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In this series, we cover all companies/startups that are offering alternative investments on their platform. We cover their corporate structure, products they offer, etc.
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SMEST Capital Private Limited, founded in 2018, is a SEBI-registered Online Bond Platform Provider (OBPP) in India, focusing on the distribution of bonds.
The OBPP was founded by Harsh Punjabee, who serves as the CEO too, and is also a member of the OBPP Association of India, which promotes transparency and investor protection in the bond market.
SMEST's business model involves buying bonds at a lower price and selling them at a higher price, offering over 200 bond deals and bond IPOs on its platform.
The platform is praise worthy for its SEBI regulation, zero defaults, extensive bond inventory, and a yield calculator tool, enhancing investor confidence and decision-making.
Back in 2018, when just a handful of OBPPs had emerged in India’s growing bond industry, one of the country’s oldest bond platforms was born - SMEST Capital Private Limited. This was even before SEBI came up with the OBPP regulations that began coming up 2022 onwards.
So today, in this latest blog in our ‘Company Profile’ series, we bring to you the journey, corporate structure, business model, etc of this SEBI-regulated OBPP, and also share what we like and dislike about it, which will help you understand SMEST’s platform in detail.
Founded in July 2018, SMEST is a SEBI licensed OBPP, and also registered with the BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange). It had obtained SEBI’s OBPP license under BSE in September 2023.
SMEST was founded by Harsh Punjabee, who is also it’s CEO. Harsh is an entrepreneur and investor in a number of early stage and second stage ventures across the UK, UAE and India across a portfolio of companies. He is also a member of the OBPP Association of India, which collectively represents platforms that facilitate the online buying and selling of bonds. The association aims to promote transparency, advocate for regulatory policies and enhance investor protection so that India’s bond market can grow and penetrate further. It was established last year (in May 2024).
Coming back to SMEST, as per MCA data, the OBPP has 2 Directors on paper, founder Harsh Punjabee, and his father Chandru Punjabee.
Harsh is the founder and CEO of SMEST since 2017. Before starting the OBPP, he had primarily worked in film, media, infrastructure, real estate and health industry in the past two decades. He also plays the role of being the youngest Director on board at 7Seven investments, which is a joint venture with the Ruling Family of Dubai and CP Group Enterprise.
As per his LinkedIn profile as well as MCA data, Harsh still holds the position of Director at Dipti Films & TeleFilms Pvt. Ltd., where he started his career.
Chandru Punjabee
Besides Harsh, the other Director in SMEST is his father Chandru Punjabee. He is an industrialist and film producer, who holds the position of Director in some real estate firms, as indicated in MCA data (accessed on 18 March 2025).
Just like most SEBI-registered OBPPs in India, the business model of SMEST revolves around being a distributor of bonds and earning a spread i.e. they buy at a lower price and sell at a higher price. With its primary focus being on bonds, SMEST has been offering over 200 bond deals on its platforms, besides the investment option of Bonds IPO as well.
In the current financial year, SMEST has also participated in primary deals with several large NBFCs. For example, they completed a primary transaction with Muthoot Capital for INR 75 Crores, with Akara for about INR 50 Crores, with Keertana for about INR 50 Crores, and many more.
We have also noticed that SMEST is extremely competitive in the pricing it gives on several bonds in comparison to other bond platforms.
While its true that debt instruments in nature are less riskier than equity investments, but this highly depends on which kind of bond you have purchased. Now, with so many options available in the fixed income market, such as NCD, MLD, Unlisted Corporate Debt, Govt Bond, etc, it can get very confusing on which option works best for you. But one thing which is always very helpful to know is the rating of the bond.
SEBI Regulated - Being under SEBI’s regulations minimizes the chances of fraud or mis-selling through SMEST’s platform. Also, SMEST does not offer unlisted corporate bonds, thus focusing only on listed ones, since they fall under SEBI regulations.
0% Defaults till date-Despite being in the industry for nearly seven years, SMEST is yet to face any default, which is impressive, and indicates that the platform’s risk assessment and due diligence process has so far been strong.
Extensive inventory of over 200+ bond deals- Thanks to the platform’s primary focus on bonds, SMEST has been able to offer a wide range of over 200+ bond deals on its platform.
Yield calculator tool- The presence of a yield calculator tool can be a helpful feature of investors using SMEST’s platform, to get a fair idea about expected returns.
Lack of diversity in asset options-While its true that SMEST has been offering a wide range of bonds, currently showing over 200 deals on its platform, the OBPP does not have diverse types of fixed income options available for investors to choose from, such as FDs, SDIs, MLDs, etc.
In conclusion, it’s fair to say that SMEST is among the significant players in India's bond market, particularly as a SEBI-regulated OBPP. SMEST has demonstrated impressive performance with zero defaults and a robust inventory of over 200 bond deals. The platform's focus on listed bonds under SEBI regulations enhances investor confidence by minimizing risks of fraud or mis-selling.
However, the lack of diversity in other fixed income asset options could be a limitation for investors seeking a broader range of fixed-income products. Overall, SMEST's commitment to transparency and investor protection, along with its innovative tools like the yield calculator, make it a noteworthy option for retail investors exploring the debt market. As always, investors should conduct their own research and consider their financial goals before making investment decisions
Please note that this is an opinion blog and not an official research or investment advice. This blog aims to help retail investors make an informed decision in the debt market, and neither encourages nor discourages you from investing in any particular bond or any other asset class.
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