NSE's CFO Yatrik Vin and BSE head Ashish Chauhan may have to fight it out for corner office of scam-hit bourse

All eyes are on an important development at the scam-hit National Stock Exchange (NSE) – that is, the appointment of the next managing director and CEO who will take over from current MD Vikram Limaye.

Sources told CNBC-TV18 that the board had shortlisted two names as frontrunners – the first one is Ashish Chauhan, current MD and CEO of BSE, and the second name is Yatrik Vin, the current CFO at NSE. The NSE board invited applications on March 4 and the last date was March 25.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on February 11, passed an order imposing a penalty of Rs 3 crore on NSE's former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Chitra Ramakrishna for sharing internal confidential information of the exchange with an unknown person, besides irregularities in the appointment of a senior official Anand Subramanian, for which NSE and the senior management, too, were responsible. The investigation by various agencies is ongoing in the case.

Limaye was appointed the NSE chief in July 2017 following the exit of Chitra Ramkrishna amid the probe into the co-location scam. He had communicated to the NSE board that he would not like to be considered for the second term amid the scam hitting the bourse. Limay's tenure ends on July 16, 2022.

"I have done my best to lead the organisation in a very difficult period and to stabilise, strengthen and transform NSE. We have come a long way in terms of controls, governance, technology, regulatory effectiveness and business growth. I am grateful to all stakeholders, regulators and government for the support extended to me,” Limaye had said after refusing another term.

As for Chauhan, he served as the MD and CEO of BSE for 10 years and will complete his term in November this year. SEBI regulations do not allow Chauhan to take another term at BSE, and, hence, a move for the top job at NSE makes sense.

If selected, it would be Chauhan’s second stint at NSE. He was one of the founders of the NSE, where he worked between 1992 and 2000.

The NSE reported strong fourth-quarter earnings. Fourth-quarter profit after tax (PAT) came in at about Rs 1,580 crore. FY22 PAT number has seen a growth of about 45 percent coming in at about Rs 5,198 crore compared to Rs 3,573 crore. The full-year earnings per share (EPS) stands at Rs 105 versus Rs 72 on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, and a dividend of Rs 42 per share compared to Rs 24.75 per share has been declared by NSE.