Cambodia approves 15 securities firms for new bourse

November 2, 2010
Reuters

PHNOM PENH - Cambodia has granted licences to 15 securities firms to operate on its stock market, which is due to open next year, the country's securities and exchange commission said on Tuesday.

Fifteen of 22 applicants were given the green light to operate on the new bourse, the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX). There were seven underwriters, four brokers, two investment advisers and two dealers.

'This clearly reflects the strong willingness of the government to put the securities market into operation,' Finance Minister Keat Chhon, who is also chairman of the commission, said during a ceremony to award the licences.

Most of the 15 are either partly or wholly owned by Malaysian, Vietnamese, Japanese, South Korean or US companies.

They include South Korea's Tong Yang Securities, Malaysia's OSK Indochina Securities and Campubank Securities, Vietnamese-owned Cambodia Vietnam Securities and Sacombank Securities and Japan's SBI Phnom Penh Securities.

The two firms granted licenses as investment advisers are Angkor VDS Securities and Angkor Capital Advisors, both of which are subsidiaries of US-owned Angkor Capital Bank.

The idea of a Cambodian stock market has been around since the 1990s but it failed to materialise because of political uncertainty and economic stagnation in one of Asia's poorest countries.

There have also been concerns that Cambodia is trying to move too fast, and that inexperienced local investors could face big risks in a country blighted by corruption and mismanagement.

The launch of the US$6 million bourse, which is being built by a South Korean developer, has twice been delayed but the Finance Ministry says it will begin trading by July 2011 'at all costs'.

However, Nguon Meng Tech, director-general of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce, warned against launching too soon.

'I think there will be no listed firms because of a lack of public confidence and knowledge among local investors,' he said. 'In my opinion, I think it should take another three years at least to launch a stock market in Cambodia.'

According to The Securities Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC), firms seeking to operate as securities underwriters must have US$9.45 million in capital, dealers require US$5.9 million and brokers US$1.41 million.

The Finance Ministry has given priority to state companies for listings, and has asked Telecom Cambodia, port operator Sihanoukville Autonomous Port and the Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority to list shares.