Sebi may decide fate of Vadodara Stock Exchange

Vadodara Stock Exchange (VSEL) today said it was up to Sebi to take a call on closing down the bourse after it failed to meet a key requirement set by the market regulator.

VSEL is facing cloure after its failure to comply with a SEBI directive that it must reach a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore by May 30, 2014 and a minimum networth of Rs 100 crore by May 2015.

According to a SEBI circular of May 30, 2012, regional exchanges with an annual trading turnover on its own trading platform of less than Rs 1,000 crore per year could apply to the regulator for voluntary surrender of licence.

The watchdog had asked VSEL, where trade volume is almost nil, to secure shareholders' nod by September 1 to voluntarily shutdown the bourse, which it failed to obtain.

"I will write a letter to Sebi tomorrow requesting it to decide on shutting down VSEL after its failure to meet voluntary closure deadline of 1st Spetember," VSEL Managing Director Someshwara Rao told PTI.

Two EGMs (extraordinary general meetings) held by VSEL on May 26 and July 13 failed to secure shareholder nod for closure, he said.

A sharp divison among 284 broker-shareholders and eight investor-shareholders of the exchange is preventing the the board of directors from passing a resolution to bring down curtains on the bourse.