Qatar hopes to double the number of listed companies in the next five years through a raft of reform initiatives including the launch of a new second-tier market.

The Qatar Exchange (QE) has 42 listed companies. Its aggregate market capitalisation on 10 September was $144bn. In June, index provider MSCI upgraded Qatar from frontier market to emerging market status. Qatar is due to be included in the MSCI emerging market index in May 2014.

Director of legal affairs and enforcement at the Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA) Zain al-Abdin Sharar told the MEED Qatar Banking Summit that the forecast of a sharp increase in the number of listed firms and the volume of trade on the QE will reflect the impact of a wide-ranging programme of capital market reform. He said important further changes will soon be implemented.

“We have new rules for listing on the second market,” Sharar said. “This will be for companies that can’t meet requirements for listing on the primary market. We have amended the corporate governance code for companies listed on the main market. This will improve the disclosure requirements.

He said the QFMA was about to issue new rules for “financial adequacy for financial service firms”, which will help the market to be more efficient and protect it against any “unseen circumstances”.

“We will soon issue new mergers and acquisitions [M&A] rules for listed companies,” Sharar added.

The QFMA has finalised the rules for the regulation and licensing of the Qatar Central Security Depositary. “We also are considering rules for margin trading and the listing of real estate investment funds,” Sharar said.