DHAKA, March 15, 2026 (BSS) – The Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have charted a transformative course to quadruple the size of the national capital market, aiming to elevate its contribution from the current 10 percent of GDP to at least 40 percent within the next three years.

 In a high-level meeting held on  March 9, at the BSEC office in Agargaon, both organizations deliberated on strategic reforms, digitalization, and market diversification to ensure long-term sustainable growth for the country’s financial ecosystem, said a press release today.
 
To provide a data-driven foundation for this massive expansion, BSEC announced plans to conduct a comprehensive "Capital Market Diagnostic."
 
This initiative is designed to identify structural bottlenecks and formulate evidence-based policies for long-term development.
 
The meeting underscored a clear mandate: to transition the capital market from its current state to a dominant pillar of the economy, setting an ambitious target of reaching a market-to-GDP ratio of 40 percent by 2029.
 
 The meeting emphasized the urgent need to align national market governance with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) standards to attract global institutional investors.
 
BSEC highlighted its commitment to using its full legal authority under existing frameworks to create robust incentives for listing.
 
In the short term, the Commission is prioritizing the digitalization and automation of market processes to eliminate opacity and ensure absolute accountability.
 
This modernization drive, coupled with a focus on human resource development, is intended to rebuild and strengthen investor confidence in the regulatory environment.
 
A central theme of the discussion was the necessity of shifting the burden of long-term industrial financing away from the banking sector and toward the capital market.
 
 To facilitate this, BSEC and Bangladesh Bank (BB) are developing a joint framework to encourage large borrowers to raise capital through the stock exchange rather than relying on bank loans.
 
Under this initiative, BSEC is exploring specific incentives to encourage companies with significant market share to list their shares.
 
Furthermore, the introduction of a "Bond Guarantee Fund" was discussed as a vital security mechanism to mitigate risk and attract a broader spectrum of investors to the fixed-income market.
 
 The ADB delegation expressed strong interest in providing technical assistance to drive these priority reforms.
 
 Specifically, the ADB has committed to supporting feasibility studies for the proposed "Bond Guarantee Fund" and assisting BSEC in identifying the most appropriate government agency to manage and implement the fund.
 
The ADB representatives expressed optimism that this joint partnership would successfully build a more transparent, robust, and investor-friendly market.
 
 BSEC Chairman Khondoker Rashed Maqsood presided over the meeting.
 
The high-level representation included Farzana Lalarukh, Commissioner; Md. Abul Kalam, Director; and Syed Muhammad Golam Mowla, Joint Director.