After the West Bengal government proposed to support the revival of the 118-year-old Calcutta Stock Exchange, a board meeting of the bourse is expected to take place this month.
In his Budget speech, Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta said the Calcutta Stock Exchange (CSE) is on the verge of closure due to several hurdles, and the State government proposed to support its revival to reclaim Kolkata’s place as a financial capital.
“It is a very welcoming decision taken by the West Bengal government. We all want to see that the CSE restarts its operation. We will be holding a board meet this month to discuss the decision of the government. Following this, appropriate advice will be sent to SEBI,” Deepankar Bose, public interest director, Calcutta Stock Exchange told businessline.
“The Calcutta Stock Exchange can resume its operation only after its regulator, SEBI, conveys its approval,” Bose added.
Trading at CSE, one of India’s oldest bourses, was suspended by SEBI in April, 2013, following regulatory non-compliance. CSE members continued to trade directly on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) platform through the local bourse. However, this service stopped in 2024.
The Calcutta Stock Exchange applied for a voluntary exit from stock exchange operations in February, 2025. It is still pending with SEBI and final orders have not yet been passed.
CSE currently has net worth of over ₹100 crore, which is a regulatory requirement for a regional bourse.
“The Calcutta Stock Exchange, an 118-year old institution is on the verge of closure due to several legal hurdles. My government proposes to support the revival of the Calcutta Stock Exchange so as to reclaim Kolkata’s place as a financial capital. The revival of the Calcutta Stock Exchange would have multifarious advantages, including easier access to capital for Eastern India, lower costs of listing and trading and create new jobs,” the Finance Minister said in the West Bengal Assembly on Monday.
Tabling the State Budget of over ₹4.38 lakh crore for the financial year 2026-27, Dasgupta said an endeavor will be taken for listing profit making State Public Sector Undertakings (SPSUs) on public stock exchanges which will benefit the State by raising capital through disinvestment, unlocking hidden corporate value.
According to industry sources, revival of the Calcutta Stock Exchange would help a lot of mid-sized companies and MSME units in West Bengal and in Eastern India access the capital market for raising funds for their expansion. It will help employment generation in the region.
“In West Bengal and in Eastern India, there are a lot of MSME units which need Rs 50-100 crore capital for growth. MSME units generally don’t want to go to BSE or NSE because of cost factors, among other reasons. The Calcutta Stock Exchange would be competitive for these units for raising required capital,” said an industry observer.