Recent Reforms and the Development of the Securities Market in Bangladesh

Abstract

The Bangladesh securities market has failed to achieve any significant growth since its inception in 1954. This stagnation is attributable to a number of factors that include, inter alia, the existence of weak legal and regulatory frameworks, the absence of active market professionals, the predominance of individual investors, and a serious dearth of foreign and institutional investors. Legal and regulatory weaknesses are considered to have critically hindered the market's potential growth. Some important laws are outdated, and the regulator has introduced some unrealistic reforms over the years. Most of the reforms accomplished thus far concentrate on incentives to investors and issuers alike, but nothing significant has been done for investor protection. This article argues that effective legal protection to investors is indispensable for the development of, and the restoration of public confidence in, the infant securities market of Bangladesh.