Demutualisation schemes get final nod, board size set at 13
The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday gave its final approval to the demutualisation schemes of the Dhaka and Chittagong stock exchanges, setting the board size at 13.
Once the demutualisation process is completed, both the bourses will
turn into profit-oriented companies from non-profit entities, separating their management from ownership.
According to the demutualisation schemes approved by the BSEC, the bourses have to dissolve their present boards within the first week of November after getting registered with the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms and the bourses have to form interim boards.
The capital market regulator gave its final consent to the bourses’ demutualisation schemes at a commission meeting presided over by its chairman M Khairul Hossian, a BSEC news release said.
The release said all the BSEC commissioners attended the meeting.
After the demutualisation member-brokers of the bourses will turn into shareholders of the stock exchanges.
Member-brokers of the Dhaka Stock Exchange will get 72.10 lakh shares each and those of the Chittagong Stock Exchange 42.50 lakh shares each at Tk 10 each share.
The BSEC also approved the paid-up capitals of the Dhaka bourse at Tk 1,803 crore and the Chittagong bourse at Tk 634 crore.
The BSEC release said, ‘The demutualisation will enhance transparency in the bourses’ functions.’
The commission rejected the stock exchanges’ proposal of raising the number of member-brokers in the demutualised boards as it kept only five posts for the shareholders [member-brokers] in the boards of the bourses.
The commission also kept one post for the strategic partner, seven posts for the independent directors and one for the chief executive officer with voting power.
The BSEC release also said that the post for the strategic investors would remain vacant if no representative from such investors is found.
The DSE in the final hearing on Wednesday proposed a 15-member board — six posts for shareholders, eight posts for the independent directors and rest one for the chief executive officer.
The CSE on Tuesday proposed a 16-member board — seven posts for the member-brokers [shareholders], one post for strategic partner, eight posts for the independent directors and one post for the CEO.
Earlier on July 29, the DSE and the CSE in their respective schemes of demutualistion submitted to the BSEC proposed 19-member boards with nine member-brokers and 10 independent directors and they proposed one-year term for the independent directors.
As per the demutualisation schemes, the bourse have to select four shareholders who represent in the interim board to be selected in an extraordinary general meeting to be held before the demutualisation in November.
The bourses will form new boards in February next year after holding their annual general meetings.
The regulator on Thursday decided that the DSE and the CSE would follow the book-building method for their initial public offerings which they have to arrange within three years after the demutualisation.
-With New Age input
