Bangladesh, India sign deal on stockmarket

Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday signed a deal with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to deepen bilateral cooperation for capital market development.

BSEC Chairman M Khairul Hossain and SEBI Chairman UK Sinha signed the memorandum of understanding at Gono Bhaban in Dhaka, in the presence of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Under the deal, the two regulators will exchange experiences and views, especially for the development of Bangladesh's capital market. This is the first time the Bangladesh stockmarket regulator signed a deal with another securities regulator.

However, the details of the deal will be disclosed later, as the two regulators were still fine-tuning some issues last night.

A meeting will also be held between the SEBI officials and stakeholders of the Bangladesh capital market at Radisson Hotel in Dhaka today.

Earlier in 2013, the BSEC signed a multilateral deal with the International Organisation of Securities Commissions, the association of national securities regulatory agencies; it opened the door to BSEC to access international cooperation on securities markets worldwide.

Hasina said the government will continue to provide necessary support for capital market development as it can help collect the required capital to build industrial units and infrastructure, according to news agency UNB.

“To achieve sustainable development goals, huge investment is necessary. A bold, accountable and effective capital market plays an important role in collecting required capital for building industries and infrastructure. I hope the BSEC will remain vigil and take farsighted steps in this regard,” she said.

Hasina hoped that the deal signed between the two regulators will help the economies of both countries.

To build a transparent, accountable, skilled, stable and strong capital market in the country, Hasina said her government has been implementing a number of programmes, including strengthening the BSEC through enactment of laws, undertaking programmes to protect investors' interests and ensure good governance.

The steps include introduction of a tribunal for capital market cases, introduction of improved digital process for detecting irregularities in share transactions, management of share-related activities and enactment of a financial reporting law, Hasina said.

 “I think an opportunity will be created to strengthen our capital market by utilising the experiences of the Securities and Exchange Board of India through the signing of this MoU. I would like to request the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission to introduce a financial literacy programme for creating awareness among investors.”