National Assembly’s standing committee on finance directed Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and ministry of law and justice to review and remove the overlapped articles in proposed draft of Securities Bill, 2010 and SECP Bill in order to start legislation process in the committee meeting next week. Committee meeting chaired by committee chairperson Fauzia Wahab, directed representatives of ministry of law and SECP to complete the review process of proposed legislations after which input will be invited from stakeholders of all three Stock Exchanges on the proposed Securities Bill. Committee also demanded a report on a question as to why proposed laws are lapsed in Senate causing huge loss to the government treasury. Securities Bill and SECP bill are likely to be tabled in the joint session of the parliament. SECP Chairman Muhammad Ali explained the committee that both legislations are for two different purposes as Securities Bill would help in regulation of stock market alone and SECP Bill would enable SECP to improve it’s governance as well as other areas under it’s regulatory functions. SECP Chairman while explaining major deficiencies in present legislation, pointed out that present law does not provide and explain duties of stock exchanges, system audit of stock exchanges, emergency powers of commission, regulation of clearing houses, establishment criteria for clearing houses, duties of clearing houses and depository companies, handling of investors complaints, standards of business conduct, financial resources of business persons, powers of SECP interventions and powers to call for information.
