Forty-two stockbrokers have started providing services from different locations outside the Kathmandu valley.  

The stockbrokers have opened the remote work stations (RWS) in 18 different cities to provide easy access to the stock transactions. 

According to the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse), 33 stockbrokers have opened the RWS over the past month. Earlier, only nine out of 50 registered stock brokering companies had been providing such services to the investors. 

Murahari Parajuli, assistant spokesperson for Nepse, said 42 stockbrokers had already started operation through their RWS. 

According to him, a number of brokering companies have opened the RWS at their branch offices, while others have appointed local partners to operate their new outlets. 

Earlier, such services were limited in the cities such as Biratnagar, Pokhara, Dharan, Birgunj and Narayanghat.  

Most of the recently opened RWS are based in towns like Banepa, Baglung, Birtamode, Butwal, Damak, Hetauda, Itahari, Mahendranagar and Nepalgunj.

With four such stations, Pokhara now has the largest number of brokering outlets after Kathmandu Valley. Birgunj, Hetauda, Narayanghat, Butwal and Nepalgunj each have two stations. 

Parajuli said most of the new outlets are located close to the East-west Highway. Although two RWSs were supposed to be opened in the Hill districts, including Baglung and Besisahar of Lamjung, only investors in Baglung have started receiving the service. 

Nepse had issued a circular asking the stockbrokers to come up with their work plan to operate the RWS by April 28. However, eight out of 41 applicants failed to submit their work plan at Nepse. “Those stockbrokers have been asking for the extension of deadline saying they are in the process of developing infrastructure as prescribed by Nepse,” Parajuli said. 

As per the Nepse regulations, brokering companies need to have adequate office space, advanced technology and necessary manpower to operate the RWS. 

The latest addition of the RWS has encouraged stockbrokers. Narendra Raj Sijapati, past president of the Stockbrokers’ Association Nepal, said many new investors have started share transactions through the outlets outside the Valley. 

However, investors have been facing problem in transaction due to poor accessibility to open Demat account, he said. “As all stockbrokers have not received licence to open the Demat account, many investors have been deprived from benefitting through newly-opened RWS,” said Sijapati, adding that the small number of merchant bankers who are authorised to open Demat have also failed to expand their branches in adequate number in the district outside the Valley.