The Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC) has approved in principle Acleda Securities Plc to be a selling agent, according to the minutes of its meeting on Tuesday.

Acleda Securities, which is a subsidiary of Acleda Bank Plc, currently operates as a broker and bondholder representative from the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX).

The firm’s vice-president and head of operations Hor Simeth told The Post on Wednesday that SECC’s approval is a sign of progress for the Kingdom’s infant stock exchange.

“Getting approval from the SECC is another opportunity for Acleda Securities Plc to provide its clients with more broad services.

“With the growing number of listed companies and growing trading volume, we expect that the market will continue to improve,” he said.

According to the minutes of its 56th meeting, which was led by Minister of Economy and Finance Aun Pornmoniroth, the SECC has also approved in principle other securities-related operations, including Advanced Bank of Asia Limited (ABA Bank) to issue bonds in the CSX.

Additional approvals include Ganatrader Intellisystem Co Ltd as a derivative broker, SJ Asset Management Co Ltd and OBOR Management Co Ltd as fund managers, as well as BIC (Cambodia) Bank Plc as a paying agent.

The SECC also approved to change the CSX’s operating hours to 8am-3pm.

SECC deputy director-general Sok Dara said the increase in licence applications and growth in investments in the CSX is a positive sign of the securities market’s development.

“The priorities of these new companies are a sign of the growth in qualified and professional companies coming to Cambodia’s securities sector,” he said.

There are currently seven listed companies in the CSX, of which five are stock-listed and two are bond-listed.

ABA Bank will become the third bond issuer in the Cambodian capital market.