A section of brokers manipulating shares, alleges Salman F Rahman

Dhaka (Oct 31, 2020: A section of brokers are engaged in manipulating shares of different companies before eyes of buyers while the Stock Exchange is reluctant in taking action against them, Salman F Rahman alleged today.

Salman F Rahman, private industry and investment affair adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, came up with the allegation while addressing a webinar as chief guest on “Current Situation in the Stock Market and Sustainable Development.”

Capital Market Journalists Forum and Bangladesh Merchant Bankers Association (BMBA) jointly organised the webinar where Salma came up hard on the Stock Exchange authorities for their inaction in preventing the unethical practices in the stock market.

“We see a company has kept its factory and production closed for the last 10 years but a section of brokers is increasing share price of the company through manipulation before the Dhaka Stock Exchange but the authority is not taking any action,” he said.     

Calling upon the DSE to get rid of the situation, Salman said if any anomaly takes place in the capital market in any country, Stock Exchange first comes forward worldwide to detect the matter instead of Bangladesh Security and Exchange Commission (BSEC).

Pointing finger at the nonfunctional companies, Salman said Stock Exchange authority knows well who are engaged in trading shares of such companies but they are keeping mum.

“Manipulation is being occurred here openly. No one is doing it secretly. People are taking to the streets whenever irregularities are taking place in the capital market,” he pointed.

Claiming that Dhaka and Chattogram Stock Exchange have a very important role to the country’s economy, he said it is not like that only the government, finance ministry and the BSEC will shoulder responsibility of the capital market.        

The Dhaka and Chattogram Stock Exchange will have to be more strengthened in dealing with the matter, he said.

About the small investors, he said the mindset of the small investors, that the government would ensure security of their investments, will have to change.

“You (small investors) will have to invest with adequate knowledge as you may have to incur losses of your business,” he said.

He said the capital market in Bangladesh is being dominated by 80 to 85 percent retail investors instead of institutional investors.

“It is a big weakness as the contribution of the institutional investors is very small in the capital market,” he said.

Share of mutual fund in market is being shown three percent but it is absent in transection in the market, he said it seems that there is no institutional investors in the capital market instead of the ICB, he said adding that it cannot continue with only ICB.

All the Beneficiary Accounts (BO) should be digitalized to expand the country’s capital market across the world and if it is done then it will bring good results for the investors, he said.

Professor Shibli Rubaiyat-ul-Islam, chairman of BSEC, Sheikh Fazle Fahim, president of Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Shams Mahmud, president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, took part in the programme as special guests.

BMBA First Vice President Md Moniruzzaman presented the keynote paper.