Pakistan is pursuing reforms to strengthen its local currency bond market, facilitate investment and expand access to capital markets, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Chairman Kabir Sidhu said on Thursday.
Addressing a listing ceremony for the New Nazimabad Apartments Real Estate Investment Trust on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), he said the listing marked an important milestone for Pakistan’s real estate and capital markets. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, State Bank of Pakistan Governor Jameel Ahmed and representatives of the capital market attended the ceremony, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif participated online.
Sidhu congratulated Aurangzeb on the issuance of a $3 billion Eurobond on the London Stock Exchange, saying the government was taking steps to strengthen Pakistan’s local currency bond market.
Pakistan’s real estate sector is worth more than Rs. 7 trillion, Sidhu said, adding REITs could play an important role in documenting the sector and providing ordinary investors with opportunities to invest in real estate. “We are introducing important reforms in the REIT sector and facilitating investment,” he said.
The New Nazimabad Apartments REIT listing on the PSX would help broaden investment opportunities and strengthen the role of capital markets in financing the real estate sector, he said.
IPO activity
The SECP chairman said 13 initial public offerings had raised Rs. 26 billion from the capital market so far in 2026. Companies operating in manufacturing, agriculture, real estate, energy and technology had raised funds through the stock market, he said.
The number of investors increased by 36% following improvements in market access, while 168,000 new investors joined the stock market since January, taking the total investor base to 630,000, Sidhu said.
The SECP is also working on a major initiative to further increase the number of capital-market investors, he said.
Sidhu said the SECP had achieved several milestones during the past eight months and had proposed amendments to laws aimed at improving ease of doing business and supporting market development. Proposed amendments to insurance and company laws are currently under consideration by Parliament, he said. The regulator has also proposed significant changes to regulations governing the nonbanking financial sector.
“Digitization of the regulatory system, easier compliance with legal requirements and access to markets are our top priorities,” said the SECP chairman, adding the regulator was ensuring implementation of regulations to improve market transparency and protect investors.
Company registrations
Sidhu said the process for registering companies had been further simplified, resulting in a record 43,559 new companies being registered this year. The SECP has also completely cleared the backlog of pending adjudication cases, he said.
The regulator has resolved several long-standing issues faced by foreign investors, particularly Chinese investors, according to Sidhu. He said the government’s Apna Ghar housing scheme had also been expanded to nonbanking finance companies, widening the channels through which housing finance could be provided.