Sebi Need Not Comment on Small, Mid-Cap Slump: Buch

Sebi chief says regulator has already warned investors, MFs must ensure investor protection

- Neha Joshi

Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch said on Friday that there was no need for the regulator to comment on the recent slump in mid- and small-cap stocks, pockets of the market whose high valuations had prompted her to raise concerns last year.

Speaking at an event in Mumbai, the regulator drew from her statement of March 2024 where she had warned investors about the potential bubbles in the small and mid-cap segments, and stressed that it might not be appropriate to allow froth to keep building up. She had asked mutual funds to frame a common policy to protect investors, at a time of turbulence in an overheated small and mid-cap space.

Sebi had also asked for results of stress tests from mutual fund trustees, stating the time it would take to liquidate portions of investors' portfolios. "At the point in time when the regulator felt the need to make a statement about it, the statement was made", Buch said, "Today, the regulator feels no need to make an additional statement," she added.