REVIEW: Glimpses of Indian Stock Markets

Review
Glimpses of Indian Stock Markets
M R Mayya
Indian Institute of Capital Markets
Rs 500
Pp 357

Reviews
A champion of the small investor Business Standard
Hardly any one who has been a long-term “insider” of the capital market has penned down his insights either in an autobiography or in third person. The market continues to be devoid of the inside information about the major developments that took place in the last few decades, besides, of course, the trivia that makes for interesting learning. This presumably could be because there are many dark sides of each episode that cannot be told to the public at large, as it would also implicate several renowned personalities.

The title of the recent book of Mr Mayya (or Mayyasaheb as he is now fondly and respectfully called by most) instantly raised my hopes of getting to know from an insider and a front-seat driver — non-biased, high-integrity, non-market player at that — the real story of the capital market in all its facets over the last 30 years. He does briefly mention the brokers’ meddling in the administration of the exchanges but does not elaborate. Very disconcertingly, he also confirms two of my major beliefs: frequent manipulation of share prices and insider-trading, but withholds the details. My hopes were probably misplaced. I can only wish that he would author another book which tells it all.

From a different perspective, the book, however, is rich in many ways. It is a compilation of 89 out of his 250 published articles over the last 20 years, which emphatically bring forth the scores of issues that have confronted the markets at various points of time, and the solutions that he has offered with ease for each of these. More significantly, many ills of the market still continue and as such the book is a good source for ideas for the growth and orderly development of the market.