Banking News – Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Capital, Arpan Khanal, has stated that merchant banks cannot play an effective role in the capital market until a system of proper price discovery is established.

Speaking at the first session “Product, Policy and Regulation: The Future of Nepal’s Capital Market” of the Nepal Capital Market Discourse 2026, organized by Banking Samachar with NASA Securities as the main sponsor, Khanal stated that a proper relationship should be established between a company’s actual capacity and its market price.

Citing the example of Bhatbhateni, which has numerous outlets and transacts approximately Rs 35 arab annually, he stated that the market itself should determine a company’s true valuation. Stating that when urging to sell shares at a certain price, the company may not accept it, he expressed the view that price determination should be based on market demand and supply.

Khanal noted that there are companies in the market that cause losses to investors, and emphasized the need to eliminate weaknesses and loopholes in regulation. “The merchant bank proposes, the market gives its price. The price determined by the market should be final,” he said. Stating that as long as regulatory weaknesses remain, there will be a possibility of their exploitation, Khanal emphasized that the regulator must make effective reforms to address the existing problems in the market.