President Pranab Mukherjee has given assent to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Amendment) Bill 2013. The Bill was passed by the parliament in the recently concluded Budget Session. The Bill extends the eligibility criteria for the role of presiding Officer of the Securities Appellate Tribunal, SAT. The post of SAT presiding officer had been vacant for some time and the government tried to find a judge as per the qualifications but was not successful.

Since suitable candidates could not be immediately found, SEBI Act was amended by an ordinance to include sitting or retired High Court judges with at least seven years' experience as one of the qualifications for the post.