Public/Private Stakeholders Held Working Session in Search of Progress on Modernizing Capital Markets in Colombia

Earlier this month, the third capital market working table was held at Financial Superintendence of Colombia (Superfinanciera) with a goal of presenting progress of the joint strategy between the government and the private sector to strengthen the presence of new issuers and local and foreign investors in the market.

According to Superfinanciera, progress is currently being made in a range of areas, including:

• the structuring of the regulatory proposal for its subsequent publication for comments
• covering issues such as the revision of the rules applicable to short selling
• improvement of cash operations through general investment instructions and aggregation of positions
• regulation of the activity of recurring lending of securities
• strengthening of liquidity maker programs
• revision of the conditions for the recognition of known and/or recurring issuers
• conditions for access to issuance and placement programs
• expansion of the scope of the financing of securities activity
• requirements for advisory activity
• harmonization of the issuance of bonds and securities with credit content such as CDTs

For its part, Superfinanciera says it will update some instructions related to the threshold for simplified linkage in low-value intermediation operations and electronic order routing systems, as well as those required to make the national government’s objectives in terms of liquidity and market access viable.

Various stakeholders, in a statement, agreed that the development of the capital market is fundamental for the economic and social growth of the country, and all agents must, from our different roles, actively contribute in order to strengthen it.

Finally, they reiterated the need for private sector agents, especially commercial and investment advisors, to promote among their clients the different business alternatives in the stock market to increase the levels of savings and investment of Colombians.

Representatives from the following agencies and companies all participated in the working session: Superfinanciera, Ministry of Finance and Public Credit, the URF, Banco de la República, the Directorate of National Taxes and Customs (DIAN), the Colombian Stock Exchange (BVC), the Securities Market Self-Regulator (AMV), Asobancaria, Asobolsa, Asofiduciarias, Asofondos, the Association of Financing Companies (AFIC), and the Federation of Colombian Insurers (Fasecolda).