Integration: A growth venue for local firms

CEBU, Philippines - Local companies and self-regulatory organizations should look at the regional economic integration as a growth venue, an official from Securities and Exchange Commission said.

SEC Markets and Securities Regulation Department director Vicente Felizmenio, Jr., said the integration of Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year will result to both opportunities and challenges as well as for Philippine firms.

Felizmenio said the single capital market system will allow companies and investors in Asean nations to freely trade securities in any market.

During a recent forum in Cebu, the official said a free trading community is what the Asean Capital Markets Forum wants to achieve in the coming years as part of the 2015 Asean Economic Community.

He said the ACMF recently announced that the Asean CIS Framework for cross-border offering of collective investment schemes has now initially operated in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia.

"(The idea) is that a company that has registered securities in the Philippines can bring the registration to other countries and offer shares to the citizens of those countries," he explained.

The Philippines has not yet set any target for joining the integrated capital market.

However, the Philippine Stock Exchange is expected to join the Asean Trading Link, a platform that aims to integrate the region's seven equities markets.

The link has hoped to attract foreign investors and increase cross-boarder trading.

Presently, only Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia have joined the combined trading society in 2012.

Stock analyst Lexter Azurin of Unicapital Securities, Incorporated said the integration of bourses in the region will definitely be beneficial for local companies and investors.

He told The FREEMAN that the country's stock exchange has done efforts to generate interest and support from the stock brokers and the investing public for the Asean Link. (FREEMAN)