BSE held 20% of the total equity shares of CDSL as on March 31, 2023. Shareholding in depositories is governed under the Sebi (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 2018. Under regulation 21(1), a stock exchange is allowed only to hold a 15% stake in a depository. In January 2021, the market regulator set a limit of 15% holding for institutions which was reduced from 24%.
Earlier in February, the BSE board approved the divestment in Central Depository Services (India) through the Offer for Sale (OFS) route.
CDSL got listed on the NSE in 2017. Through the IPO, the BSE, which had a 50.05% stake in CDSL, sold 26.05%. Shares of CDSL gained 4% in the last three months, while BSE shares gained nearly 29%.
CDSL, which allows investors to deposit securities by opening an account in electronic form (dematerialised), gets its revenues from transaction charges, account maintenance charges, and settlement charges paid by depository participants as well as annual fees, corporate action and e-voting charges paid by companies whose securities are admitted in the depository’s systems.