Securities brokers: SECP suggests procedure for renewal of licence

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has proposed a detailed procedure for renewal of licence of securities brokers or futures brokers. The SECP has issued SRO 1194(I)/2017 to propose amendments to the Securities Brokers (Licensing and Operations) Regulations, 2016.
According to the draft regulations, a securities broker or futures broker shall, one month prior to the date of expiry of its licence, apply to the Commission in Form C and Form C1 along with all the documents as specified in Annexure C and receipt evidencing payment of renewal fee of such amount as specified in Schedule I, for renewal of its licence.
A securities broker or futures broker applying for renewal of licence shall submit its application along with supporting documents through the securities exchange or futures exchange to the Commission.
Provided that such documents will be required to be submitted by the applicant along with the application which had not earlier been provided by it at the time of applying for grant or renewal of licence as a securities broker, and the futures exchange and the Commission shall only check compliance with such applicant with any additional requirements as applicable under the Futures Act and these regulations, if any, provided there is no change in status of compliance of the applicant with the requirements of the Act and these regulations.
The securities exchange or futures exchange, as applicable, shall scrutinize the application for renewal of licence and the documents submitted by the securities broker or futures broker prior to submission of the same for consideration of the Commission, along with a letter of recommendation stating that it has reviewed the contents of the application and the supporting documents and has found the same to be in conformity with the Act or Futures Act, as applicable, and these regulations:
Provided that while submitting the letter of recommendation to the Commission, the securities exchange or futures exchange, as applicable, shall also take into account the securities broker's or futures broker's outstanding customer complaints and its track record with respect to its compliance with the applicable regulatory requirements:
Provided further that along with the recommendation letter, the securities exchange or futures exchange shall submit a confirmation to the Commission that it has visited the premises of the securities broker or futures broker and is satisfied with the infrastructure and human resources deployed by the securities broker or futures broker to ensure ongoing compliance with these regulations.
The Commission upon being satisfied that the applicant continues to meet the requirements for licensing, is in compliance with the provisions of the Act, the Futures Act and any rules, regulations, notifications, directives or codes issued thereunder and it is in the public interest and interest of the capital market, shall renew the licence for one year and issue a certificate of renewal of licence to the applicant in the Form D and Form D1.
Where the application for renewal of licence is made within the provided time but has not been decided by the Commission, the licence of the securities broker or futures broker shall continue to be valid until the application for renewal is decided by the Commission.
While renewing the licence of a securities broker or futures broker, the Commission may, in addition to the criteria laid down for grant of licence, also take into account the past track record and history of regulatory compliance of the 10 securities broker or futures broker, its sponsors, directors and senior management officers.
The Commission shall send an intimation of renewal of licence of the securities broker or futures broker to the securities exchange or futures exchange, as applicable, clearing house and central depositor, the SECP added.