Mohammed Abdullah Aljadaan, Chairman of the Capital Market Authority, said the 1452/2030 Saudi Vision, which was approved Tuesday in a special session at the Council of Ministers held by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdulaziz, is the foundation for a new era in the Saudi economic history. The vision prepared by the Council of Economic Affairs and Development led by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, achieves the diversification in national economic income and integration into the global economy to be in line with the Kingdom's development needs and achieve its interests and the interests of its citizens in addition to providing employment and investment opportunities while preserving and not compromising the principles on which this country was built on. The Capital Market Authority, since it is a government entity responsible for developing, legislating and overseeing the capital market, has already started to amend and update a number of its rules and regulations to be in line with the vision's programs and objectives. That is after the 2015-2019 strategic plan was approved following the presentation to the Council of Economic Affairs and Development which suggested to add some initiatives as well. The Authority, based on this vision and the new Companies Law which expanded power on listed companies, will work toward preparing the market for more companies and assets to accommodate the needs of the upcoming stage. Hence, this would increase the investment channels for the citizens and expand the funding base for the private sector as well. Aljadaan explained that the Authority took several steps to expand the capital market base and attract companies from different sectors. It also recently approved establishing a second market for new, medium and small companies by The Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul). This would represent an additional investment channel and is considered an important aspect in the growth and sustainability of those companies. In addition, CMA is reviewing the QFI Rules to attract more investors and provide a larger volume of demand in the market to accommodate the large assets to be listed soon such as Aramco. In addition, it will study of a number of additional options that will be needed for the market in the near future. It also aims to develop the clearing and settlement cycle to be in line with the global best practices as it is currently studying the request to do so by the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul). For the Saudi Capital Market to accommodate the big boost in the economic activity as a result of this vision, CMA is currently seeking to develop the debt market and the derivatives market to provide the needed financial tools. Aljadaan pointed out that everyone needs to be more productive to achieve the vision.
