Talebearer

Quiet indulgence?

When Finance Minister P. Chidambaram proposed changes in the Finance Bill 2008-09 recently, one of them was the extension of the tax holiday for the IT industry by one year, till March 31, 2010. Clearly, yet another annual extension during the Budget speech would have attracted far too much attention and that would have set the precedent for other exemption beneficiaries. Though the FM has often said that the aim is to move towards a regime with fewer exemptions, cynics might add, surely that seems like a distant aim.

—Shalini S. Dagar

Body blow for BSE?

SEBI’s approval of cross margining across and cash and derivatives segments is giving BSE members sleepless nights. Their worry is it would dry up volumes on the BSE as brokers would shift to NSE (which is the preferred exchange for derivatives) to take advantage of the new system. Says an anxious BSE broker: “It’s the death knell for the BSE.” SEBI then might be forced think of a way to allay the concerns of BSE’s broker fraternity.

—Rishi Joshi