NSE will create the exchange with the India Bullion and Jewelers Association, which represents industry members in the world’s second largest consumer of the precious metal.

The new exchange will be overseen by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the country’s market regulator, he added.

“This exchange will bring efficiency and transparency in bullion price discovery,” NSE Managing Director and CEO Vikram Limaye said in a statement.

NSE did not say when the exchange, where jewelers, retailers, refiners and banks will be able to trade on a regulated platform, will start operating.

China, the largest consumer of gold, operates a similar exchange, where all domestic production and imported gold must be bought and sold.

India’s central bank currently allows some domestic banks to import gold, which is then bought by bullion dealers and sold to jewelers before being sold to individuals.

India’s gold demand in 2021 stood at 797.3 tonnes, worth around $46.1 billion, according to the World Gold Council.