Bangladeshi plans to launch commodities exchange in Myanmar

Wali-ul-Maroof Matin

A Bangladeshi capital market expert is about to set up a commodities exchange in Myanmar, a resource-rich Southeast Asian country that is opening itself up to international investors.
“It will take at least nine months to begin commercial operations of the commodities exchange in Myanmar,” said Wali-ul-Maroof Matin, who initiated the move to set up the exchange six months ago. The Myanmar commerce ministry has recently permitted him to complete his project.
A commodity exchange is a marketplace where various commodities and derivatives products are traded. Agricultural products and other raw materials such as wheat, barley, sugar, maize, cotton, cocoa, coffee, milk products, pork bellies, oil and metals are traded in most commodity markets across the world.
“Resources in Myanmar are extra-ordinary with a huge variety and quantity, such as rice, wheat, lentil and timber,” he said.
Myanmar is opening up. “The Myanmar government and the business bodies are excited about allowing new ventures in their country,” he said.
Matin is presently the managing director of Alliance Capital Asset Management, a local asset management company. He has years of experience in capital and commodities markets.
After initial talks with the Myanmar government, he incorporated a company -- Myanmar International Commodity Exchange -- in Myanmar to set up the commodities exchange.
Matin owns a 98 percent stake in the firm, while a Hong Kong-based investor owns 2 percent.
However, he will require a huge capital to set up the commodities exchange and he left Dhaka for Myanmar yesterday to share his project with prospective financiers and investors as well as the government.
Massive reforms from politics to private sector investment are changing the picture of Myanmar, according to international media reports.
The reforms include scrapping media censorship, legalising trade unions and protests, enacting a new foreign investment law and allowing more freedom for political activists and parties.
“Seeing the opportunity, I took the initiative individually six months ago,” said Matin, who has also been trying to set a commodities exchange in Bangladesh since early 2008.