Taiwan Today

The Financial Supervisory Committee, the nation’s top financial regulatory agency, has reached a preliminary agreement with its French counterpart concerning the cross listings of exchange-traded funds. Lee Jih-chu, deputy minister of the FSC, said June 18 that she held bilateral talks with regulators from France and many other countries during this year’s International Organization of Securities Commissions annual conference. During the conference, Taiwan and France reached a consensus that both sides would work to promote the cross listings of ETFs. Cross listings will make it easier for Taiwanese investors to invest in European stock markets, Lee stated. France has a very active ETF market and some of its ETFs link to stocks in other European countries, she noted. Exactly when a final agreement can be reached will depend on how quickly the FSC’s Securities and Futures Bureau revises its current regulations. Lee said that the French side initiated the ETF discussions, because French investors are very interested in Asian markets, and cross listings provide a convenient entry point into the region. By the same reasoning, the agreement will make it easier for Taiwanese investors to invest in European stocks. France has agreed to base the final agreement on the ETF model recently entered between Taiwan and Hong Kong. Cross listings of Hong Kong’s W.I.S.E – CSI 300 China Tracker and Taiwan’s Polaris Taiwan Top 50 Tracker Fund will kick off by July. The FSC and the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong recently signed and exchanged a side letter to their bilateral memorandum of understanding, entered in 1996. The side letter facilitates cross listing of ETFs in the two markets. Separately, the FSC is also in talks with Singapore concerning ETF listings. (HML-HZW)