National News

ISLAMABAD, June 3 (APP): The Security Exchange Commission of Pakistan
(SECP) has shared its Report with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) on implementation of 2015 IOSCO review recommendations for assessment under its committed follow up review
starting June 2017.
The Report is an outcome of SECP’s extensive work with IOSCO to benchmark Pakistan’s capital markets with international regulatory
standards and focuses on the challenge of strengthening securities’
market resilience, said a statement issued here by the commission.
Pakistan was the first country that proactively undertook self-assessment on implementation of 37 IOSCO Principles for securities regulation and supervisory framework in Pakistan and offered to be peer reviewed by IOSCO Assessment Committee (AC) under the Country Review
Program during 2014-15.
IOSCO 2015 Review assessed Pakistan’s compliance against IOSCO principles as 62% whereby 13 principles rated as fully implemented, 10 principles as broadly implemented, 9 principles as partially implemented
and 5 principles as not implemented.
IOSCO review while acknowledging the progress made by the SECP since last Financial Sector Assessment Programme in 2004, also shared valuable
recommendations to improve Pakistan’s rating against IOSCO benchmarks.
The SECP developed and vigorously pursued a comprehensive plan to address the IOSCO Review Recommendations to harmonize Pakistan’s securities regulatory framework with the international standards.
It successfully took measures to address the recommendations that called for significant legislative or policy and regulatory reforms as well as the buy in of market stakeholders to gear up for higher standards and practices.
Many legislative and regulatory reforms have been implemented, which
include the promulgation of 2015 Securities Act, the 2016 SECP Amendment Act, new regime for securities’ brokers, investor education programme, supervisory architectural reforms, risk-based supervision and enforcement.
The implementation of recommended reforms contributed to investor
protection, fair and efficient markets and reducing systemic risk in
Pakistan’s securities markets; and improving regulatory capability.