The ASEAN Capital Markets Forum (ACMF) was established under auspices of ASEAN Finance Ministers in 2004 which is a forum which comprises capital market regulators from 10 ASEAN jurisdictions. The ACMF meets twice a year and the ACMF Chairmanship is taking turn between the Securities Commission Malaysia, Monetary Authority of Singapore, and Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand. Currently, the ACMF chairman is Datuk Ranjit Ajit Singh, Chairman, Securities Commission Malaysia (2015).

The ACMF was established as a forum for Capital Market Regulators in ASEAN to promote the development of an integrated capital market to achieve the objectives of the AEC Blueprint 2015 (endorsed at the 13th ASEAN Finance Ministers Meeting) by focusing on harmonization of rules and regulations as well as adopting the strategic initiatives for ASEAN capital market integration.

The initiatives under ACMF Implementation Plan are comprised of:

•      1) ASEAN Disclosure Standards for equity and plain debt securities;
•      2) Expedited Review Framework for Secondary Listings;
•      3) Framework for Cross-Border Offering of Collective Investment Schemes;
•      4) Streamlined Review Framework for the ASEAN Common Prospectus;
•      5) ASEAN Trading Link;
•      6) Corporate Governance Ranking of ASEAN PLCs;
•      7) Cross-Recognition of Qualifications on Education and Experience of Market Professionals;
•      8) Post-Trade Linkages;
•      9) Cross-border Enforcement and Dispute Resolution Mechanisms;
•     10) Technical support for newer markets.


•    More detail on ACMF can be found at: http://www.theacmf.org/


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The ABMF, operating under the ambit of ASEAN+3 and comprising of bond market experts from the region, was established in September 2010 as a common platform to foster standardization of market practices and harmonization of regulations relating to cross-border bond transaction in the region.

There are two (02) Sub-Forums (SF) under ABMF as:

•    - SF1: to study and research on legislations and practical experiences in bond market in
•           10 ASEAN jurisdictions.
•    - SF2: to handle on the “Transaction Procedure” and “Standardization of Messages”.

The objectives of ABMF are:

•    1) Providing an in-depth analysis of bond markets in the region and making intra-regional
•       comparisons in order to identify national differences and target the market characteristics
•       required for harmonization and standardization;
•    2) Exploring issues to promote harmonization of bond standards to facilitate cross-border
•       issuance and investment;
•    3) Preparing a strategy and road map for the harmonization of regulations and market
•       practices; and integration of bond markets across the region.


• More details on ABMF can be found at: https://wpqr4.adb.org/LotusQuickr/asean3abmf/Main.nsf


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The first Mekong Capital Markets Cooperation Meeting was held in Thailand in February 2013. The meeting was established for securities regulators of Mekong Sub-Region countries, namely Cambodia, Myanmar, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Vietnam. The MCMC meets twice a year and hosts by members based on the alphabetical order. Previously, the 5th MCMC Meeting was hosted by the LSC in Luang Prabang province in June 2015.

The objectives of the meeting are to be a channel for securities regulators of Mekong Sub-Region countries to discuss, share experiences, lesson learned, and obstacles that they have faced from their capital market development progress; to be a forum to study and learn from international experiences by inviting experts from international organizations or relevant agencies to provide knowledge and information on mutual interested topics. Moreover, it is a place for information exchange and assistance requests among the MCMC members.

Recently, the member countries had agreed to create a Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation and Development of Capital Markets in the Mekong Sub-Region which was already signed by Securities and Exchange Commission of Cambodia, Lao Securities Commission Office, Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand, and State Securities Commission of Vietnam.

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) was established in 1983. It is an international body and recognized as the global standard setter for the securities sector. Its membership regulates more than 95% of the world's securities markets in more than 110 jurisdictions and includes all the major emerging markets.

The IOSCO is an organization that aims to standardize rules and regulations on securities activities of its member countries to ensure the efficiency, transparency, and fairness. Moreover, it is an international forum where practical experiences and securities supervisory information are shared among the members in order to improve and to sustain domestic markets development compliance with the international benchmarks and standards. The IOSCO headquarter is located in Madrid, Spain.

The objectives of IOSCO are:

•    1) To cooperate in developing, implementing and promoting adherence to internationally
•       recognized and consistent standards of regulation, oversight and enforcement in order to
•       protect investors, maintain fair, efficient and transparent markets, and seek to address
•       systemic risks;
•    2) To enhance investor protection and promote investor confidence in the integrity of securities
•       markets, through strengthened information exchange and cooperation in enforcement against
•       misconduct and in supervision of markets and market intermediaries; and
•    3) To exchange information at both global and regional levels on their respective experiences
•       in order to assist the development of markets, strengthen market infrastructure and
•       implement appropriate regulation.

Although Lao PDR is not an IOSCO member, pre-conditions preparations for IOSCO membership application have been arranged. Since 2014, the LSC and the LSCO have been coordinating with both domestic (Bank of the Lao PDR, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government’s Office etc.) and international agencies to seek for supports and technical assistance to ensure the IOSCO membership application submission successfully.

More details on IOSCO can be found at: http://www.iosco.org/