The West African Securities Regulatory Authorities (WASRA) has agreed to converge existing rules of Capital Market regulatory agencies within the region in a bid to ensure that cross border listing is carried out with little or no hindrances.
This is to allow foreign companies carry out their businesses within the region and assist in deepening capital markets within the West African sub region.
Already, the body is rounding up work on guidelines on cross border trading and settlement of securities.
These were some of the high points of the meeting of the body held in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday on the sidelines of the 43rd Conference/meeting of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO).
Chairman of WASRA and Executive Secretary of Le Conseil Regional de l’Epargne Publique et des Marches Financiers (CREPMF), Abidjan, Mr. Mory Soumahoro, who stated these, also said that on the planned establishment of a regional bond issuing framework for infrastructure financing, issuance will be done across borders. He also confirmed that work has commenced on the modalities, including the rules that will guide the issuance.
Also, the body is working towards building relationship between WASRA and ECOWAS Commission; the integrated supervision model needed for the establishment of cross border transaction and issuers; the development of the WASRA website and the monitoring framework and review and recommendation of appropriate risk management framework for the supervision in the region (issuance of cross border).
In her remarks, Mary Uduk, the acting director general, SEC Nigeria, commended WASRA members on their determination to building a strong and competitive regional market that will rank at par with the markets of other regions of the world, and more importantly, in the areas of transparency, disclosure, efficiency, accountability and indeed, investor protection.
Uduk who also expressed the commitment of the SEC Nigeria in assisting to achieve the objectives of WASRA, noted the imperative of a cohesive collaboration between the relevant regulators, operators and other stakeholders in West Africa, and the need to ensure that adequate resources are devoted.
The attendees at the meeting include the Isyaku Tilde, Ag. executive commissioner operations of the SEC; Daniel Obgarmey Tetteh, DG SEC-Ghana; and Mory Soumahoro, the secretary general of CEPMF (Chairman WASRA) amongst others.
WASRA is a regional organization for West African countries that aims to fashion out modalities and to establish an umbrella body as mutually acceptable basis for cooperation and consultations aimed at fostering market integration in the region. WASRA, established in 2015, is the recognized forum for capital markets regulators in the West African sub-region
Capital market regulators in the West African sub region came together to establish a mutually acceptable basis for cooperation and consultations in a bid to foster market integration in the region.
