Along with enhanced capital market opportunities, the Securities and Exchange Commission in Thailand said it had also discussed and explored means of marketing through Japan Post Co during its recent business trip in February.
Representatives of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, Association of Thai Securities Companies, and Association of Investment Management Companies accompanied the business delegation and interacted with Japanese financial institutions to share Thai capital market information and seek business alliances, according to a statement on the Thai regulator’s web site.
Vorapol Socatiyanurak, secretary-general at Securities Exchange Commission in Thailand, said: “The exchange of letters for cooperation resulted from continual collaboration between the two regulators over the past two years and is expected to create more opportunity for Thai capital market to connect with world-renowned Japanese capital market.”
“It would provide more investment choices for investors of the two countries and also widen investment channels for Japanese investors to connect with Greater Mekong Subregion.”
According to Pattera Dilokrungthirapop, chairperson of Association of Investment Management Companies, the cooperation could range into areas such as securities trading services, preparation of securities analysis reports, marketing and investment product development.
The Financial Services Agency of Japan has entered into a similar co-operation with the State Securities Commission of Vietnam that will promote the development of sound financial regulatory mechanisms and markets, according to a statement on the former’s website.
The Thailand capital market regulator has been taking steps to bring out reforms in the capital market and recently unveiled a “strategic plan for 2014-2016” to deepen the local capital market and transform it into a regional hub.
As a part of this three-year plan, the SEC had said it would take measures to accommodate the offerings of overseas financial instruments – equities, debt instruments, and mutual funds. It will also conduct comparative studies on laws and regulations of specified foreign jurisdictions to facilitate the listing of foreign securities on the Thai bourse.
The Stock Exchange of Thailand also in January detailed a three-year plan that would see it allow foreign companies to list for the first time.