Singapore Exchange (SGX) is on course to connect with Bursa Malaysia next month as part of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Trading Link.
The link will let market participants from within the region and outside access both markets via a single connection. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) will join the initiative in August 2012 after it has migrated to a new trading platform. The region’s other stock markets – the Indonesia Stock Exchange, the Philippine Stock Exchange and Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi exchanges – are involved in discussions to join the network, but their participation is not confirmed.
"The collaborative decision of the member exchanges to roll out the ASEAN Trading Link will mark our first key milestone towards breaking down the barriers to cross border trade in ASEAN,” said SGX CEO Magnus Böcker. "Through the trading link, investors in ASEAN will enjoy a new ease of access to a wider investment selection as well as tap the region's growth opportunities.”
Böcker added that combined, SET, SGX and Bursa Malaysia represented two-thirds of the US$2.1 trillion market capitalisation of the ASEAN region.
The ASEAN Trading Link has also formalised an agreement with London Stock Exchange-owned index provider FTSE to deliver a range of market data and analytics services. Part of the linkage will include the formation of the ASEAN Stars, an index comprising the top blue-chip stocks across the countries involved.