The World Economic Forum has improved the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan’s ranking by five points in the Financial Development Index of 2012, launched on October 31.

A statement issued by the Commission here Thursday said that the SECP secured 37^th position out of 62 securities regulators globally, whereas China ranked at 38 in the category of regulation of securities and exchanges.

The improvement in the Index is achieved in the background of various structural and organizational reforms introduced in the SECP by current management, it added.

The SECP’s recent initiatives include demutualization of stock exchanges, the capital market investor education and awareness programme, implementation of the concept of e-IPO, launch of new Takaful rules and introduction of standard operating procedures in the form of five manuals. It further said that these manuals are covering all aspects of enforcement functions of the SECP.

The SECP has also introduced new future contracts at the Pakistan Mercantile Exchange Limited in sugar, wheat, crude oil, silver and gold that aimed to fulfill the hedging requirements of various groups of investors in the newly developed commodities market.

The Corporate Law Review Commission was also revived and a reform committee was constituted to furnish recommendations for the promotion and growth of a sustainable non-banking financial sector.

In addition, the Code of Corporate Governance 2012 has also been introduced revising the existing requirements and making it more in line with international best practices.

Moreover, the capital market investor education and awareness programme was launched in July 2012. It is aimed at making people aware of various financial products and understanding their rights and responsibilities to enable them to make informed investment decision.

The revised Code of Corporate Governance was launched in April 2012. And a similar code for the state-owned enterprises is being finalized. In May 2012, the Chairman SECP Muhammad Ali was elected to the executive board of the International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO). Set up in 1983, the IOSCO is a Madrid-headquartered organization with 182 members.

The World Economic Forum Report finds, as economies develop, they increase their demand for the services provided by financial markets relative to those provided by banks, so that financial markets become comparatively more important as economies grow.

The WEF Report suggests that stock markets encourage long-term growth by promoting specialization, acquiring and disseminating information, and mobilizing savings efficiently to promote investment.

(AP)