The International Chamber of Commerce served as the intermediary between Beirut Stock Exchange (BSE) officials and investors/brokers last Thursday, by providing a forum for the discussion of corporate transactions of BSE listed firms. Investors and brokers cited the lack of action taken by the BSE against those companies reporting inaccurate information, as their foremost concern, the Daily Star reported.
The consensus reached by investors and brokers was that the BSE's passive attitude toward enforcement of rules regarding financial filings and the procurement of accurate filings, must be improved if the bourse expects to gain new listings or to maintain existing ones. The necessity of verifying accurate submissions, and of implementing suitable repercussions for those not complying with the regulations was a recurring theme at the conference.
BSE Chairman, Fadi Khalaf, attempted to calm investors and brokers by assuring that the BSE was taking steps that would pressure those firms submitting inaccurate or fraudulent information. Khalaf also discussed new initiatives to lure new listings and to attract IPO's to the BSE. Incentive ideas included a tax incentive plan and the shift from fixed price trading to computerized real-time trading within one year.
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
