Sucheta Dalal :BSE Gets Galileo Global Advisors On Board
Sucheta Dalal

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BSE Gets Galileo Global Advisors On Board  

May 20, 2009

By Sucheta Dalal

 
The Stock Exchange, Mumbai’s new CEO Madhu Kannan has brought in the high profile, New York based boutique advisory firm, Galileo Global Advisors to help him meet the challenge of turning around the bourse help it regain its status as India’s top bourse.
Galelio is headed by two of Kannan’s bosses at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) -- Georges Ugeux who is Chairman and CEO of Galileo and Jim Saphiro who is its Senior Managing Director.
 
According to a profile at www.prleap.com, Galileo Global Advisors provides independent advice on global business strategies, capital market access and investment banking to its international roster of clients. The firm serves as a trusted advisor to many of the top business and government leaders around the globe especially those companies doing business in India, China and Europe. Galileo Global Advisors maintains an extensive global professional network, allowing the team is tap into the highest levels of global companies, governments, private equity firms, banks and regulatory agencies on behalf of its clients. While the BSE confirmed the appointment of Galileo, we have no details on the scope of its work or the cost of getting advice from a high profile global firm.
 
Georges Ugeux and Jim Saphiro have both been regular speakers at international capital market seminars held in India. Georges Ugeux, a lawyer and economist has been a former EVP at the NYSE where he headed the international business. The firm has worked extensively with the Tata Group as well as other Indian companies in raising funds abroad.
Jim Saphiro, a one-time lecturer, has set up the international department at the NYSE and, according to his profile, “has built upon his extensive network in Asia to generate cross-border advisory, M&A and capital raising assignments.”  He is also the CEO of Galileo Global Securities, the FINRA-registered broker-dealer subsidiary of Galileo Global Advisors.
 
Madhu Kannan, who used to be Vice President of the NYSE (until a brief move to Merrill Lynch) clearly hopes to bring the BSE, India’s oldest bourse, back in the race for trading turnover, especially at a time when its turnover is dwindling and the aggressive Financial Technologies group is waiting for permission to entire equity trading. Also the BSE’s derivatives segment is defunct and its foray into the currency derivatives market with a separate bourse has been embarrassingly short lived.
 
Although Kannan has refrained from speaking to the media as yet, the grapevine suggests that he hopes to succeed by building a network of supporters and co-opting competitors. Sources say that he has tried to rope in several of those who were in the race for the BSE top job, to join his senior management team. He has apparently spoken to Ashish Chauhan (who was one of the original team that set up the NSE) as well as Sayee Srinivasan, the India representative of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. It is not clear if either of them have evinced interest in joining the BSE.

-- Sucheta Dalal