Finance Minister Swarnim Wagle visited the Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) and provided directives for improving regulatory quality and developing the capital market with strong ethical standards.
Finance Minister Directs SEBON on Market Development
Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle recently visited the Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON). During his visit, he instructed the board to improve its regulatory quality and move forward with capital market development while maintaining high ethical standards. He stressed that SEBON should grow into a powerful regulatory institution for the financial system, much like Nepal Rastra Bank, and urged that market reform efforts need a long-term strategy.
Discussions and Future Plans
On Monday, at a program held at the SEBON office, Dr. Gopal Prasad Bhatta, the Board Chairman, briefed the Finance Minister about the various policies and programs SEBON is undertaking for capital market development. Key attendees at the event included Finance Secretary Dr. Ghanshyam Upadhyay, other senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, members of the SEBON Board, and senior SEBON staff.
Chairman Bhatta shared that the ‘Capital Market Development Blueprint’ is already being implemented. Also, the capital market policy and action plan for Fiscal Year 2083/84 has already started its execution.
According to him, consultative papers and essential rules and guidelines for Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), intraday trading, margin lending, and short selling will be ready by the end of the current Nepali month of Shrawan. Afterwards, starting from Bhadra, broad discussions will be held with stakeholders to push forward necessary policy and legal amendments.
The Board Chairman also asked the Ministry of Finance for needed support to solve challenges in capital market development, make policy implementation effective, and boost staff motivation.
Minister Wagle’s Emphasis on Strong Regulation and Investor Trust
Minister Wagle repeated that SEBON, similar to Nepal Rastra Bank, are an important regulatory body of the financial system. Therefore, he emphasized that its institutional capacity needs to be developed accordingly. He insisted that the Board must be established as a strong regulator without any deviation from its principles.
In his reply, Minister Wagle noted that with its new leadership, SEBON has taken a long-term approach to market reforms. This, he believes, has sent a positive message among investors. He underscored that a regulatory body must work fairly and credibly, without any deviation.
The Finance Minister also pointed out the recent increase in Demat account numbers, which means investor expectations have grown. He directed SEBON to expand its institutional capacity and regulatory expertise to meet these higher expectation.
He advised that when creating policies for the capital market, they should be analyzed from a ‘Political Economy’ perspective. Implementation should only happen after sufficient discussions with all stakeholders. This approach, he said, would strengthen sustainable market development and investor trust.
Minister Wagle also promised that the Government of Nepal would provide all required support for regulatory and legal reforms.
AI Disclaimer: This article was originally published on https://bajarkochirfar.com. It has been translated with the help of AI. For the best understanding and accurate facts, we recommend reading the original Nepali version.
