NSE’s settlement plea in the co-location case rejected by Sebi
Market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has rejected a settlement application filed by the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in a case pertaining to the colocation matter, said two people with direct knowledge of the matter.
The exchange had filed under the consent mechanism of Sebi which allows market participants to settle any alleged security market violation by paying a fee and without admitting or denying guilt. However, Sebi rejected NSE’s consent plea and instead will pass a regulatory order against the exchange.
The case pertains to alleged connivance between NSE officials and OPG Securities – which is one of the brokers accused of getting preferential access to NSE’s servers thereby providing them an undue advantage over other traders.
Sebi has passed several orders in the NSE colocation case so far with each order looking into specific types of violations. Over the last year, SAT overturned several orders of Sebi in the case including the Rs 625 crore disgorgement imposed on NSE. Also, orders pertaining to penalties levied on former employees of NSE have also been overturned by SAT.
