Clash at the bourses of the bourses

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As global Exchanges continue on their acquisition sprees, NSE & BSE are working overtime to enhance their mindshare

It has been six years but nothing much has changed for the petrol pump attendant at the HP petrol station in front of Thapar House in Delhi. For him, the only visible change is that now he sees quite a few young faces entering the one-way street. They come with a somewhat tense disposition, spend about 90-120 minutes inside Thapar House, normally zipping away in a more relaxed mode. Before we actually move ahead, let us first answer some questions that must be bothering you by now. Firstly, what is so special about Thapar House? It is home to National Stock Exchange, India’s premier stock exchange. Second, who are these young lads and what are they doing? These are young students who wish to pursue their career in Finance and have come to give NCFM (NSE’s Certification in Financial Markets), a prerequisite for many Finance jobs.

But what the petrol pump attendant may not know is that Thapar House is also a garrison in a brand war that has been brewing between NSE and the 150-year-old Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Those who read newspapers would definitely have noticed the litter of advertisements that both NSE and BSE have unleashed of late, seeking to attract both investors and brokers in their already fledging kitty. The bid to emerge stronger has been on between the two ever since newcomer NSE came onto the scene (in 1992) and challenged the 132-year-old legacy of BSE. But the latest ad wars point towards an increasing realization that branding is perhaps an imperative in these competitive times, especially when the product remains the same – an exchange for people to buy and sell shares. While BSE’s USP remains the fact that it is Asia’s oldest stock exchange (dating back to 1875), NSE is a relatively new entity, nimbler and more receptive to innovation. BSE ruled the investors’ hearts for decades, that is, until NSE forced people to think with their minds instead. Taking a lesson or two from its nimbler rival, of late BSE is on an innovation spree too. They have launched websites in Hindi and Gujarati, but in terms of launching new products and marketing them, NSE still has an upper hand, having launched a series of innovative products like India’s first trading platform for equities, first exchange to trade ETFs in India to the recent derivative trading on Nifty Junior and CNX 100. Small wonder that while BSE is banking on a tagline that says: “The Index the world tracks,” NSE has put into motion a campaign that reads: ‘Nifty 50: Stock of the Nation’.

“BSE is a legacy brand. It has a knowledge base and reliability associated with it,” says Kiran Khalap, founding partner, Chlorophyll Brand & Communications. No wonder, it was tough for NSE to carve a niche initially, in a country where BSE had become synonymous to investing. But quickly realizing the importance of IT and innovative products to meet the growing sophistication of the financial markets, NSE raced ahead to rule market share charts. According to World Federation of Exchange, despite lesser number of companies listed under NSE (see chart below), the trading volume is much higher. Total value of share trading for the first four months of 2007 at BSE was $77011,8 million as compared to a mind-boggling $159905,1 million at NSE. The value on BSE declined by 3.7% and that of NSE increased by 6%, compared to same period last year. The figures talk for themselves. No denying that BSE has been slow to exploit its brand equity.

For example, BSE too has the certification process mentioned in the first paragraph, but NSE was more aggressive in promoting it. The results were obvious: The markets began to see the shift in the balance of power, with more and more people preferring the NSE platform for trade. “NSE was the first exchange to introduce electronic trading platform for equities and that is when the things really started to change. Till today NSE enjoys leadership in terms of the number of shares (volumes) being traded,” explains a stock broker.

However, the biggest branding initiative of them all was the transformation of the Bombay Stock Exchange from a trust to a company in August 2005, which was followed by an aggressive branding and advertising blitzkrieg by the new entity. “BSE’s new logo reflects the new, corporatised exchange that runs smoothly and efficiently,” says Kalyan Bose, Corporate Affairs, BSE. “The initials BSE, a major focus of the old brand identity, was retained as an ambigram to suggest seamlessness and efficiency,” adds Khalap who partnered BSE in this rebranding exercise. The sale of 10% stake to two global stock exchanges – Deutche Boerse and SGX have additionally improved BSE’s net worth significantly (at Rs.927 crore as on March 31, 2006).

Kisan Choksey, trustee of the erstwhile BSE, believes that the public knowledge of Sensex is much higher compared to other indices in the country now. “The market is becoming global. Eventually, the Sensex will be recognised as one of the prominent indices in the world,” he says. It is this recognition of Sensex that BSE is reiterating in its recent campaign: ‘The Index the world tracks’! Overall, BSE’s print ad campaign harps on the legacy that BSE enjoys in the capital market circle, reflecting the credibility and heritage of BSE,” says Kalyan Bose.

The ad campaigns and branding strategies unleashed by both exchanges, clearly reflects that the stakes are high and potentially unfathomable. The effort is to reach the masses efficiently and in a more personalized manner, as the question is not just to reach out to the existing investing community but to expand the overall pie. The next level of competition will emerge when BSE completes its plans of getting listed. Surely NSE will follow suit. Are the exchanges feeling the heat of competition? Frankly, we don’t know yet. But what we do know is that this one-upmanship saga will ultimately benefit all those who are keen on the Indian bourses! Yes?

Edit Bureau: Asif Ahmed

For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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