Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) announced on Thursday, 8 January, that it has constituted a high-level working group to formulate a comprehensive technology roadmap for Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs), covering both short-term (five-year) and long-term (10-year) strategies.
“The Working Group has been constituted in view of the rapid evolution of technology and the increasing role of digital systems in market operations, surveillance, risk management, investor protection, and regulatory oversight,” the Sebi circular issued on Thursday read.
With a focus on a holistic and future-oriented approach, the working group plans to evaluate the adoption of developing technologies, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, distributed ledger technology, cloud computing, SupTech and RegTech solutions, tokenisation and quantum-safe systems by MIIs.
Who are the members of the working group?
The group will be chaired by DB Phatak, Professor Emeritus at IIT Bombay, and consist of chairpersons from the Standing Committee on Technology (SCOT) of MIIs, senior officials from stock broking firms, and registrars and transfer agents (RTAs), along with technology and capital market experts.
Sebi states that the initiative aims to keep the Indian securities market prepared for the future, resilient, and competitive on a global scale, while supporting the country’s long-term goal of creating a digitally empowered and advanced economy.
“The constitution of the Group is aimed at ensuring that Indian Securities Market remains future-ready, resilient, globally competitive, and aligned with India’s long-term vision and aspirations of a digitally empowered and developed economy,” the circular read.
What do MIIs consist of?
According to the market regulator, stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories together constitute MIIs.
Sebi’s focus on technology
In December, Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said that the regulator plans to form a working group to identify the next technological frontier for stock exchanges, as reported by PTI.
The group will concentrate on the evolution of exchange technology over the next 5-10 years, benchmark international best practices, and develop new approaches to strengthen the market infrastructure, the news portal cited Pandey.
In terms of the market, the technological frontier involves the application of cutting-edge technologies to enhance oversight, improve operational efficiency and strengthen investor protection.
