The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) is introducing a new rule to fix the average pricing of shares for determining the opening price, aiming to prevent potential stock price manipulation by large investors.
Under the new rule, the opening price for the next trading day will be based on the weighted average price of shares during the final 15 minutes of the previous trading day. This regulation will take effect from Thursday.
The measure aligns with the fourth amendment to the Securities Transaction Bylaws 2025. With its implementation, NEPSE will calculate the weighted average price of a company’s shares based on trading activity between 2:45 and 3:00 pm each day, which will then be considered the final traded price. This price will serve as the opening price for the following trading session. If no shares of a listed company are traded on a particular day, the last traded price will continue to be used as the opening price.
Previously, NEPSE determined the opening price based solely on the last traded price at 3:00 pm. However, concerns arose that large investors were artificially inflating stock prices in the final minutes of trading to set a higher opening price for the next session.
“Taking advantage of the rule, a number of big investors have been found escalating share prices in the last minutes to maintain an exorbitant price for the next day’s trading,” said a NEPSE official. “This new rule is expected to bring transparency and fairness to the stock market, potentially increasing investor confidence.”
