NSE gets Sebi's conditional nod for Limaye's appointment as new chief

The appointment had been hanging fire as Sebi was concerned over his role at BCCI

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Friday approved the appointment of Vikram Limaye, head of infrastructure lender IDFC Ltd, as the next chief executive of National Stock Exchange, subject to his resignation from a cricket committee.

The conditional approval from SEBI comes four months after the country's largest bourse had nominated Limaye's name for the post, an unusually long time.

Limaye is a member of a panel appointed by the Supreme Court to administer the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

However, the appointment had been hanging as the regulator was concerned over his role at BCCI.

In a statement the exchange said," Sebi has approved the appointment of Vikram Limaye as the MD and CEO of the NSE, subject interalia to his being relieved from his BCCI (COA) assignment. The appointment will take effect from the date of joining".

He was selected as the managing director and CEO of the exchange by the board of NSE in February following the sudden exit of Chitra Ramkrishna in December last year. In March, shareholders of the exchange had approved the appointment.

Limaye, who joined IDFC in 2005, has over 25 years of experience of working with financial institutions, global investment banks, international commercial banks, and global accounting firms.

He started his professional career with Arthur Andersen in Mumbai in 1987 and has also worked with Ernst & Young and Citibank. He has worked at Wall Street for eight years with Credit Suisse First Boston before returning to Mumbai in 2004.

He has contributed to various committees of government and industry associations on a range of topics on infrastructure, economic policy, markets and trade.

A commerce graduate, Limaye has an MBA in Finance and Multinational Management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Earlier in April, Sebi chief Ajay Tyagi had said that a decision would be taken soon on the exchange's appointment of Limaye.