FE Report

Stock market investors have expressed their grievance against a recent directive of Central Depository Bangladesh Ltd (CDBL) on the levy of beneficiary owners' (BO) 'annual account maintenance fee'.

"A BO account opened on December 15, 2009 will be subject to a fee for 2009 on opening and again 15 days later on December 31, 2009, a renewal fee for 2010," the CDBL said in its latest directive which triggered the grievance among the investors.

Investors said it goes against any sense and they sought the intervention of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in this regard.

A BO account-holder pays Tk 300 as renewal fee every year. Now there are 1.6 million BO account-holders.

"It has become a very vexing duty for the DPs, in addition to their daily routine functions to update the maintenance fee everyday in compliance with the CDBL directive," a DSE brokerage house source said.

Market operators said as the stock market operation has expanded to a large extent during the last few years, the CDBL-related functions should remain easy and hassle-free to serve the investors in an efficient way.

The SEC decided to put more conditions in opening BO accounts to prevent people from opening fake accounts

Earlier in August of 2007, the SEC tightened the rules of opening and maintaining BO accounts, allowing the commission to forfeit the application money of initial public offerings for using fake BO accounts.

'If an applicant submits more than two applications, the whole money will be forfeited by the commission, the new rules said adding 'in such cases, all applications will be treated as invalid and will not be considered for allotment.'

As per the rules, an applicant cannot submit more than two applications for IPOs, one in his/her name and another jointly with other person.