Skip to main content

0800-CDCPL(23275)

[email protected]
Search for

Yearly Archives: 2018

Mr. Badiuddin Akber takes charges as CEO of Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited

Posted on December 28, 2018 - 11:12 am by

Mr. Badiuddin Akber has taken charge as the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited (CDC). Earlier, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) approved his appointment on the recommendation of CDC’s Board of Directors.

This key appointment has been done while taking into consideration that CDC is a key capital market institution which plays a unique role in the settlement process and has immense responsibility in terms of maintaining transparency, integrity and investor confidence in the market. As the only securities depository in the country, it is entrusted with maintaining book-entry securities worth trillions of rupees and must therefore demonstrate the highest standards of governance in the performance of its functions. CDC’s role in the capital market landscape places increased responsibility on its CEO, at the helm of its affairs of such a strategic institution.

This is the third time in a row that the CEO of CDC has been selected from within its senior management. It is a testament of the company’s effective succession planning and also an expression of continued trust by the board of directors of the company on the senior management.

Mr. Akber has more than 20 years of diversified senior management experience in the fields of finance and operations. He has served as Chief Financial Officer, Company Secretary and Chief Operating Officer in various renowned conglomerates in Pakistan. He has also served as the CFO and Company Secretary and Chief Operating Officer at the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited. He was previously serving as the Chief Compliance and Risk Officer at CDC and was also the nominated Chairman of the Oversight Committee formed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan under Joint Inspection Regulations, 2015.

Mr. Akber has demonstrated extensive expertise in the spheres of Financial Management, Clearing & Settlement, Risk Management, Operations, Product Development and Project Management in the Pakistan Capital Market. He has played an instrumental role in the implementation of various significant products, services and reform measures which include Revamping of Capital Gain Tax Regime, Unique Identification Number (UIN), Institutions’ Risk Management System, Straight through Processing of Market Settlements, and in the introduction of Leverage Products.

He is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Cost & Management Accountants of Pakistan (FCMA). He also holds ACMA-CGMA (Chartered Global Management Accountants) qualification from the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA – UK) and membership of Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CMA – Ontario, Canada).

CDC awarded IPO Market Innovation Award for second consecutive year

Posted on September 27, 2018 - 11:09 am by

In recognition of its efforts to address the issue of low investor participation in IPOs in Pakistan, CDC has been recently awarded, for the second time, the IPO Market Innovation Award 2017-2018 at SAFE-PSX Pakistan IPO SUMMIT 2018, held in Lahore. Mr. Aftab Ahmed Diwan, CEO-CDC received this award from Governor Punjab, Mr. Muhammad Sarwar.

CDC understands the needs of Pakistan Capital Market investors and has always been committed to adopt new approaches and mechanisms for their growth and convenience. In line to this commitment, CDC is working towards the launch of IPO Facilitation Account (IFA) which will cater to the needs of those investors who do not apply in any IPOs due to the hassle of opening CDS account while it is not certain if their application will be declared successful in the balloting results.

This will also facilitate those investors who end up subscribing shares in physical form. With the introduction of IFA, investors will be able to easily participate in IPOs and can open CDS account only when their application is declared successful.

US Consul General visits CDC House

Posted on August 13, 2018 - 11:09 am by

A delegation from the U.S. Consulate General Karachi, comprising of Consul General JoAnne Wagner and her economic team, visited CDC on August 13, 2018. The key stakeholders of capital market and corporate leaders, also representing the American Business Council, along with the board members of CDC attended this breakfast event.

Mr. Moin M. Fudda, Chairman of the Board of Directors – CDC, welcomed the delegation and stressed upon the importance of Pakistan Capital Market and stronger ties between the U.S. and Pakistani companies. Mr. Aftab Ahmed Diwan, CEO-CDC, gave a detailed presentation on the contributions and achievements of CDC and its vital role in the development of Pakistan Capital Market.

Consul General Wagner highlighted past successes of the U.S.-Pakistan partnership in Sindh and Baluchistan and sought suggestions for future engagements with Karachi’s business community that can potentially strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries and build upon the current $6.4 billion two-way trade that benefits both American and Pakistani citizens.

