BSE Quiz: How Well Do You Know Sensex?

The Bombay Stock Exchange is one of the oldest stock exchanges in Asia. It was established in the second half of the 19th century by a group of stockbrokers who initially gathered under a banyan tree in Mumbai. Over the decades, it grew into a fully regulated national exchange and today lists thousands of companies across various sectors.

The Bombay Stock Exchange is situated on one of the most recognised streets in Indian financial history. This street in South Mumbai has long been synonymous with the country's capital markets and is home to brokers, financial institutions and trading firms that have shaped the Indian economy for well over a century.

Stock exchanges in India operate under the supervision of a statutory body established by the Indian government to protect investor interests and regulate the securities market. This body was set up in the late 1980s and gained statutory powers through legislation in 1992, giving it authority over exchanges, brokers and listed companies across the country.

The BSE took a significant step in widening market access by launching a platform for small and medium enterprises. It was designed to help smaller businesses raise funds from public markets without the full burden of main board listing requirements, offering an alternative route to capital for companies not yet eligible for the primary exchange.

The BSE maintains several indices to represent different segments of the market. One of its broader indices captures the performance of the top 100 companies listed on the exchange, ranked by their free-float market capitalisation. It serves as a wider market gauge compared to the SENSEX and is used by fund managers for benchmarking purposes.