Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan launches Capital Market Development Fund and Agahi Portal at consultative workshop with Pakistan Banks Association

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), working with the Pakistan Banks Association (PBA), convened a consultative workshop in Karachi on expanding banks’ participation in Pakistan’s capital markets and used the event to inaugurate the Capital Market Development Fund (CMDF) and the Agahi Portal. The workshop brought together SECP and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) leadership, commercial banks, Capital Market Infrastructure Institutions (CMIIs), brokers and other market participants to develop strategies for stronger bank–capital market integration. SECP Chairperson Akif Saeed highlighted reforms including Government of Pakistan Ijarah Sukuk issuance through the Pakistan Stock Exchange, strengthening the voluntary pension system, adoption of a T+1 settlement cycle for securities traded at the Pakistan Stock Exchange, and revamping the public offering regime. Panel discussions covered banks’ role in leveraged products, use of digital banking portals to widen capital market access, and developing agricultural and commodity markets under the newly promulgated electronic warehouse receipts regime. The CMDF, supported by all CMIIs, is intended to fund investor awareness and financial literacy campaigns, while the Agahi Portal is positioned as a tool to promote active shareholder participation and informed decision-making; the Finance Minister also proposed constituting a Capital Market Development Council comprising key stakeholders including SECP, SBP, CMIIs and PICG.