BSE, NSE plan to join IOSCO

"We have been asked to become members of the international organisation. We would, needless to say, respond in the affirmative," said an NSE official.

Earlier, while addressing a gathering of market participants, Neoh said that with the depository being set up, settlement systems would become more efficientin the country.

Moreover, once the government further opens up the market to foreign institutional investors, Indian companies would be able to atrract these FIIs to India and ADRs and GDRs would become a thing of the past, said Neoh. In context to the recent south-east-Asian currency turmoil, Neoh said an issue which is being debated in the Asian countries today is whether or not they were structurally prepared for capital account convertibilty before going in for the same.

"Did we open up too fast? Good enforcement which can only come about through political impartiality is required for good regulation. You can’t have the finance minister of a country telling the regulator what to do and what not to," said Neoh.

Neoh said the major challenge for economies today is to gear up to attract investments from the mutual funds in the US. "These funds currently invest in safe markets. As of now the only place for them to invest is the US market. But this cannot absorb the investments which are lined up andhence unified European market would be the next halt for these investments. Then it would be the turn of Asia and Latin America and we need to gear up to be able to attract these funds," said Neoh.

According to Sebi chairman DR Mehta the need of the hour is pragmatism in change management. "A strategy is needed to cope up with change," he said.