Stress on move to attract more foreign investment in stocks

The government should take initiative to attract more foreign investment alongside encouraging institutional investment in order to achieve long-tern stability on the share market.

Al-Maruf Khan, President of the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) made the observation while talking to reporters in Chittagong Wednesday, according to a message received in Dhaka on Friday.

He returned from Egypt recently after attending a meeting of the South Asian Federation of Exchange (SAFE).

The CSE chief said it is possible to attract more foreign investment if the government formulates a policy in this regard. Institutional investment is not enough to stabilise the share market, he added.

“It is possible to attract foreign investors through formulating a convenient policy,” the CSE president hoped.

Citing the importance of foreign investment, he said, India and China have attracted foreign investments worth $16 billion and $36 billion respectively through formulating a government policy.

In Europe, total amount of Pension Fund are being invested in the stock market. But in Bangladesh, the scenario is not the same, said CSE president adding, “Our stock market is mostly dependent on some institutional investors.”

He also said the CSE authority has already sent a proposal to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for formulating a policy on attracting foreign investment. The SEC is vetting the proposal, he added.

About SAFE conference, he said, formulation of a law on international standard financial report among the member countries of SAFE was discussed at the meeting.

A plan in this regard was undertaken with the financial help of USAID. Listed companies of the member states can easily get information after enactment of such a law, he told reporters.

Moreover, a plan has already been taken for initiating SAFE Index at the stock market of the member states.

The meeting discussed the ways on initiating Electronic Fund Transfer for raising liquidity flow in the market.