By Gautam Chakravorthy, Bloomberg

Mumbai: Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc. and the Actis Group agreed to buy a combined 6% stake in National Stock Exchange of India Ltd, tapping the world’s second-fastest-growing major economy.

Morgan Stanley, the second-largest securities firm by market value, agreed to take a 3% stake, while Citigroup, the world’s biggest financial firm by market value, will buy 2%, the National Stock Exchange said in a notice posted on its Web site. Actis will buy 1%. The exchange did not disclose the sale price.

Industrial Development Bank of India Ltd sold a 2% stake, while State Bank of India and its investment and broking unit sold a combined 2% stake to the investors, the National Stock Exchange said. The remaining stake was sold by Corporation Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce.

India’s government allows overseas investors to own as much as 26% of an exchange under the foreign direct investment category. The limit for a single investor was set at 5% by the Securities & Exchange Board of India.

NYSE Group Inc. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in January led a group of investors that agreed to buy 20% of the National Stock Exchange. NYSE, operator of the world’s biggest stock exchange, agreed to pay $115 million (Rs510 crore) for a 5% stake.