The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is working on proposed changes to the consolidated account statement (CAS), which could provide investors with a consolidated view of their stocks, mutual funds, bank deposits and insurance policies, SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey said at the SAMVAAD Summit on Thursday (October 15).
Pandey said a SEBI working group is examining proposals to improve the CAS framework. The regulator will issue a consultation paper on the proposed changes.
“I had said CAS framework will be out in a week, and it’s not one week yet,” Pandey said.
SEBI has written to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) chairman seeking the inclusion of insurance information in the consolidated statement, he said.
Following an announcement by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), depositories CDSL and NSDL will get access to bank deposit information on a consent basis, Pandey said.
Pandey said digital technology has played a major role in transforming financial services and that individuals should have a clear understanding of their financial position and be able to use their own information.
Investor base expands
Pandey said the number of unique investors has grown fourfold to 150 million. India has 6.6 crore unique mutual fund investors, he said.
At a compound annual growth rate of 14-15%, the mutual fund investor base could reach 24-26 crore in 10 years, Pandey said.
He said making investments easier for domestic and foreign investors is a basic responsibility of regulators.
Investor awareness needs to reach people in regional languages and remote areas, Pandey said. SEBI’s investor awareness campaign sent nearly 44 crore messages over nine days, and the regulator plans to progressively expand its investor awareness programmes beyond the current 13 languages.
He said investor awareness initiatives would help people manage their portfolios and avoid investment frauds.
Pandey said the focus is on ensuring safe and secure investing as investor participation grows.
He also said SEBI is in talks with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on issues related to the merchant discount rate (MDR).