Kuwait: Boursa Kuwait participated in the IFN Kuwait OnAir Forum 2020, highlighting the company’s ongoing commitment to contribute to the growth and development of Kuwait’s capital markets and its wider economy. Boursa Kuwait’s Head of Markets Sector, Noura Al-Abdulkareem, was invited as a speaker on a panel, entitled “Funding, Infrastructure, Capital Markets and Responsible Finance Initiatives in Kuwait” on Tuesday, October 20, the second day of the two-day virtual forum.

The IFN Kuwait Forum, organized by REDMoney Group, provides market participants with an opportunity to come together and discuss how to advance and develop the financial services industry in Kuwait. The sessions enabled participants to share in-depth analysis, experiences, information and views and allowed market players and regulators to provide bi-lateral feedback and suggestions on how the industry can be taken forward as well as what steps should be taken by regulators and how market players can assist.

Speaking on the panel, Al-Abdulkareem shed light on major Boursa Kuwait initiatives that have given the company a key role as the engine of growth and development in the Kuwaiti capital market and helped cement its reputation as a leading stock exchange in the Middle East.

“As a vital player in Kuwait’s economy, Boursa Kuwait has made remarkable contributions toward driving growth and development in the domestic financial sector, successfully executing multi-phase market development plans over the years. Our efforts have yielded milestone achievements that include the privatization and listing of the company, the inclusion of Kuwait in the emerging market indices of leading index providers, an array of investment products and services, the rollout of wide-ranging regulatory reforms, as well as initiatives aimed at adding new asset classes, with an overarching objective of creating a robust capital markets ecosystem in the country,” said Al-Abdulkareem.

“The IFN Kuwait OnAir Forum 2020 provided us an excellent platform to highlight Boursa Kuwait’s outstanding accomplishments that enabled us to transform Kuwait into an attractive investment destination that offers promising opportunities for both individual and institutional investors as well as all capital market stakeholders. The event also afforded us a valuable opportunity to gain deeper insights into emerging trends in the financial sector and customer needs,” she added.

Andrew Tebbutt, Managing Director of REDmoney Group commented on the participation of Boursa Kuwait in the forum, saying: “We are delighted that Boursa Kuwait participated in our forum and thank. Al-Abdulkareem for her great contribution towards making it a tremendously successful event with over 250 viewers over two days. Boursa Kuwait has been playing a role in the advancement of the finance sector in Kuwait and we felt that its experience over the past few years would be a great example to highlight to industry stakeholders.”

Boursa Kuwait’s participation in the conferences and forums of prominent international organizations comes within the framework of its goal to strengthen its position as a leader in the financial markets sector. The company is also committed to participating in these events and conferences to gain experience and knowledge and promote the Kuwaiti capital market to international investment institutions.

Since its inception, Boursa Kuwait has worked effortlessly to create a credible exchange built on efficiency and transparency, creating a liquid capital market, a progressive exchange platform and developing a comprehensive set of reforms and enhancements that has allowed it to compete on an international level. The company has rolled out numerous market reforms and new initiatives over the past three years as part of its comprehensive multi-phase market development (MD) plans, and is currently working towards launching new products including margin trading, tradable rights issue, fixed income bonds and Sukuk, as well as exchange-traded funds (ETFs).