September 7, Kathmandu.
Birendraraj Pande, President of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), has stated that Nepal’s capital market should be developed as the main financial engine of economic development.
Addressing the ‘Nepal Capital Market Discourse-2026’, organized by Banking Samachar Dotcom and primarily sponsored by NASA Securities, Chairman Pande stated that the capital market should not merely be a means of share trading, but should be developed as a means to mobilize long-term capital in industries, infrastructure, energy, agriculture, and other productive sectors.
He said, ‘The real purpose of the capital market is to convert savings into productive investments. Today, millions of Nepali citizens are saving from their income.
The capital market should become a means to mobilize those scattered savings as long-term capital in industries, infrastructure, energy, agriculture, and other productive sectors. In that sense, the capital market is not just a financial market, but also a financial infrastructure for Nepal’s industrialization and economic transformation.’
He emphasized the need to develop the capital market as a financial infrastructure for Nepal’s industrialization and economic transformation.
Stating that Nepal has long relied on economic growth based on remittances, consumption, and imports, Pande said that it is now necessary to move towards economic growth based on investment, production, productivity, innovation, and exports.
‘Now it is necessary to make industrial expansion, infrastructure development, commercialization and modernization of agriculture, expansion of tourism, and information technology and digital economy the engines of new economic growth,’ he said.
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According to Pande, long-term and large-scale capital is also necessary to create a large number of jobs in the country. He stated that although the banking system is an important foundation for Nepal’s economic development, banking loans alone cannot meet all the financial needs of infrastructure, industries, and long-term projects.
Therefore, he argues that along with the banking system, the capital market should be developed as another major financial engine of economic development. Pande stated that a broad, diversified, reliable, and long-term capital market is necessary to achieve the CNI’s goals of a US$100 billion economy and double-digit economic growth.
Pande said that the expansion of Nepal’s capital market in recent years should be taken positively. According to him, there are currently more than 7.5 million Demat accounts and more than 6.5 million ‘Mero Share’ users in Nepal.
He said, ‘The progress we have achieved is also remarkable. In this regard, we should view positively the expansion of Nepal’s capital market in recent years. Even today, having more than 7.5 million Demat accounts and over 6.5 million Mero Share users is a significant change in itself. Compared to a decade ago, this is a major achievement.’
Noting that the total market capitalization of Nepal’s stock market has reached approximately 66 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), he stated that the capital market is no longer a limited part of the economy but has become an important component. However, he also said that market expansion should not be evaluated solely on the basis of the NEPSE index’s growth.
He said, ‘Similarly, the total market capitalization of Nepal’s stock market has reached approximately 66 percent of the GDP so far. This shows that the capital market is no longer a marginal part of Nepal’s economy; it has become an important component of the economy itself.’
Emphasizing that the expansion of the capital market must impact the real economy, he stated that if the capital market grows but its effect is not seen in production, employment, and investment, development will remain incomplete.
For more: CNI President Birendra Raj Pande Urges Capital Market Overhaul
