PSE pushes back target launch date for global investment product
Jose T. Pardo (left) and Ramon S. Monzon (right)
The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) continues to do the groundwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the launch of a new derivative product called Global Philippine Depository Receipts (GPDR), hopefully by next year.
PSE President and CEO Ramon S. Monzon said their efforts to develop a regulatory framework governing the trading of GPDRs received a boost with the recent passage of the Capital Markets Efficiency Promotion Act (CMEPA).
“We're glad that CMEPA has introduced a very specific provision expanding the definition of securities to include other securities in addition to stocks. So I guess Depository Receipts and derivatives should be covered by that,” he said.
He noted that, “So that ambiguity has been addressed…so now we just need to really come up with the regulatory framework for the trading, the settlement, and the investment protection component of the (GPDRs).”
GDPRs are peso-denominated instruments that represent an economic interest, but not voting rights, in an underlying security listed in an overseas exchange.
Holders of GPDRs will have the option to convert them into equivalent shares or units of the underlying security. This innovation will allow local investors to diversify their portfolios by trading foreign securities within the domestic market.
Philippine-listed companies will also be traded in other exchanges, which in turn should generate additional liquidity for the local market, Monzon said.
The trading of GPDRs was initially targeted for launch in the first quarter of 2025, but regulators are pushing its introduction by next year since they are still missing the regulatory framework, which is the most important ingredient.
“We are working together with the SEC on the rules and regulations. We submitted our initial proposed rules for the trading of the GDPRs. We received comments from SEC end of May, and we're working to address those comments. So it's still an ongoing process,” Monzon said.
Aside from working with the SEC, Monzon said the PSE is also in talks and consultations with other exchanges overseas that have extensive experience in trading derivatives.