Kish Int’l Stock Exchange to Open in Feb

EghtesadOnline: The CEO of Kish Free Zone said the ground has been paved for opening the first international stock exchange in Iran’s Free Trade Zones.

News ID: ۷۴۸۹۲۱

11 November 2019

The new bourse is planned to open during the Ten-Day Dawn festivities – the annual occasion (Feb. 1-11) marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution,  Gholamhossein Mozaffari said.

“Opening an international bourse is a complex job, but we have prepared all the grounds for it,” he was quoted as saying by ILNA.

Mozaffari was speaking at a press conference on Sunday in the run-up to the International Exhibition of Exchange, Banking, Insurance and Privatization, according to Financial Tribune.

“With the launching of the international bourse foreigners will be able to trade shares of listed companies using foreign currency,” the CEO said.

The new exchange will be based in Kish Island (a free trade zone) off the Persian Gulf and will be Iran’s fifth exchange after the Tehran Stock Exchange, Iran Fara Bourse (over-the-counter market), Energy Exchange and Iran Mercantile Exchange.

The international bourse will reportedly have the ability and capacity to attract non-rial financial resources within the framework provided by the Securities and Exchange Organization.

Facilitating Role

The move is expected to boost Iran’s corporate operations overseas and facilitate interaction between domestic and foreign investors.

Attracting foreign investment, facilitating the presence of domestic businesses on the international stage, forging ties between foreign and local investors and fair distribution of capital are among other goals of the bourse.

Head of the Supreme Council of Iran’s FTZs, Morteza Bank, said earlier that both domestic and foreign investors will be present in the new market.

Communications in the market will be in an international language and transactions will be handled by “an international bank.”

Given the restrictions on Iran’s banking sector by the government of the United States, it is not clear how international financial deals will be handled within the new stock market, giving rise to doubts about the feasibility of the undertaking.

Rules for launching the new exchange have been sent to the economic commission of the government.

The initial bylaw was first drafted in coordination with the SEO and approved by the High Council of Securities and Exchange. Later the Central Bank of Iran approved the bylaw after some amendments.