The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will pursue investigations pertaining to insider dealing and other market disciplinary actions 'to the end', according to Channa de Silva, Director General SEC, who is back at work after his one year study-sabbatical at Harvard in the US.

"Autonomy will be given to the directors to pursue the relevant cases and we will further strengthen the SEC by capacity and institutional building efforts, (in order to take necessary action on the relevant investigations)," he told The Sunday Times FT on the sidelines of a SEC press conference on Wednesday.

He said the SEC is 'on course' with the capital market development initiatives. "We are aggressively pursuing derivatives and the report of the Indian capital market experts is due in two to three weeks," he said, adding that after submitting the report to the board, the SEC can put 'wheels on to it'. "In India derivatives account for 60 percent of the capital markets and the absence of a derivatives market here in Sri Lanka handicaps investors," he said.

He insisted that regardless of the sentiments (currently prevailing), the time is right to launch derivatives. "Amongst the derivatives, we will be focusing on 'futures' in industries such as banking and manufacturing," he added.

He said that initially SEC plans to have All Share Price Index (ASPI) related futures and subsequently roll out industry related indices. He also said that the SEC is reviewing the SEC Act to incorporate recent developments of the capital market and is working with the National Stock Exchange of India to set up an electronic surveillance system and improve market efficiency by reducing transaction costs.