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FROM THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT
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Bursa Malaysia •
Annual Report 2015
CEO’S MESSAGE
AND MANAGEMENT
DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Bursa Malaysia launched its
in 2015
ACE MARKET
LISTING FRAMEWORK
SUSTAINABILITY
FRAMEWORK
Bursa Malaysia enhanced
Launching new services and products
Innovation is a key priority for us at Bursa Malaysia, and we are constantly
working with our partners to come up with new products and services
for our marketplace. These are aimed at providing our existing market
participants with a wider range of tradeable alternatives and at improving
their interactions with the marketplace.
In 2015, we upgraded the Bursa LINK infrastructure to provide new
services to its users. The upgraded system optimises business processes
and introduces new functionalities such as data submission through web
browsers rather than through specific database clients. The new system
also facilitates online listing applications and the management of online
queries to help Bursa Malaysia better serve its stakeholders.
2015 also saw us introduce tenor-based pricing in BSAS. The introduction
of the new pricing structure encouraged greater use of the platform, and
was part of the reason for the platform’s significant increase in trading
value.
As for new products, we listed two exchange-traded funds (“ETFs”) –
the MyETF MSCI SEA Islamic Dividend and MyETF Thomson Reuters Asia
Pacific ex-Japan Islamic Agribusiness – and the Al-Salam Real Estate
Investment Trust (“REIT”) in 2015.
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
In 2015, we continued to implement initiatives designed to strengthen the
Exchange for the future. In doing so, we hope to make our market more
resilient while making the most of our opportunities. Our efforts to build
for the future must therefore take into account the needs of the market
at large in anticipation of developments and trends. Our priorities in 2015
to build for the future were focused on improving the listing framework
for the ACE Market and strengthening the sustainability ecosystem of our
marketplace.
Enhancing our ACE Market Listing framework and attracting SMEs
to the market
One of the challenges faced by our market stakeholders is the sometimes
lengthy journey involved in launching new products or obtaining listing
on the market. We are committed to streamlining and easing this process
as much as possible without compromising our risk profile. In 2015, we
focused our efforts on facilitating SMEs to better participate in our market
by conducting engagement sessions with select SMEs.
SMEs play a crucial role in the Malaysian economy and collectively
represent substantial agents of commerce. The Exchange believes that
it has a pivotal role to play in supporting the development of SMEs that
demonstrate potential to grow and become full-fledged PLCs. The review
of the ACE Market Framework in 2015 is designed to streamline and ease
the listing process thereby helping SMEs to tap into the capital markets
for debt or equity fundraising. Through this initiative, we are nurturing the
next generation of PLCs that will contribute to the vibrancy and diversity
of the market in the future.
Establishing linkages with foreign partners
Bursa Malaysia signed a collaboration agreement with China’s Dalian
Commodity Exchange in 2015 that will see us working together on product
research and development. This will in turn see new derivatives products
being introduced into our markets that will drive greater investor interest
and participation, both domestically and through our global distribution
channels.
Nurturing sustainability
The present volatile economic conditions are reminders of the importance
of a sustainable marketplace. While we started our sustainability journey
over 10 years ago, our activities in 2015 were noteworthy as they are
designed to make sustainability more inclusive and to strengthen our core
framework.