New Delhi: Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) will soon be permitted to trade in currency futures, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) whole-time member T.C. Nair said.

"The SEBI would shortly permit FIIs to trade in currency futures once the market gets stabilised and matured," Nair told reporters on the sidelines of a business event organised by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).

Earlier, the Bombay Stock Exchange announced that it received SEBI's approval for setting up an exchange traded currency derivatives segment.

This was in accordance with the recommendations laid down in the report of the RBI-SEBI Standing Technical Committee on Exchange Traded Currency Futures, released by the Reserve Bank of India and SEBI May 29 this year. The National Stock Exchange has launched currency futures Aug 29.

Nair, however, did not make any firm remark on accepting a proposal mooted by the Assocham for separately registering hedge funds with SEBI on lines of FIIs.

The market regulator does not make any distinction between FIIs and hedge funds.