Mumbai, Sept 24: The National Stock Exchange has decided to set up a wholly owned infotech company for the securities industry, says a NSE release. According to Ravi Narayan, deputy managing director, NSE, one of the major focus areas for the company will be to develop products to meet the long-felt need for some benchmark products in the area of treasury management, asset liability management and banking.The new company will also look into the prospects of introducing a representative yield curve for the market. Currently, MIBID and MIBOR are the two widely accepted money market benchmark products in the country, which were introduced by the NSE.
The new company will also provide IT services to the broker members spread all over the country and a few of the smaller excahnges who approached them for a membership. Apart from the securities market, the company will also provide services to the financial institutions and banks for upgradation programmes.
According to the NSE release, the existing IT staff, numbering 150, which constitutes one-third of the total NSE staff strength, will be transferred to the new company. In addition, it also says that the separate company status is expected to provide a platform for taking up more challenging assignments both within the country and outside and attaining global exposure in the sector.
According to Naraian, the final preparations for the incorporation procedure for the said company- including the name, the paid up capital etc., are underway. The whole process of incorporation is expected to be over in the next couple of weeks. The company is expected to be operational by the beginning of the next millenium and the total staff strength of the new company is expected to be around 200 on the date of commencement.
According to NSE, with the setting up of ther new IT comapny, NSE proposes to sharpen its technology edge. The company will be synergistic with NSE's overall goal of harnessing the latest technology for the securities industry and business.
NSE recognises that technology is the bedrock of the securities industry, and the new specialist company will enable the exchange to gain considerable advantage within the industry, as it strives to offer improved and innovative services to major market participants.
The new IT company will also identify strategic partners for its business endeavours. The company is also expected to make significant investments in the areas of consultancy and niche product development, the NSE release said.The exchange currently owns and operates the largest VSAT network in India, making it one of the world's largest communication network being used for financial services. In addition to the deployment of the latest technologies, the exchange has designed and developed technologically complex IT solutions.
Copyright © 1999 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.