Sebi on fast-track in taking up probes; slow on completion

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Market watchdog Sebi seems to be moving at the fastest pace in at least last five years while taking up cases for investigations, but the same speed seems to be lacking in completing them.

As per the latest data disclosed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), it took up 107 cases for investigations in the last fiscal till December 2011 -- higher than the full-year figures since 2006-07.

On the other hand, it could complete only 14 cases in the first nine months of 2011-12 -- representing a sharp decline from the full-year figures in the past 10 years.

Although the numbers are not exactly comparable because of data being available for only nine months for the fiscal 2011-12, but Sebi has already exceeded the full-year numbers in five years in terms of number of cases taken up for probe.

In terms of completed cases also, the number for nine months appears too small to catch up with the previous full- year numbers -- 82 in 2010-11, 74 in 2009-10, 83 in 2008-09 and more than 100 during six financial years between 2002-03 and 2007-08, barring 81 in 2005-06.

The figures have been disclosed by Sebi in its latest 'Handbook of statistics on Indian securities market', which was published on its website on Wednesday.

The number of completed cases has been higher than 14 every year since 1995-96.

The biggest decline in the number of completed cases seems to have come in the areas of market manipulation, price rigging and insider trading, while some downtrend has been seen in takeovers and public issue related cases also.

On the other hand, Sebi is taking up larger number of cases related to public issues, while not much changes have taken place in cases of market manipulation and price rigging.

Between April 2011 and December 2011, Sebi completed five cases of market manipulation and price rigging, as against 51 in the previous year, 46 in 2009-10, 62 in 2008-09 and 115 in 2007-08.

Just one case of issue related to manipulation was completed last fiscal till December 2011, as against two in 2010-11 and seven in 2009-10.

Also, only three cases of insider trading related probe was completed last fiscal, down from 15 in the previous year and 10 prior to that.

In terms of cases taken up, Sebi initiated 59 probes into market manipulation and price rigging till December 2011 last fiscal, as against 56 in the previous year and 44 in 2009-10.

For public issue related manipulation, Sebi took up 14 cases last fiscal, up from six in 2010-11 and two each in the previous two years.