“Corporatisation brings better standards of governance, brings better transparency, increases confidence level of customers. Therefore, I believe that stock broking and stock market activities should also be corporatised,” he said addressing the 3rd annual conference of Association of National Stock Exchanges Members of India.

It will help brokers to access overseas markets and tap the funds of Indian diaspora for domestic markets apart from attracting professionals to “family- controlled business,” he said, adding the BSE and NSE should also consider helping the small brokers to access overseas markets.

While enumerating steps taken by the government to broaden the capital market in the past 10 months, the finance minister said the government attached “highest importance to capital market. We will continue to strengthen, deepen and broaden capital market,” he said.

On regulation of markets, he said the finance ministry has commissioned a study to the World Bank to suggest an effective SRO (Self-Regulatory Organisation) model in the Indian context. SROs are expected to be the first level of regulator, which can help in better compliance of regulations.

Mr Chidambaram said Sebi was in the process of recasting the SRO regulations in order to incentivise the formation of more SROs. It is also in dialogue with various capital market organisations and make the SRO regulations more “market-friendly,” he said. Sebi is considering various models of self-regulation for intermediaries and would be promoting SROs by way of creating new regulations and an enabling law.