The Dubai Financial Services Authority has amended the Rules which apply to sponsors of Reporting Entities who have listed securities on the Dubai International Financial Exchange.
The rule change now provides the DFSA with the discretion to require a company, listing securities on the DIFX, to appoint a compliance adviser to assist it with ongoing obligations under the DIFC Markets Law and Offered Securities Rules.
One of the primary obligations of a Reporting Entity is the requirement to continuously disclose price sensitive information, to the market, in a timely manner.
The DFSA has issued policy statements that explain the obligations of compliance advisers and sponsors. The policy statements explain the circumstances in which the DFSA is likely to exercise its discretion and require a Reporting Entity to appoint a compliance adviser, the obligations of a Reporting Entity regarding compliance advisers and sponsors and how a compliance adviser and sponsor can assist a Reporting Entity to meet its continuing regulatory obligations.
More information relating to compliance advisers and sponsors can be found on the DFSA website www.dfsa.ae under publications/media policy statements.
Editor’s notes:
A person is a Reporting Entity if:
• the person has or had Securities admitted to an Official List of Securities at any time;
• the person has filed a Prospectus with the DFSA under Article 15;
• the person merges with or acquires a Reporting Entity; or
• the person is declared in writing to be a Reporting Entity by the DFSA.
Persons who make offers of securities in the DIFC are required to appoint a sponsor for the duration of the offer. Persons who list securities on the DIFX may be required to appoint a compliance adviser, at the discretion of the DFSA, to assist it to comply with ongoing obligations under the DIFC Markets Law and Offered Securities Rules.
About DFSA
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) is an independent, integrated regulatory authority responsible for the regulation of all financial and ancillary services conducted in or from the Centre, including asset management, banking, securities trading, Islamic finance, re-insurance, and an international financial exchange. The DFSA has been created using principle-based primary legislation modelled closely on that used in London and New York, and the DFSA regulatory regime operates to standards that meet or exceed those applying in the world's major financial centres.
The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) is a central component of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a new financial centre established to position Dubai as a recognised hub for institutional finance, and the regional gateway for capital and investment to the Middle East.
Mr. David Knott was appointed Chief Executive of the DFSA on June 1, 2005. He is a former Chairman of the Australian Securities and Investment Commission and was Chairman of the Technical Committee of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).
