On July 08, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued review of advance intimation timelines for modifications in the contract specifications of commodity derivatives contracts.
SEBI has specified the procedure for carrying out modifications in the contract specifications of commodity derivatives contracts vide circular no. SEBI/HO/CDMRD/CIR/P/2019/135 dated November 14, 2019. Based on their materiality, the contract modifications are categorized into Category A, Category B and Category C. As per the aforesaid circular, the permission to modify contract specifications is subject to the condition that before introduction of any modification, the Stock Exchanges shall inform SEBI and market participants along with reasons for the modifications. The advance intimation timelines mentioned in the aforesaid circular are 10 days for Category A and 30 days for Category B and Category C contract modifications.
In order to bring in uniformity while giving effect to the contract modifications so that they have the desired impact and the modified contract represents a healthy replica of the physical market, it has been decided, in consultation with the Stock Exchanges, to reduce the number of days of advance intimation for all the three categories i.e. Category A, Category B and Category C, to 10 days.