Co-location case: CBI team visits NSE to collect documents on OPG

A team of the Central Bureau of Investigation visited the National Stock Exchange on Thursday and Friday to collect documents related to OPG Securities, one the prime accused in the NSE co-location case.

Multiple sources told Moneycontrol that CBI officials collected crucial documents, including accounting-related documents, on OPG Securities. “They also took statements of related officials who have not been named in the FIR," one of the sources said.

The source, however, clarified that this was neither a search nor a raid on NSE.

The CBI has named officials of NSE, SEBI, economist Ajay Shah besides OPG Securities and its owner Sanjay Gupta in the co-location case, Moneycontrol has previously reported.

The case has now become the subject of a multi-pronged investigation by several authorities, including the Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax department.

The NSE’s co-location facility involves providing brokers access to a server inside the exchange systems for a cost. Greater access means brokers can execute trades faster.

The accused in the case are being probed for rigging the system in order to provide preferential access to some brokers by giving them access to the backup servers in the co-location facility as well.

With the illegal speed advantage, the brokers under suspicion allegedly carried out high-frequency trades for four years between 2010 and 2014, enriching themselves and their clients to the tune of thousands of crore.

Another source close to the development told Moneycontrol that NSE and SEBI officials will be called for questioning. The CBI has completed one round of questioning with Sanjay Gupta, Ajay Shah and Aman, who is the brother-in-law of Sanjay Gupta, they added.