ABG Limited, a Bashundhara Group company, has become a strategic investor in the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE). According to a deal at the Radisson Blu hotel in the port city, the company would purchase a 25% interest in the exchange for Tk 238 crore.
On behalf of their respective companies, CSE acting managing director G.hulam Faruque and ABG Managing Director Sayem Sobhan Anvir signed the agreement.
The signing event was attended by Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury and Prime Minister’s Adviser on Private Industries and Investment Salman F Rahman.
The event was also joined by Chattogram City Corporation Mayor Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, Deputy Minister for Education Mohibul Hassan Chowdhury, Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam, and Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan.
The BSEC approved the sale of 25% of the CSE’s shares to ABG Limited in September. ABG purchased 15.86 crore CSE shares at Tk15 each.
According to sources, ABG Ltd lacks the technical skills to assist or administer a stock exchange or value addition. To handle and manage the stock market, the corporation will bring in expert support from overseas.
“Today is a historic day. The CSC has got a strong partner through this agreement, with whose cooperation it can develop the commodity exchange. The CSC will be strengthened through the strategic partnership. This strategic partner will contribute to the establishment of a strong commodity exchange in the bourse.”
– Professor Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam
According to the Demutualisation Act, the stock exchange is required to sell 25% of its total shares to strategic investors. Every year since 2016, the regulator has extended the period to hunt for strategic investors based on corporate applications.
The CSE was founded in 1995. Its current paid-up capital is Tk634.52 crore, and the number of shares outstanding is 63.45 crore.
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The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) transferred 25% of its shares to strategic investors – a Chinese consortium including the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange – in September 2018 for Tk962 crore, with each share valued at Tk21.
According to CSE Chairman Asif Ibrahim, the Chattogram bourse and ABG Limited would contribute to the country’s growth by leveraging their capabilities through the expansion of the capital market. According to him, a new milestone has been established for the country’s capital market.
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