Stock exchange BSE Limited and the Government of Maharashtra on Friday announced signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to help state MSMEs list on the BSE SME board. BSE and the Maharashtra government, under the MoU, will carry out collaborative programs and activities to sensitize the investor network about the advantages of listing for SMEs and startups.
“This includes guiding potential listed entities to attend capacity-building programs aimed at enhancing their understanding of the listing process and its benefits. As a part of MoU, BSE and GoMH will conduct collaborative programs and activities to raise awareness among investors about the benefits of SME and startup listing,” said a statement.
Maharashtra’s Industries Minister Uday Samant said the state has taken various initiatives to provide the required support for MSMEs to expand their operations and become inspiring examples for others to follow. “As a part of the MoU, we shall jointly facilitate awareness campaign amongst the MSMEs to better understand the process, benefits of listing on the stock exchange,” he said.
BSE will help potential businesses in connecting with intermediaries like merchant bankers, registrar, transfer agent, depositories and others apart from guiding MSMEs on things related to capital markets, capital raising mechanism, regulatory compliance and requirements.
“With this collaborative effort, we will be able to connect with a variety of state industry associations and SME representatives, raising awareness of the advantages of listings among SMEs in the state,” said Sameer Patil, CBO, BSE.
In November last year, BSE had come out with fresh guidelines for listed SMEs to move to the BSE main board. SMEs would be required a net worth of minimum Rs 15 crore for the preceding two financial years and must be listed on the BSE SME platform for at least three years. Moreover, 250 public shareholders are required in the company and must have a positive operating profit for at least any two out of three financial years. Moreover, the profit after tax (PAT) should be positive.