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A delegation from The Australian High Commission in Islamabad recently visited the head office of the Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited in Karachi. The delegation was headed by Her Excellency Margaret Adamson, Australian High Commissioner to Pakistan. Other dignitaries included Mr. Saeed Ahmed, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan and several senior level members of the corporate community including Mr. Nauman K. Dar, President & CEO, Habib Bank Limited also attended the event. Senior representatives of Pakistan Capital Market were also present.

Mr. Muhammad Hanif Jakhura, CEO – CDC, welcomed the delegation and gave a detailed presentation to the attendees on the success story of CDC and its pivotal role in the development of Pakistan’s capital market. The attendees were also briefed on the business and operations of CDC’s subsidiary, ITMinds Limited.

The Australian High Commissioner acknowledged the positive impact of CDC on the Pakistan Capital Market. She looked forward to learning more about the full range of CDC’s contributions and market shaping initiatives. In particular, she expressed her desire to play the role of a catalyst for Australian financial institutions to do more business with Pakistani companies and the government.

Central Depository Company hosted a dinner in the honour of Mr. Mushtaq Chhapra, Chairman – The Citizens Foundation (TCF). Mr. Chhapra has recently been conferred the prestigious civil award, ‘Sitara-e-Imtiaz’, for his services and contribution towards education and social welfare. This dinner was held in celebration of this monumental honour.

TCF has had a very successful journey. In its two decade history, TCF has become an inspiring force working towards the betterment of the nation by providing access to education to the scores of underprivileged youth in the country. With its humble beginnings, TCF now boasts of over 1200 schools spanning the entire country with 175,000 students enrolled. The success of TCF is a testament to the leadership and vision of Mr. Chhapra. TCF has crafted its legacy as a true success story of Pakistan.

Through donations collected from the entire globe, TCF builds and manages purpose-built campuses in the underprivileged parts of the country. These campuses maintain excellent educational standards and provide subsidized education along with support for books, stationery, uniforms etc.

The dinner was attended by several leading members of the corporate world along with people from the social sector. Mr. Chhapra was presented a shield in honour of his services by Mr. Hanif Jakhura, CEO – CDC.

CDC has had a long history of collaborations with TCF. Through its CSR initiatives, CDC has continually partnered with TCF on a number of endeavours and this trend will continue. Not only does CDC support TCF through donations but has also solely sponsored the construction of a school in Tapo Azeem Shah, Mirpur Khas. Additionally, CDC employees have also volunteered for TCF Rahbar Mentorship program as well.

On May 21, 2016, Central Depository Company (CDC), in collaboration with all partner entities of Abbottabad Sarmayakari Markaz (ASM) and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), organized a large scale Investor Awareness Seminar in Abbottabad. The seminar, held at Jalal Baba Auditorium, was arguably the biggest Capital Market event in the history of Abbottabad. The core objective was to enhance participation of KPK residents in the Capital Market.

Senior officials of CDC, SECP, partner entities of the ASM and Abbottabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry were present at the event. Furthermore, people from all walks of life including students, businessmen and women, lawyers, press and media representatives participated in the seminar.

Mr. Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani, Minister for Higher Education and Information, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was the chief guest. While addressing the seminar, Mr. Ghani encouraged participants to save and invest in legitimate and government approved investment schemes. He further emphasized on the need to create awareness among common citizens about safe investment avenues and appreciated the ongoing efforts of CDC and SECP in this regard. Moreover, he appreciated the idea of establishing capital market hubs like Abbottabad Sarmayakari Markaz to facilitate residents of smaller cities of Pakistan.

Special Guest, Commissioner Securities Market Division, SECP, Mr. Akif Saeed read a message on behalf of the Chairman SECP. He said that SECP is making all out efforts to enhance financial inclusion across country. He further announced that more such capital market investment hubs would be established soon in other second and third tier cities.

Other prominent guests at the event included Ms. Khalida Habib, Director/HoD Investor Education and International Relations, SECP and Mr. Shahid Ghaffar, Managing Director of National Investment Trust Limited and Chairman MUFAP.
Mr. Shahid Ali Khan, a Capital Market expert who served as the CEO of a leading brokerage company, explained to participants the modus operandi of stock exchange and shared his insights on making sound investment decisions. He further said that Pakistan’s stock exchange is one of the world’s best performing markets and it is time that citizens of Pakistan are made aware of the gains offered by investing in the Capital Market.

