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PRESS RELEASE
BERMUDA STOCK EXCHANGE CEO LOOKS TOWARDS GROWTH IN BAHRAIN
A
Gateway Into The Wider Middle East Markets
HAMILTON, Bermuda: July 19, 2010 – Bermuda’s Stock Exchange
President and CEO, Greg Wojciechowski, said today that his recent visit to
Bahrain had convinced him that the Gulf state offers Bermuda’s financial
community a remarkable opportunity to develop commercial relationships thorough
out the GCC region.
Mr. Wojciechowski was a member
of the successful trade mission to Bahrain led earlier this month by Bermuda’s
Minister of Finance, the Hon. Paula A. Cox. During the visit, delegates met with Bahrain’s top
government and business leaders prior to attending the first Bahrain/Bermuda
conference on Global Financial and Insurance Services in Manama on July 6, 2010.
The event, which was widely
mentioned in the regional press, was jointly sponsored by Bahrain’s Ministry of Finance, the
Central Bank of Bahrain, the Bahrain Association of Banks and the Bahrain
Insurance Association.
Mr. Wojciechowski said there were many areas of growth
to be pursued in Bahrain which has recently signed a Double Taxation Agreement with Bermuda
in Washington in April. The
agreement was the first of its kind Bermuda has signed with any country with
provisions that makes it easier for Bermuda and Bahrain business leaders to
cooperate in finance.
Following his earlier meeting
with Mr. Fouad A. Rahman Rashid, Director of the Bahrain Stock Exchange, Mr.
Wojciechowski said he believed there will be positive developments in building
business between the two economies sooner rather than later. Bermuda, he said, could perhaps even
look forward to seeing the listing of the first Islamic bond or sukuk on the BSX
in the not too distant future.
Both sides, Mr. Wojciechowski said, discussed possible areas of
cooperation and development especially those related to listing mutual funds,
asset management, hedge funds and the listing of Islamic financial
instruments. “I believe an
opportunity exists to build stronger ties between the two stock exchanges and I
look forward to progressing our initial discussions,” the BSX President said.
“In Bermuda we are interested in
listing sukuks from this region on our market. I feel strongly that Bermuda can act as a gateway to the
North American and European markets for Bahrain’s Islamic financial expertise
and, in turn, Bahrain can act as a gateway for Bermuda’s financial expertise in
the Middle East and North Africa,” Mr. Wojciechowski said.
“It is apparent to me that a relationship with The Bahrain
Stock Exchange presents a special opportunity for joint cooperation, one which
we hope to pursue. As a regulator, I was impressed to see the world-class
trading environment at the Bahrain Stock Exchange and I look forward to the
opportunity of furthering my talks with my Bahrain counterparts,” Mr.
Wojciechowski added.
The Bermuda Stock Exchange, established in 1971, has 700
issues listed and has a market capitalization of $200 billion. BSX is a member of the International
Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO), the World Federation of
Exchanges and other regional and international federations related to capital
markets.
Contact:
Greg Wojciechowski, President & CEO
Bermuda Stock Exchange
T: (441) 292-7212
E-mail: gwojo@bsx.com
Media Inquiry:
Victor Webb/William Keegan
Marston Webb International
T: (212) 684-6601
E-mail: marwebint@cs.com
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