04/02/20

SUSTAINABLE FINANCE: Luxembourg and Thailand Look At Financial Market Cooperation.

As published on regulationasia.com, Tuesday February 4th, 2020.

Thailand’s SEC and LuxSE have discussed cooperation to promote sustainable finance, while also agreeing to explore the creation of a trading link between the two countries.

Thailand’s SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) is exploring the establishment of a cross-border trading link with LuxSE (Luxembourg Stock Exchange), the regulator has said in a statement.

In a meeting on Friday (31 January), SEC secretary-general Ruenwadi Suwanamongkol and LuxSE CEO Robert Scharfe discussed the 2016 establishment of LGX (Luxembourg Green Exchange), an information platform at the LuxSE for sustainable finance instruments.

“Promoting sustainable development is one of the strategies that the SEC has set out to create an ecosystem that is conducive to the development of a sustainable Thai capital market,” Ruenwadi said.

To facilitate continued discussions with LUXSE, the SEC will work on developing an information platform for debt securities, including sustainable finance instruments, to ensure both local and foreign investors can easily access information, she added.

They also agreed to explore the creation of a cross-border trading link, which would allow securities issued by Thai companies to be offered for sale on the LuxSE.

As a next step, the SEC will conduct a review of LuxSE rules on securities offerings, mapping them against Thailand’s rules. The review is expected to be completed in the second quarter.

In addition, the SEC is seeking cooperation from LHoFT (Luxembourg House of Financial Technology) to provide opportunities for Thai fintech firms to develop.

The SEC also says it is working on a proposal that could allow Thai fintechs to raise funds by issuing securities backed by their intellectual property – including copyrights, patents and trademarks. A decision on the proposal will be made within the second quarter of this year.