December 2016 | Business View Caribbean

50 51 BARBADOS STOCK EXCHANGE capital. So the BSE launched an international securities market for the listing and trading of securities by issuers who may or may not be incorporated in Barbados and would otherwise be listed and traded on other exchanges around the world. It is a completely separate market from the domestic market and the only securities listed on the ISM are those of companies from the international business and financial services sector.” In support of the ISM, Barbados created a comprehensive governance and regulatory framework that includes the BSE, the Central Bank of Barbados, and the Financial Services Commis- sion.The strong regulatory environment for the ISM is designed to be much more rigorous than many other offshore financial juris- dictions, yet without the overly burdensome requirements of the larger North American and European exchanges.Another advan- tage is that fees for the Barbados ISM are between 30-50 percent below those of competing jurisdictions. Yarde explains that the formation of the ISM also creates opportunities for local and international service providers to participate in the new market. “Some of these participants include clearing agents and listing sponsors,” he says. “For companies to be listed on the Barbados Stock Exchange, they must go through a listing sponsor similar to that of a nominating advisor on the AIM (Alternative Investment Market) of the London Stock Exchange. So, this is an opportunity for local and international service providers to charge a fee for their services for potential issuers who would want to list on the ISM.” The role of a listing sponsor is to vet companies to make sure that they meet the criteria under the Exchange’s qualifying rules. “And one of the key things is that we attract businesses of substance and quality to the juris- diction - no ‘name-plate’ type of organizations, but businesses that actually transact business here in Barbados,” says Yarde. Currently, there are two listing sponsors who have signed up to perform the reviewing and vetting role. “Our aim is to have five listing sponsors by the end of the year,” says Yarde. “And we should have some listings by then. In addition to listing more companies on the Exchange, Yarde also wants to get more insti- tutional investors, such as pension funds and insurance companies, as well as more individuals, involved in investing.