Public shareholding companies were set up and their shares were traded in, long before the setting up of the Jordanian Securities Market. In the early thirties, the Jordanian public already subscribed to and traded in shares; the Arab Bank was the first public shareholding company to be established in Jordan in 1930, followed by Jordan Tobacco and Cigarettes in 1931, Jordan Electric Power in 1938, and Jordan Cement Factories in 1951. The first corporate bonds were issued in the early sixties.
As a result, an unorganized securities market has emerged in the form of non specialized offices. This prompted the government to contemplate the idea of setting up a market to regulate issuance of and dealing in securities, in a manner that would ensure safe, speedy and easy trading, and protect small savors, through a mechanism that would define a fair price based on supply and demand. Successive economic plans called for the establishment of such a market, and various parties started to prepare, with the government’s support, for setting up an organized securities market. In 1975 and 1976, the Central Bank conducted intensive studies, in cooperation with the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), and it became clear therefrom that the size of the national economy and the share of the private sector in it through public shareholding companies and its broad investor base justified such a step. Such a market was perceived as a creator of and caterer for much needed opportunities for economic growth which would stimulate and spurt economic activity. These joint efforts bore their fruit, and Temporary Law No. 31 of the year 1976 was promulgate, and what was known as Amman Financial Market was consequently established. A Cabinet resolution of March 16, 1977 set up an AFM Administration Committee, which immediately went into action; and operation on AFM started on the 1st of January, 1978.
The Law laid out the objectives of AFM as follows: to mobilize savings by encouraging investment in securities; thereby channeling savings to serve the interests of the national economy; to regulate issuance of and dealing in securities in a manner that would ensure the soundness, ease and speed of transactions to safeguard national financial interests and to protect small savers; and to provide the necessary data and statistics to achieve AFM objectives.
As of its inception, AFM was entrusted with a dual task, namely the role of a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the role of a traditional Stock Exchange.
The ASE was established in March 1999 as a non-profit, private institution with administrative and financial autonomy. It is authorized to function as an exchange for the trading of securities. The exchange is governed by a seven-member board of directors. A chief executive officer oversees day-to-day responsibilities and reports to the board. The ASE membership is comprised of Jordan's 65 brokerage firms.
The ASE is committed to the principles of fairness, transparency, efficiency, and liquidity. The exchange seeks to provide a strong and secure environment for its listed securities while protecting and guaranteeing the rights of its investors. To provide this transparent and efficient market, the ASE has implemented internationally recognized directives regarding market divisions and listing criteria.
To comply with international standards and best practices, the ASE works closely with the Jordan Securities Commission JSC on surveillance matters and maintains strong relationships with other exchanges, associations, and international organizations. The exchange is an active member of the Union of Arab Stock Exchanges, Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges (FEAS), a full member of the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), and an affiliate member of the International Organization for Securities Commissions (IOSCO).
The ASE is charged with: Providing enterprises with a means of raising capital by listing on the Exchange. Encouraging an active market in listed securities based on the effective determination of prices and fair and transparent trading. Providing modern and effective facilities and equipment for trading the recoding of trades and publication of prices, Monitoring and regulating market trading, coordination with the JSC as necessary, to ensure compliance with the law, a fair market and investor protection, Setting out and enforcing a professional code of ethics among its member directors and staff, Ensuring the provision of timely and accurate information of issuers to the market and disseminating market information to the public. |