STRONG START FOR THE ASF SIF Moldova wants the harmonization of the stock market legislation

Even though it is barely "born", after the "merger" between the Romanian National Securities (CNVM), the Insurance Supervision Commission (CSA) and the Commission for the Supervision of Private Pensions (CSSPP), the Financial Supervision Authority (ASF) has already been approached by SIF Moldova with a wide-scope project: the harmonization and the correlation of the legal dispositions of applicable to the stock market, in order to eliminate the ambiguous provisions which have created numerous scandals lately.

Even though the ASF does not yet have its own offices, and some people are still unclear on whom they should address their questions to, SIF Moldova found the way to the office of the vice-president of the ASF in charge of the stock market, Mircea Ursache, to whom he has already presented the idea, with a very clear message: there is no more time to waste!

SIF Moldova is also betting on the support of the other SIFs, of the Proprietatea Fund and of a group of professional associations (the Association of Fund Managers; the Association of Stock Market Professionals; the Association of Brokers).

"We have talked to the ASF and we had constant communication with Mr. vice-president Mircea Ursache, because we want to initiate as soon as possible a conversation with the Authority, with the NBR, with the Ministry of Finance and with the Ministry of Justice", said Costel Ceocea, the president of SIF2 Moldova, who stressed that the feedback from the ASF was positive.

What we can see is that the two stock exchanges - the BSE and Sibex - are not mentioned in the aforementioned plans.

This may be an oversight.

But it could be, just as well, proof of the lack of consideration of the organizers for the BSE and for what Sibex has become, those two exchanges which seem unable to fulfill their market role.

SIF2 considers that there is a need to initiate approaches for the amendment and the adaptation of the current legislative provisions concerning the status of investment funds and asset management entities (Government Emergency Ordinance no. 32/2012), as well as the other related legal provisions: Law no. 297/2004, Law no. 31/1990, the regulation of the RASDAQ market etc. in order to ensure a harmonization of all the interdependent legal provisions and at the same time the correct and effective transposition of the directives of the European regulation as well as the convergence with the directly applicable EU regulations.

Costel Ceocea considers that these steps are necessary under the coordination of the ASF, the NBR and the Ministry of Finance, which, together with the Professional Associations specific to the stock market and with the main issuers: the Financial Investment Companies and the Proprietatea Fund, will participate in working meetings for gathering together the proposals of all those involved, and for subsequently debating and harmonizing them.

The president of the Association of Stock Market Professionals told us that he supports the initiative of the SIFs, he considers it a good idea and he hopes that things will move as soon as possible.

According to SIF Moldova, a very important problem is represented by the legal provisions concerning the consolidation of financial statements, the resolution/clarification of the status of the Rasdaq market and of the protection of shareholders of companies listed on the former, as well as the emergency creation of the Central Counterparty (CCP) as an institution which is absolutely essential to the functioning of the domestic market.

The CCP is an institution which handles the clearing of derivatives trades, which is a EU requirement, and requires a minimum capital of 7.5 million Euros.

After SIF Moldova pressured the Bucharest Stock Exchange and Sibex to speed up the CCP project, Costel Ceocea considers that the involvement of the NBR would be beneficial.

"I think that the Central Counterparty (CCP) is an important issue and that the people of the NBR are interested in clarifying it as well", he said, and he went on to say: "There is a working committee at the NBR which is in charge of this issue".

The president of SIF2 expressed his discontent that at the two local exchanges, no progress is apparently being made on the matter of the Central Counterparty, even though it has asked for the making of concrete decisions since last year.