Stock exchange BSE Ltd and PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) announced a partnership on Monday to promote equity financing and expand capital-market access for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the country. According to reports from ANI, the two organisations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create greater awareness among MSMEs about equity financing, particularly through the BSE SME platform, and help eligible businesses navigate the listing process. Ranjeet Mehta, CEO and Secretary General of PHDCCI, emphasized that the partnership aims to help MSMEs raise funds for business expansion and make them aware of equity financing opportunities available through the public markets. As reported by ANI, the collaboration will particularly focus on helping MSMEs access financing opportunities through initial public offerings (IPOs).
Under the partnership, BSE will provide subject-matter experts and trainers for awareness programmes, seminars, workshops, roadshows and knowledge sessions aimed at helping MSMEs understand the benefits and requirements of raising capital through the markets. As reported by ANI, the collaboration will also provide MSMEs with access to mentorship, expert guidance and capacity-building initiatives, besides establishing a nodal-point mechanism to assist businesses in exploring suitable capital-market opportunities. The initiative will specifically educate MSMEs about the listing process, benefits of becoming a listed company and how raising funds through IPOs can help businesses scale up. According to ANI, the partnership aims to conduct awareness programmes at the state level, district level to tell MSMEs about how they can take advantage of getting funds through IPOs.
BSE Managing Director and CEO Sundararaman Ramamurthy stated that the partnership would help take awareness about SME listing closer to businesses across the country. According to ANI, he emphasized that the BSE SME Platform offers eligible businesses an opportunity to access growth capital while enhancing visibility and corporate credibility. Ramamurthy identified several key challenges that prevent MSMEs from pursuing listing, including concerns related to finance, corporate governance and additional compliance requirements. He noted that SMEs often hesitate due to lack of knowledge about these subjects and capacity to learn them, along with finding appropriate merchant bankers who understand their specific requirements. However, he highlighted that listing provides access to risk capital beyond conventional bank financing and enables family-run enterprises to unlock business value while retaining ownership and control.
According to ANI, around 760 companies across 27 states have raised ₹17,000 crore from the market, while their combined market capitalisation stood at around ₹2 lakh crore. Around 200 companies have subsequently moved to the main board, demonstrating the success of the BSE SME platform. The partnership is expected to strengthen awareness among MSMEs about capital-market financing and encourage more enterprises to consider IPOs as an avenue for raising growth capital. As reported by ANI, accessing funds at a reasonable cost remains a major challenge for MSMEs, while many of the country's around 8 crore MSMEs are not fully aware of the government schemes and financing avenues available to them.
