LSX Launches Online Trading Service
Local and foreign investors will find it easier to buy and sell stocks on the Lao Securities Exchange (LSX) with the launch of the Home Trading System earlier this month.
LSX, a Lao-Korean joint venture, launched the new stock trading service so investors can place orders to buy and sell stocks from anywhere in the world with internet access.
Previously, investors could only trade via telephone, email or fax, which was time-consuming and inconvenient.
Speaking at a press conference in Vientiane last week, LSX Chairman and CEO Associate Prof. Dethphouvang Moularat said the stock market developed the home trading system so that domestic and foreign investors could place orders independently using their own internet connection.
“The home trading system is safe and reliable because it uses international standards to ensure all the information is private and protected against intruders.”
People wishing to trade on the LSX are advised to contact one of the two associated security companies, who can provide information on the trading system. Traders must install home trading software and open a bank account so they can access the online system before they can use the service. It costs 24,000 kip per month to open an account.
To ensure internet users would have a fast and reliable signal to operate the trading system, Associate Prof. Dethphouvang said the LSX had partnered with Sky Telecom to provide internet connection.
“I strongly believe the home trading system will be one of the best services provided by the LSX. It will make it easy for traders to place orders and will help boost liquidity in the market,” he added.
Associate Prof. Dethphouvang said LSX launched the home trading system as part of efforts to modernise the Lao capital market, adding that its services must be transparent and fair.
He believed development of the Lao capital market would significantly contribute to the overall development of Laos.
The stock market currently has only two listed companies – EDL-Gen and BCEL. The market hopes to list more firms in the near future, enabling them to mobilise funds to improve and expand their businesses.
According to a stock market survey, some 38 of 1,085 large companies in the country are eligible for listing, while 21 firms expressed interest in acquiring investment capital via the stock market.
The LSX opened in 2010 and began providing trading services in January 2011. The government believes the stock market will prove a useful tool for Lao companies to acquire capital for business expansion and to boost economic growth.
Most companies have to source investment capital from banks, which can provide only short term loans. This has been a major obstacle to business growth.
Source: Vientiane Times
