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Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE)'s first seminar on the investment opportunities at the Exchange's single stock futures market was held on September 21 at hotel Espinas Tehran.
Dr. Ghalibaf Asl, TSE's CEO opened the event and focused on the Iranian capital market's recent years' rapid development.
Trading regulations recovery, daily price fluctuation range increase, raised liquidity, implementing auction methods, listing of some major companies and subsequently, the notable growth in market capitalization and trading volume/value, as well as more transparency in price discovery and most recently, on-line trading facility were among market developments that Dr. Ghalibaf Asl mentioned as the signs of TSE dynamism.
''Futures trading has been initiated in Iran Mercantile Exchange since 2007 and TSE provides them to the securities investors now as a means for increasing market's efficiency and its specialization", he added.
He insisted that ''the futures contract helps market discover better prices, increase transparency and liquidity, and become more developed. This is also a product which raises market's attraction and hedges risks".
Currently, futures contracts are available on 8 TSE listed shares, and the number will gradually rise.
TSE's CEO noted that product diversification will not be limited to the stocks futures, and launching stocks options is being studied.
He also emphasized on TSE's training activities as one of the Exchange's commitments to the Iranian investment community, which is categorized under public, technical and brokerage/investment companies with about 32 thousand person-hours of trading courses on the futures trading.
Dr. Ali Salehabadi, head of Iran's Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO), gave a short history of futures market development in Iran since the new market law was ratified and implemented on December 2006.
He recognized this product as a proper one for risk management and mentioned the importance of launching currency futures market in our country with considerable import/export transactions.
''The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has recently issued the currency forward trading bylaw to the banking system, and we are going to hold a meeting with CBI authorities to substitute the issued regulations with the currency futures bylaw", he continued.
He also called for market's experts to feel committed to inform the country's market participants about the new product's opportunities and to develop it.
The event went on with more technical and educational speeches by Mr. Ali Sangenian, TSE's Deputy and Mr. Ahmad Pouyanfar.
A panel discussion was also held before closing, which became an active interaction of questions and answers among panelists and interested investors and intermediary agents.
