The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) Brokers Association (DBA) has thrown down the gauntlet—demanding the interim government list state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and multinational corporations (MNCs) to revive Bangladesh’s sluggish capital markets. It’s a move dripping with irony: the same institutions often criticized for bureaucratic inertia are now being touted as market saviors. But hey, desperate times call for desperate measures, right?
The SOE Listing Gamble: Panacea or Placebo?
The government’s response—ordering profitable SOEs and MNCs with state stakes to go public—smacks of a Hail Mary pass. Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal’s pledge to list seven more government companies feels like a Black Friday sale for institutional investors. But let’s not kid ourselves: throwing SOEs into the market without addressing their notorious inefficiencies is like slapping a fresh coat of paint on a crumbling building.
Globally, this isn’t uncharted territory. Ghana’s stock exchange has been begging for SOE listings to boost efficiency, while Singapore’s Monetary Authority is tinkering with ETFs to lure back skittish investors. Even China’s SASAC has resorted to *ordering* SOEs to buy their own shares—a move that reeks of market manipulation disguised as “stability measures.” The takeaway? Listing SOEs isn’t a magic bullet. Without governance overhauls, Bangladesh risks creating a market flooded with zombie stocks.
The MNC Tightrope: Profit vs. Politics
Here’s where it gets spicy. MNCs aren’t charity cases—they’re in Bangladesh to make money, not play nice with local content rules or tech-transfer demands. Host governments love to flex their regulatory muscles, but excessive intervention can backfire. Imagine a multinational eyeing Dhaka’s market, only to balk at requirements to hire locally *and* share proprietary tech. Spoiler: they’ll take their capital elsewhere.
Studies show MNCs deploy slick strategies to dodge these hurdles, from lobbying to creative accounting. Bangladesh’s pitch to MNCs must balance investor appeal with national interests—too heavy-handed, and the market becomes a ghost town; too lenient, and locals cry foul. It’s a tightrope walk, and the government’s footing looks shaky.
Governance or Chaos? The OECD’s Ghost in the Room
Enter the OECD’s corporate governance guidelines—the rulebook Bangladesh *should* be cribbing from. Their SOE Compendium isn’t exactly beach reading, but it’s a blueprint for preventing state-owned disasters. Think transparency, accountability, and (gasp) *actual oversight*. Compare that to Bangladesh’s track record: SOEs plagued by mismanagement, corruption, and political meddling. Listing them without fixing these rot-filled foundations is like serving gourmet food on a trash can lid.
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority gets it—their Listing Rules overhaul prioritizes rigor over reckless expansion. Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s approach feels like building a skyscraper on quicksand. Attracting institutional investors requires trust, and trust requires governance. Without it, even the shiniest SOE IPO will flop harder than a Black Friday doorbuster.
The Bottom Line
Bangladesh’s SOE/MNC listing spree mirrors global trends, but mimicry isn’t strategy. Revitalizing markets demands more than dumping state assets onto exchanges—it needs governance reforms, investor protections, and a reality check on MNC negotiations. The OECD’s guidelines offer a roadmap, but will Dhaka follow it? Or will this end up as another economic detective story where the culprit is… *same as it ever was*?
Call it a hunch, but the real mystery isn’t whether SOEs will list—it’s whether anyone will bother buying.
