Stock market stakeholders have welcomed the establishment of an alternative trading board as an important addition to the securities market and urged to develop the market to accommodate different investment vehicles for both the investors and issuers.
They also discussed about creating regulatory policies to facilitate trades for the ATB listed companies, bonds, open-end mutual funds, private equity and venture capital funds.
They were speaking in an online session titled "Functioning and Prospect of Alternative Trading Board (ATB)", jointly arranged by Bangladesh Academy for Securities Market (BASM), Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) and Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Training Academy on Monday.
The online training program was joined by representatives from the securities regulator, Dhaka Stock Exchange and Chittagong Stock Exchange, Central Depository Bangladesh Limited (CDBL), Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (VCPEAB) and DSE Brokers Association of Bangladesh (DBA).
The event was moderated by BSEC Director Mohammad Rezaul Karim.
M. Shaifur Rahman Mazumdar, FCA, FCMA, Chief Operating Officer, DSE presented the keynote presentation, focusing on the prospect of ATB.
He said "Once the operation of the ATB starts, new investors will join the market because it will create opportunities of listing of non-listed companies, any kind of bonds, debenture, sukuk, open-end mutual funds and alternative investment funds."
Md. Mahbubul Alam, Executive Director, BSEC and DG, BASM emphasized on marketing the ATB to create public awareness to attract investments.
"ATB will create opportunities for institutions to make investments in non-listed companies and other alternative investment vehicles like private equity and venture capital funds. The relevant stakeholders must leverage this opportunity," he added.
Shameem Ahsan, President, VCPEAB and General Partner, Pegasus Tech Ventures, said, "We need to make transparent policies and guidelines to better leverage the benefits of these new investment opportunities created through ATB. We think this initiative will mark the start of a journey to include more people in investment environment."
Shameem underscored the importance of nurturing startup companies, SMEs and utilizing alternative investment funds like PE and VC funds to create many companies that can join the stock exchange in future and contribute to a significant portion of our GDP.
Mohammad Rezaul Karim, Director, BSEC stated that it is high time a board like ATB is created to develop the capital market."Compliance must be ensured in the ATB to create confidence among the investors," he added.
President of DSE Brokers Association of Bangladesh (DBA) Sharif Anwar Hossain remarked that the securities market has much room for growth and ATB will facilitate fund allocation. Hesaid, "ATB will help boost the securities market and increase allocation of funds to many local companies."
"Many small companies cannot raise funds due to lack of scale. ATB will alleviate this issue and create opportunities for many unlisted companies," said Shuvra Kanti Choudhury, FCA, Managing Director & CEO, CDBL.
