A ship without a captain for last three months

A ship without a captain for last three months

http://www.ceylontoday.lk/news-detail.php?news_id=2320&news_category_id=22

Date: 2012-02-06

By Amrith Gunasekara

Ever since former Director General Malik Cader was ‘kicked upstairs’ on 2 November 2011, exactly a year after his appointment, Securities and Exchange Commission had not yet been able to appoint a Director General (DG).

Meanwhile yesterday in a public notice for the second time since 2 November 2011 the Securities and Exchange Commission again called for potential candidates to fill the post of DG whilst it was revealed in reports that already three candidates have been shortlisted in the first round of interviews from its earlier call for applicants.

The market watchdog initially set a deadline for applicants as 5 December 2011 and now after two months, in the latest public advertisement it has further extended the deadline to 21 February 2012.

Ceylon FT on 11 January 2012 (http://www.ceylontoday.lk/news-detail.php?news_id=1567&news_category_id=22) exclusively reported that the three applicants shortlisted for the top post were Financial Services Academy (SEC’s academic arm) Director Dr. D. B. P. H. Dissa Bandara; former Senior State Counsel Harsha Fernando and top Investment Banker Nishan Sumanadeera.

Insiders, both from the SEC and the industry say that several influential investors had been pushing the Commission and the authorities to bring in US Based Fund Manager and son of Presidential Advisor and ICTA Chairman Prof. Epasinghe; Varuna Epasinghe to the hot seat.

However analysts told Ceylon FT that, Varuna Epasinghe who was reported to have been appointed as DG SEC bypassing formal procedure and accepted protocol, had later stepped down, compelling the Commission to go for a second round of calling for applications since several influential investors with vested interests had allegedly been pressurizing the SEC not to select any of the three earlier shortlisted candidates.

Meanwhile on enquiry, SEC’s Spokesperson told Ceylon FT that a final decision on the appointment of a DG had not yet been made.

However a top industry analyst pointed out that the reason for SEC dragging its feet on the appointment of a DG was due to pressure exerted by various quarters that had ulterior motives.
Attorney-at-law Harsha Fernando, before joining as an Advisor to the Asian Development Bank (ADB) served as a Senior State Counsel attached to the Attorney General’s Department. Dr. Harendra Dissa Bandara the incumbent Director of the Financial Services Academy (FSA) which is under the purview of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Sri Lanka, had functioned as Senior Lecturer at the University of Sri Jayawardenepura (USJ) from 1990 to 2010.

The only candidate with investment banking experience out of the three; Nishan Sumanadeera had facilitated some of the top investment ventures and transactions, and has mulled some of the biggest investments made by listed companies during the last three years. Sumanadeera had been instrumental in making three post-war emerging ‘Conglomerates’ such as C.W. Mackie PLC; Lanka Orix Leasing (LOLC) PLC and Softlogic Holdings PLC diversify through their merger and acquisition strategies, in order to reposition for Sri Lanka’s next growth phase.
(Ceylon Today Online)

Thanks Marketsira.

I genuinely feel sorry for Malik Carder. Those days 1000s of retailers went against him and they were saying that he is the one to blame for this negative trend.

At least now, I hope our retailers will NOT expect too much from SEC.

Sri Lanka still hunting for markets watchdog

Feb 06, 2012 (LBO) - Sri Lanka's capital markets regulator is still looking for a chief executive and has called for applications for the second time since the incumbent was removed when he began cracking down on insider dealing and market manipulation.
A securities and exchange commission advertisement in the local media and its website said the new deadline for applications for the post of director general was February 21, 2012. Previously, applications had closed on December 05, 2011.

The applicants should be below 50 years of ago with a bachelor's degree in law, finance, economics, management or business administration along with 10 years experience for those with post-graduate qualifications and 15 years for those without.

The age limit does not apply to government employees and internal candidates and candidates from other government agencies could be considered on secondment basis, the SEC said.

The SEC called for applications for a new director general, after Malik Cader who held the post was kicked upstairs as an advisor to the finance ministry by a decision of the cabinet of ministers in November 2011.

Cader's removal had been canvassed by certain powerful investors who accused him of too tight or haphazard regulation that they said brought the market down.

Others said Cader had not done enough to crack down on insider dealing which is said to be rife in the Colombo bourse as well as other types of illegal activity like microcap fraud, manipulation, hype and dump and chopstock fraud.

But the stock market has been falling almost continuously since Cader's removal in what is seen as a correction that was expected after stock prices hit record highs for two successive years after the end of the island's ethnic war in 2009.

http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/fullstory.php?nid=69245764

Many pros & cons over past few months of the CSE events have formed the mixed sentiments together with dipping market & limping organisational structure of the CSE.

Investors with bulging eyes who are really unaware of what is happening in the market circle are attempting to balance what is so far read of, while few of them are still happily fishing in shallow & deep waters.

Once again it is proved the lethargic actions & inefficiencies of authorities in filling a caliber person after removal/resignation of Mr.Cader.

No one is capable of answering that where we are heading with the painful portfolios carrying & the extent of contribution made by SEC/CSE for the country's development plan.

i think government has other agenda to keep maket down for sometime for some unknown reasons ....i dont know why ......otherwise i wouldnt have taken such a long time to appoint somebody skilful to this post and keep the cse up .....{there are enough unskilled jokers in very high post in government department and institutions } its our bad time ....what to do ......we have to hold ourself and keep watching .......

It is quite obvious that the market manipulators wants to make sure they appoint their proxy to the SEC DG's position so that they could continue to manipulate without getting caught. Manipulators would not want an independent professional appointed to the DG's position. They will go any extent to ensure they have the final say in the decision. SEC's DG's position had lost its respectability and I am sure no honest individual would want to take this position.

What a sad state of affairs. I am ashamed of SEC and its management. How could innocent investors expect SEC to take care of their interest when all of them are in the pocket of Manipulators.

UKboy wrote:I genuinely feel sorry for Malik Carder. Those days 1000s of retailers went against him and they were saying that he is the one to blame for this negative trend.

At least now, I hope our retailers will NOT expect too much from SEC.

Totally agree with you.