Another guest speaker, Mr. Yasir Qadri, CEO-UBL Funds enlightened the participants about mutual funds and the specific benefits associated with this investment avenue while Mr. Aftab Diwan, Chief Operating Officer, CDC spoke about the rights and responsibilities of Capital Market Investors.

The ceremony was moderated by Mr. Murtaza Abbas, Joint Director SECP. An exhibition area was also setup at the event where all partner entities of Abbottabad Sarmayakari Markaz displayed their product portfolios and briefed the visitors about the services offered at the hub. Hi-tea was served at the conclusion of the event.

Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited in collaboration with Auerbach Grayson & Company (AGCO) organized Pakistan Investor Days, an investment road show in Dubai on March 2 & 3, 2016 at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC).

Fourteen Pakistani Issuer companies and eighteen foreign fund managers attended the conference. 137 one on one meetings were held between the representatives of these Issuer companies, mostly senior management level, and foreign fund managers from US, UK, South Africa, Hong Kong, and UAE.

This was one of the many events organized periodically by Auerbach Grayson worldwide. AGCO is a New York-based brokerage firm serving the international needs of major institutional investors. Through its worldwide network of broker partners, AGCO offers research, execution and clearance in equities, derivatives and fixed-income instruments.

This conference was organized at a crucial time when MSCI is reviewing to elevate Pakistan’s current status from Frontier Market to Emerging Market. From time to time, such endeavors by CDC help boost the foreign investors’ confidence which translates into a very positive feedback to be considered by MSCI in the favor of this elevation.

This is the third such endeavor by CDC in the past ten years to help attract foreign investment in Pakistani listed companies. Adding another first to our legacy of initiatives, this is the first time when apart from blue chip companies, second tier corporates were also invited to showcase themselves to foreign fund managers. This step ensured that a broader perspective of Pakistan Capital Market is available to foreign investors. This event proved to be an excellent opportunity for Pakistani Corporates to interact with leading foreign investors. The event was a huge success and the participants appreciated the efforts of both CDC and AGCO. Mr. Omer Farooq Pasha, Chief Economist at the State Bank of Pakistan who specially attended the event spoke on day one of the conference.

On December 19, 2015, Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited (CDC) organized its most highlighted event of the year: an Investment Road Show in the city of Multan in commemoration of the launch of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). Supported by the Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), this event was arguably the biggest Capital Market event in the history of Multan.

Several representatives of Pakistan Capital Market were invited as speakers at the event. Mr. Iftikhar Naqvi, Joint Registrar of Companies – CRO Multan SECP, Mr. Haroon Askari, Deputy Managing Director – Karachi Stock Exchange (now Pakistan Stock Exchange), Ms. Mashmooma Zehra Majeed, CEO – Mutual Funds Association of Pakistan (MUFAP) and Mr. Shariq Naseem, Head of Product Development and Marketing – CDC, addressed the audience to share their thoughts and insights on the opportunities associated with the launch of Pakistan Stock Exchange.

The spotlight of the show was a grand exhibition area, organized by CDC for the conference attendees. Several leading capital market entities participated in the exhibition which included; MCB-Arif Habib, Atlas AMC, UBL Funds, HBL AMC, AKD Investments, Alfalah GHP, Primus, NAFA, Almeezan, First Capital Investments, JS Global, Rafi Securities and KASB Securities.

The Guest of Honor at the occasion, Mr. Fareed Mughis Sheikh – President Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry expressed his appreciation for CDC’s efforts in organizing this mega event. He further commented that there should be a greater collaboration between MCCI and Pakistan Capital Market, including the establishment of an Investment Desk at the premises of MCCI for the benefit of local investors. He praised the Sarmayakari Markaz established in Abbottabad and stressed on the need for the establishment of a similar Sarmayakari Markaz in Multan.
The event received overwhelming response from a crowd of 600 plus attendees, who further appealed to increase the frequency of such events in future. The event was concluded with a dinner.