Earlier today, Mr. Farrukh H. Khan, CEO Pakistan Stock Exchange and Mr. Atif Bajwa, President & CEO Bank Alfalah, signed an agreement which recognizes Bank Alfalah as a market maker. Bank Alfalah is the nation’s first commercial bank designated as a market maker for debt securities at PSX.
The ceremony took place in Karachi, where Mr. Sulaiman S. Mehdi, Chairman PSX; Mr Ali Sultan, Group Head of Treasury and Capital Markets, Bank Alfalah; Board members of PSX were in attendance.
Mr. Farrukh Khan, CEO of PSX emphasized the mutual benefits of this deal by saying, “Growth of the debt markets is an important strategic objective of PSX and critical for the economic growth of Pakistan. In line with the recent regulatory changes introduced by SECP and PSX, I am very happy that Bank Alfalah has been approved as the first market maker of debt securities at the Exchange. This will usher in a new chapter in the growth of debt markets, thereby ensuring a deep, liquid and transparent secondary debt market in Pakistan. This will benefit both issuers and investors…Bank Alfalah has a long standing commitment to the capital markets and is one of the few banks with a presence in both the brokerage and asset management industries. Hence, I am particularly happy that they have also taken this step to become the first bank to become a market maker on PSX. This will help to further develop Pakistan’s debt market to regional and international levels. This requires all stakeholders in the financial system to play an active role and we believe that this is a significant milestone in the development of the debt markets in Pakistan.”
Mr. Atif Bajwa, CEO of Bank Alfalah, thanked the SECP and PSX for their efforts in promoting capital markets in Pakistan and emphasized the importance of capital market instruments so investors have multiple options for investments.
By becoming the first market maker for debt securities, Bank Alfalah will provide liquidity to the market by quoting two way, i.e. bid and offer, prices and helping investors in buying or selling securities.
