In a press release sent to the media on Sunday (July 12), the BSEC provided this clarification regarding various reports published about the chairman's statements.

The statement said that the BSEC chairman's remarks during a recent exchange meeting with journalists on various stock market-related issues were misrepresented. The news that dormant companies would be quickly delisted does not accurately reflect the chairman's comments.

The BSEC stated that in most capital markets around the world, companies that have been inactive for a long time are not kept listed indefinitely. Bangladesh is an exception in this regard, where some non-operational companies have remained listed for many years. This particularly exposes ordinary and small investors to risk.

According to the commission, as the primary regulator, the responsibility for taking necessary action regarding such companies lies with the respective stock exchange. The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) is already reviewing the matter and has taken steps to formulate a transparent and reasonable process.

As part of this process, long-dormant companies may be given a specific period, such as one year, to resume operations. If they fail to resume operations within the stipulated time, subsequent measures will be considered in accordance with existing laws, rules, and listing regulations.

Meanwhile, in a warning to investors, the BSEC said that utmost caution should be exercised when investing in shares of companies that have been inactive for a long time, face going concern issues, do not hold regular annual general meetings (AGMs), or do not pay dividends.