SECC issues directive on investment funds

Khmer Times
Sok Chan

The new Prakas seeks to regulate collective investment schemes. KT/Chor Sokunthea

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia (SECC) last week approved a directive on the issuing of licences and supervision of collective investment schemes.

A collective investment scheme allows investors to come together to invest as a group. Depending on the country, they may also be known as investment funds or investment pools.

According to SECC, these type of ventures are still untested in Cambodia because prior to last week there was no framework to regulate the sector.

With the new Prakas, SECC established the conditions and procedures to follow to issue licences as well as the legal obligations that collective investment schemes must meet.

Lamun Soleil, director of the Listing and Disclosure Department of Cambodia Securities Exchanges (CSX), told Khmer Times yesterday that collective investment schemes allow investors that don’t have the time or skill to invest on their own to come together and benefit from the advantages of working as a group, which includes being able to hire professional investment managers which may be able to offer better returns.

“This is another mechanism to boost the economy, and increase the number of activities of CSX,” Mr Lamun said. “Investors can inject more money into their existing companies listed in the stock market, or they can pool their money together and then list a new company in the stock market.”

“If a collective investment scheme registers with SECC we can manage it and the risk exposure will be lower. Going unregistered would be very risky and the government would not assume any responsibility,” he said.