Stock brokers voice concern over SECP proposal

RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: The PSX Stock Brokers Association has expressed concern over the new brokers’ regime proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) with the comments that it would only facilitate big players in the stock market.

The PSX Stock Brokers Association has already written a letter to the SECP against the proposed move, saying that it may push the small and medium sized brokers out of business.

The association said that under the proposed regime, the category-1 brokers with trading only rights will have to approach the category-III brokers that have the trading and clearing rights for all settlements of their businesses and the category-III brokers will also have the custody of their shares for clearing. Ghulam Mujtaba Sakarwala, General Secretary of the association said that the new regime will only facilitate the big players and eventually “we will be forced to act like agents for them, because we all small players are totally dependent on them and our clients too will eventually shift to the brokers who are clearing their shares.”

He added that the similar conditions have been imposed on the category-II brokers, who are bound to implement the Listed Companies’ Code of Corporate Governance 2015, but it will make cost of doing business high for them, Sakarwala added.