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Informist, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026

 

--SEBI ED Rao: India must become important in bullion price discovery 

--CONTEXT: SEBI ED Ram Mohan Rao speaking at Global Commodity Conclave 

--SEBI ED Rao: Need to tap private gold, gold locked in religious places 

--SEBI ED Rao: Gold ecosystem needs govt support in order to grow 

 

MUMBAI – India must aspire to become an increasingly important participant in global bullion price discovery, trading, financing, and risk management, Securities and Exchange Board of India Executive Director Ram Mohan Rao said Wednesday. Speaking at the Global Commodity Conclave, Rao said India, despite being one of the world's largest consumers of gold, has historically relied on international markets for bullion price discovery.

 

"For a country of India's scale, this is perhaps the most important aspiration," Rao said, referring to the need to move beyond being a mere purchaser at set prices to a more influential participant in bullion price discovery. A globally relevant bullion market would require deep liquidity, credible price discovery, internationally accepted quality standards, robust clearing and settlement, efficient trading and delivery systems, reliable reference prices, strong risk management, and transparent regulation, he said.

 

Rao also called for greater integration between India's physical and financial gold markets. He said the future of the bullion ecosystem should not be viewed as a choice between physical and financial markets but as a combination of both, with physical markets providing the underlying economic reality and financial markets providing liquidity, price discovery, risk management, and wider access.

 

India also needs to tap the large stock of gold held privately and by religious institutions, Rao said. He estimated that 25,000-30,000 tonnes of gold could be held in private hands in India and said this stock needs to be brought into the financial ecosystem. He also estimated that about 4,000 tonnes of gold is held in trusts of temples and other institutions and could potentially be monetised.

 

Rao also highlighted the relatively small share of India's newly imported gold that is currently routed through exchange-based delivery mechanisms. India imported around 780 tonnes of gold last year while only about 17 tonnes was delivered through the new exchange mechanism, he said.

 

The SEBI executive director said the gold ecosystem would also require government support to grow. He said measures that reduce the cost of retailing and encourage participation across the value chain could help bring more participants into the organised market. "If this industry needs to grow then there has to be some benefit," Rao said, adding that miners, refiners, jewellery associations, and retailers need to participate in building the ecosystem.  End

 

Reported by Kabir Sharma

Edited by Shubhayan Bhattacharya

 

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