MUMBAI: Investors across the globe are looking to get a piece of the action in the booming Indian equity markets. And the Bombay Stock Exchange is taking the Sensex to the world in a move that will help globalize the brand. The BSE has entered an agreement with US Futures Exchange to list dollar-denominated Sensex futures contracts on the Chicago-based electronic exchange, the firms said on Monday.
This would allow US investors to invest directly in the Indian equity without the need for American Depositary Receipt (ADR) authorisation.
An ADR is a negotiable US certificate representing ownership of shares in a non-US corporation, and are quoted and traded in dollars in the US securities market. It is a way for US investors to buy shares in a foreign company while realising dividends and capital gains in dollars."The launch of a futures contract based on the Sensex will facilitate overseas investors in taking direct exposure to Indian equities," Rajnikant Patel, BSE managing director and chief executive, told reporters. This move is also likely to boost volume in the Bombay Stock Exchange's futures and options segment, which lags behind rival National Stock Exchange. The NSE has its Nifty dollar-denominated futures listed on the Singapore Exchange.