Chairman of Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Tuhin Kanta Pandey, on Saturday said that rising number of Initial Public Offer (IPO) indicated efficiency of the capital market. He also called for deeper collaboration between regulators and chartered accountants to handle the evolving complex market.
Addressing World Forum of Accountants 2.0, organised by Institute of Chartered Accountants in India (ICAI), Pandey said between FY16 and FY26 (till December), more than ₹100 trillion has been raised through equity and debt issuances. IPO activity tells an equally powerful story. “For the second consecutive year, we have witnessed record levels of public offerings — 320 IPOs in FY25, followed by 311 IPOs in just the first nine months of FY26. This signals that issuers increasingly view Indian markets as capable of providing scale, efficiency, and long-term capital,” he said. The corporate bond market, too, has expanded steadily, with an 11 per cent CAGR since FY15.
According to him, India today has 13.9 crore unique investors, compared to just 3.8 crore in March 2019. Market participation is no longer confined to metropolitan centres; it is expanding across regions. Mutual funds provide one of the clearest illustrations of this shift. Industry AUM has grown from ₹12 lakh crore in FY16 to nearly ₹80 lakh crore today. “Average monthly SIP contributions in FY26 (till December) have reached ₹28500 crore, compared to ₹7700 in FY19 — a more than 3.7-fold increase. “This reflects a cultural shift toward disciplined, long-term financial participation,” he said.
Further he said there is need to recognise the broader environment in which the system operates. “Today, misinformation spreads faster than facts. Finfluencers often shape perception more than fundamentals. Narratives can be manufactured. Short-term performance is often rewarded more than long-term sustainability. We have seen corporate failures — both globally and domestically — where formal compliance existed, but ethical substance was missing,” he said while adding that where governance failed not because rules were absent, but because courage was.
“In such a world, the role of the chartered accountant becomes not just professional, but societal. You become one of the key anchors of credibility in an ecosystem that desperately needs trusted intermediaries. The profession is increasingly called upon to defend long-term trust even when short-term optics are more tempting,” Pandey said.
He reminded that even as regulatory excellence is being pursued, “we remain conscious of a fundamental truth.” Regulation can design frameworks. Regulation can enforce minimum standards. But regulation alone cannot create ethical culture. It cannot replace independent judgment. It cannot enforce courage in boardrooms. “We regulate behaviour. You have a potential to influence culture. Financial governance is as much shaped by the culture as the compliance,” he said.
Published on January 31, 2026
This Post Has 0 Comments