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Malek Helali
Doha
THE CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) Rashid Ali al Mansouri has announced the launch of Qatar Exchange Venture Market for small and medium enterprises requiring access to capital as part of QSE's sustainability initiatives.
Furthermore, Mansouri revealed that QSE will also be launching an ESG platform to facilitate the collection and dissemination of sustainability data on listed companies.
This came during his lecture at Carnegie Mellon University Qatar (CMUQ) Dean's lecture series on the role stock exchange plays in economic growth and sustainable development on Tuesday.
Al Mansouri explained that stock exchange contributes to the country's economic development by providing investors with a platform to allocate investment capital effectively. It also represents a barometer for the health of the economy, according to him.
"QSE focuses on promoting best practice governance in businesses by insuring companies operate in the best interest of the shareholders, ensuring transparency, disclosure, and fairness, along with raising investors' confidence", Al Mansouri said. He added that QSE promotes smart policies and more coordination among government bodies and regulators.
QSE CEO stressed on the importance of sustainable development and the responsibility to foster prosperity for the present and future. He defined sustainable development as meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
Consequently, Al Mansouri noted that given the challenges of the present such as climate change and social inequality, it has become more critical to protect the economy from these instabilities.
He noted that QSE is a member of the United Nation's Principles of Responsible Investment initiative, and is committed to supporting its objectives.
Al Mansouri said that QSE's role is spreading awareness on the benefits of sustainability, adhering to the standards it advocates and supporting and promoting Qatar National Vision 2030. He also highlighted QSE's important role in promoting financial literacy in schools and universities in Qatar.
QSE CEO stressed on the importance of IPOs (Initial public offering) and state-owned institutions going public as the market needs to be fuelled with those since the need for IPOs is increasing along with the need to remove bureaucratic hurdles and speed-up decision making.
ESG (environmental, social and governance) is a generic term used in capital markets and used by investors to evaluate corporate behaviour and to determine the future financial performance of companies.
