SEC, SEBI Announce Increased Cooperation

by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong

08 January 2008

The US Securities and Exchange Commission and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Tuesday announced terms for increased cooperation and collaboration.

SEC Chairman Christopher Cox and SEBI Chairman M. Damodaran elaborated the terms establishing the structure of, and agenda for, an SEC-SEBI dialogue.

This new dialogue has three main objectives:

• Identify and discuss regulatory issues of common concern
• Continue and expand upon the existing program of capacity-building and technical cooperation between the SEC and the SEBI
• Improve cooperation and the exchange of information in cross-border securities enforcement matters.

"As financial services and investment continue to grow and expand between the United States and India, the SEC and SEBI are increasingly working together to facilitate our aims of investor protection and healthy markets," explained Chairman Cox, adding that:

"The SEC has worked with SEBI over the past few years on extensive capacity-building programs as well as enforcement matters. I look forward to continuing and strengthening our regulatory and enforcement cooperation with SEBI through this high-level dialogue."

Chairman Damodaran stated that:

"Given the role that emerging and recently emerged markets play in an increasingly globalised financial world, it is only befitting that the SEBI and SEC work closely for the protection of investors and for ensuring fair, efficient and transparent markets."

"The high level discussions between the two regulators, while promoting capacity building, would also enable both the SEBI and SEC to take suitable joint and collective action where needed."

The dialogue will comprise regular meetings and ad hoc information exchange at the staff level and between high-level representatives of the SEC and SEBI.

Given recent developments in both the US and Indian markets, the following topics have been identified for discussion for the dialogue over the coming year:

• Oversight of dually regulated entities
• Regulatory and compliance issues relating to outsourcing
• Accounting and auditing standards
• Corporate governance standards and internal controls
• Areas for continued capacity-building and technical cooperation
• Cross-border cooperation and information sharing in securities enforcement matters.

The SEC and SEBI have stated, however, that this is not an exclusive list of issues to be discussed in the dialogue, and that the list may be revised as new regulatory issues affecting the Indian and US markets emerge over the course of the year.

Recommended