'œWe will help Indian firms expand'?

The head of equity markets at the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Martin Graham, was in India to explore business possibilities in the UK by inviting Indian companies to raise capital through LSE. He spoke to BT’s Manu Kaushik. Excerpts:

What kind of participation do you expect from Indian firms now?
I think LSE can play a critical role in helping Indian companies grow. A lot of good companies want to raise capital in international markets to fund their expansion plans and R&D activities. We are getting them to raise money from the main bluechip market and also considering ways to target mid-size companies to list on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

What is the response so far?
As of now, there are 25 Indian companies listed in the UK. Despite the grim conditions, four of them raised nearly $400 million (Rs 2,000 crore) or 18 per cent of the total fund raised at AIM in 2008.

Which are the sectors you are targeting?
Although we are not sectorspecific in our approach, we would like to see more companies in oil & gas, metals, manufacturing, entertainment, IT and telecom to list their shares on the bourse.