Unified bourses:BSE to begin with bullion,other non-agri items

Premier exchange BSE, which is ready to launch commodities derivatives as and when the regulator comes out with detailed regulations, will enter the segment with non-agri products such as bullion, base metals, crude, and natural gas, among others.

On December 28, the markets watchdog Sebi had announced that from next October, the country would have a unified exchange regime wherein stock exchanges would be allowed to offer trading in commodities derivatives. Detailed guidelines are awaited.

And the BSE has become the first bourse to come out with a detailed plan on commodities derivatives since then and announced a free-membership for the commodities segment.

"We would initially focus on non-agri products such as bullion, silver, other base metals, and oil and natural gas futures and options. We've already upgraded our technology and our brokers will be able to trade in commodity futures on the same screen," BSE managing director and chief executive Ashishkumar Chauhan has said.

The oldest Asian bourse, which was ready to enter the commodities segment way back in 2015, feels that it needs more preparations to enter the agri commodities segment.

"Early 2015, we had approached the Forward Markets Commission to begin commodities derivatives, and then suddenly in September 2015 the FMC was merged with the Sebi," Chauhan said here on Thursday.

Then BSE launched the International Exchange at the Gift City last January which trades in bullion derivatives since the past six months, and is clocking around $300 million volume daily, enjoying 15% of the total open interest in gold now, he said.

"So we are ready to launch trading in commodities derivatives anytime from now and are awaiting detailed guidelines from the regulator Sebi," Chauhan added.

When asked about whether the exchange will charge a fee from brokers to trade in commodities derivatives, Chauhan said no, as "there is hardly any major investment that we will have make. The only investment that is needed is in putting up additional servers. There is no major marginal cost that we will be incurring."

He said the premier bourse is also not charging anything extra from it's over 1,300 registered brokers for currency trade. But he did not say how many of them.