Zerodha's Nithin Kamath slams market holiday for Mumbai's municipal elections
What's the story
Zerodha co-founder Nithin Kamath has voiced strong criticism as Indian stock exchanges remain closed today for Mumbai's municipal elections. Kamath labeled the closure a sign of "poor planning" and a lack of appreciation for global market dynamics. He argued that shutting down national exchanges with international linkages for a local election hinders India's credibility, questioning how far the nation must go before global investors take its markets seriously.
Viewpoint
The Munger philosophy: Why the holiday exists
Drawing on the wisdom of late Charlie Munger, the vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, Kamath remarked, "Show me the incentive, and I will show you the outcome." He suggested that the market holiday persists simply because no key stakeholders have the incentive to oppose it. By prioritizing a local administrative event over the continuity of a multi-billion dollar financial system, Kamath believes decision-makers are ignoring the second-order effects that such disruptions have on long-term investor confidence and global integration.
Partial operation
NSE and BSE operations suspended
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) are observing a full trading holiday across all segments, including equity and derivatives. While the holiday was not in the original 2026 market calendar, it was added earlier this week after the Maharashtra government declared a public holiday for the BMC and other civic polls. Consequently, the weekly F&O expiry was moved to Wednesday, January 14, to ensure no active contracts remained. The Multi-Commodity Exchange will be partially operational today.