e-KYC Push and Regulatory Reforms Discussed as DSEX Drops 107 Points

Trading on the capital market ended with a significant fall in indices on the first working day of the week, Sunday, 5 April. On the day, trading decreased on the country’s main stock exchange, the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), while it increased on the other market, the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE). The DSE index, DSEX, declined by 107 points. Amid such trading conditions, the sixth monthly coordination meeting of capital market stakeholders was held at the multipurpose hall of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) in Agargaon, Dhaka.

Chaired by BSEC Chairman Khandoker Rashed Maksud, the meeting discussed several issues, including taking planned initiatives to implement e-KYC in the capital market and ensuring the deployment of tamper-proof back-office software. The meeting was attended by BSEC Commissioners Md. Mohsin Chowdhury, Md. Ali Akbar, Farzana Lalarukh, and Md. Saifuddin, along with senior officials of the commission and top representatives from various institutions and organizations related to the stock market.

Senior officials from various capital market-related institutions also participated in the coordination meeting. Among them were Chairman of CCBL Major General (Retd.) Md. Wahid-uz-Zaman, President of the DSE Brokers Association of Bangladesh (DBA) Saiful Islam, Managing Director of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Nuzhat Anwar, and Managing Director of Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Md. Saifur Rahman Majumdar, among others.

In his address as the chief guest, the BSEC Chairman said, “A major part of the legal reforms of the stock market has been completed through three regulations—Margin Rules, 2025; Mutual Fund Rules, 2025; and Public Offer of Equity Securities Rules, 2025.” He also informed that new regulations related to corporate governance will be formulated soon.

Director and spokesperson of the commission, Md. Abul Kalam, said that open discussions were held at the meeting on various important issues related to the stock market. These included ongoing initiatives for market development, plans to upgrade the market from a frontier to an emerging market, implementation of e-KYC, launching of a commodity exchange, strengthening coordination among institutions, and initiatives to define specific criteria for listing public interest companies.

The discussions also covered ensuring institutional governance, registration and capacity enhancement of Central Counterparty Bangladesh Limited (CCBL), expansion of investor education, introduction and diversification of new products, prevention of market manipulation, support for affected investors through the Investor Protection Fund, and ensuring the accuracy of price-sensitive information.

In addition, emphasis was placed on resolving negative equity and unrealized losses, as well as strengthening investor confidence and protection.

DBTech/SA/EK/OR