BSEC Prioritises Digital Reforms to Remove Capital Market Bottlenecks

Efforts to swiftly address existing and identified obstacles in Bangladesh’s capital market are now focusing on enhancing API connectivity among listed companies, collecting customer information through e-KYC, and enabling online BO account opening. Discussions have also covered the launch of a commodity exchange, listing of state-owned and multinational companies on the capital market, as well as the development of the merger and acquisition (M&A) and mutual fund sectors.

These issues were discussed at the fifth monthly coordination meeting between the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) and capital market stakeholders, held on Sunday, 18 January, at the BSEC multipurpose hall in Agargaon, Dhaka.

The meeting was attended as chief guest by Dr Anisuzzaman Chowdhury, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser, who directed that existing and identified barriers in the capital market be resolved without delay. He emphasised the need for all concerned parties to work in a coordinated manner, guided by a clear long-term vision and well-defined objectives, to ensure sustainable capital market development.

As Chair of the committee formed by the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance to strengthen the BSEC and develop the capital market, Dr Chowdhury said that all stakeholders must work together to resolve the identified challenges. He noted that the core objective of organising such coordination meetings is to ensure collective decision-making and effective implementation, expressing satisfaction at the establishment of this collaborative mechanism.

In his remarks as chair of the meeting, BSEC Chairman Khondoker Rashed Maqsood said that the introduction of three new regulations marks significant progress in the legal reform of the capital market. He highlighted that initial public offerings (IPOs) are at the heart of the capital market and expressed optimism that the new regulations would further accelerate IPO activities. He urged market participants to actively capitalise on this opportunity.

The meeting was attended by BSEC Commissioners Md Mohsin Chowdhury, Md Ali Akbar, Farzana Lalarukh, and Md Saifuddin, along with senior representatives from the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE), CDBL, CCBL, the Merchant Bankers Association, and other capital market-related institutions and organisations.

DBTech/JNS/EK/OR