BSE to seek nod to roll out electronic gold receipts

Kolkata: The BSE will seek the market regulator's approval next week to introduce electronic gold receipts (EGRs) on its platform before Dhanteras, an important day for gold trade as it is considered to be auspicious to purchase the metal.

The exchange's move comes after the Securities and Exchange Board of India announced on September 28 the introduction of two new instruments in the market - EGRs and silver exchange-traded funds.

"We plan to introduce EGRs of as low as 1 gm to as high as 1 kg. We hope to get Sebi approval for launching EGRs before Dhanteras," BSE's chief business officer, Sameer Patil, told ET. This year, Dhanteras falls on November 2.


The spot trade of standard gold in EGRs is expected to help in creating a uniform price structure for the yellow metal across the country. At present there is no standard gold price, said the BSE executive.

This can help reduce the market inefficiencies that exist in bullion trade and may act as a bridge in integrating spot gold trade with derivatives markets and create a transparent platform for bullion trading.