CDC formally launches its official presence on Social Media platforms

Posted on August 13, 2018 - 11:09 am by

Social media serves as the face of businesses and organizations in today’s digitally connected world. The technology is under constant transformation, promoting connectivity and networking. Social networking is now among the fastest growing industries on a global scale. Be it consumer-centric or industry-focused, companies that do not utilize this effective source miss out on incredible marketing opportunities and the ability to reach their audience. Anyone with an access to technology and the internet is most certainly updated and harnessing the power of these remarkable platforms.

In line with the continuous strive of adopting latest technology and innovation in its efforts to modernize the capital market, CDC has formally launched its official presence on mainstream social media. As it continues to broaden its outreach, the objective is to create a community on these platforms and increase public understanding and awareness about opportunities & risks associated with investing in the stock market and CDC’s contribution towards the development of the Pakistan Capital Market.

The campaigns will encompass CDC’s corporate image, critical advice on investor protection and awareness, our latest products and services as well as announcements about the latest happenings regarding our business, organization and market.

We urge and encourage our readers who are active on social media platforms to come together and show their support by joining our online community.

CDC launches Digital Account Opening solution to facilitate Investors

Posted on August 3, 2018 - 11:09 am by

CDC is spearheading the digitization drive for market processes in order to make investing experience convenient for Pakistan Capital Market investors. CDC has been constantly launching novel digital solutions like eIPO, eDividend Repository etc. to facilitate investors and transform Capital Market processes, making them more accessible, efficient and convenient.

In line with this continuous endeavor, CDC has launched its Digital Account Opening solution. Through this facility, stock market investors are now able to fill the account opening form online and download the same once completely validated by CDC personnel. This new digital solution will help eliminate the need for multiple visits by investors to CDC premises for the purpose of opening an account with CDC.

Investors are provided with real-time tooltips regarding the essentials of filling the account opening form, limiting the potential of discrepancies and errors. After successful completion of the online form, investors are required to visit CDC House only once for In-Person Verification (IPV).

CDC is also working on a model through which investors will be provided the option of fulfilling their IPV requirement remotely, avoiding the hassle of visiting CDC offices. The above solution is available initially for opening of CDC IAS Account only. In the second phase of the project, this facility will be extended for opening of CDC Sub-Account as well. More details are available at www.cdcpakistan.com.

CDC as National Numbering Agency for Pakistan (NNA)

Posted on July 4, 2018 - 11:04 am by

Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA) is the global association of National Numbering Agencies with a mission to provide reliable, accurate and trusted means to identify and describe securities that can be used by all nations and their markets. They have a crucial role in the financial markets of their own nations as well as global markets.

The service bureau at ANNA receives daily reports and updates from member and partner numbering agencies from around the world. It serves as the center point of information dissemination and collection of securities data since 2001.

Being a part of ANNA gives the NNA the opportunity of participating in a global association whose recommendations and decisions can have a direct impact on NNA local markets. Moreover, the NNAs local market & market participants gain more visibility and have easier & faster access to the exchange of ISINs on a global basis.

The NNAs are the primary sources of identification information in their local markets. For the last two decades, CDC serves as the sole National Numbering Agency (NNA) issuing ISINs (International Securities Identification Numbers) to standardize identification of local securities for trading and settlement in the country. Classifying financial instruments in a consistent, structured and standardized way is also beneficial for regulatory reporting requirements.

ISIN:

CDC assigns the ISIN which consists of a total of twelve alpha-numeric characters. The ISIN, is an International Securities Identification Number (ISIN) which is based on ISO 6166 that acts as the identifier for cross-border transactions and is supported and maintained by the recognized global numbering agencies that comprise ANNA.

In Addition to ISIN, CDC also issues FISN & CFI.

FISN:

The Financial Instrument Short Name (FISN) code has been developed to provide a consistent and uniform approach to standardize short descriptions for financial instruments. The ISO 18774 standard incorporates the issuer short name and the abbreviated characteristics for the financial instrument. It has a maximum length of 35 alphanumeric characters. The total number of FISN assigned to Ordinary, Preference Shares & Right securities are 1289.

CFI:

A Classification of Financial Instruments (CFI), the CFI code is a six-digit alpha-code which is issued to a group of financial instruments in a consistent manner. The Classification of Financial Instruments (CFI) defines the structure and describes codes for an internationally valid system to classify financial instruments. The total number of assigned CFI are 1,539.
The badge of global association representing Pakistan at ANNA is one of CDC’s many achievements as it continues to maintain its leading position in the country. Collaborating with ANNA allows CDC to continue its journey of progress and innovation while continuously building mechanisms that are pivotal to Capital Market development.