sebi while passing its orders as well as be useful study material for corporate lawyers and policy makers.

Speaking at the event NSE managing director and CEO Vikram Limaye said: “Ever since SAT was established, it has passed over 2,000 orders and each order established or reinforces regulatory principles. However, these orders were not organised in a way that would facilitate efficient access and reference.”

“We expect that this compilation will help regulators, practitioners and students of law in their professional pursuits,” added Limaye.

The compilation is made available only in e-book form with suitable search capability. This will be useful to capital market intermediaries and other practitioners specialising in the areas of regulatory work relating to capital markets.

The book has been compiled and classified regulation wise in 5 volumes: Takeover Regulations, FUTP Regulations (FUTP refers to Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices), Stock Broker Regulations, SEBI Act, and SEBI Regulations (Mutual Funds, Merchant Bankers and Collective Investment Schemes apart from other regulations).

NSE would update the compilation every year, and the revised compilation would be released around June every year.

Securities and Exchange Board of India ( SEBI )