Capital Market Authority (CMA) Kenya's Acting Chief Executive Paul Muthaura has been elected the Vice Chair of the Africa Middle East Regional Committee (AMERC) for a two-year term, starting May 2016.
AMERC is a regional committee of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)
Muthaura will further continue to serve at the IOSCO Board, to which he was elected in September 2014.
Currently, he serves as a member of the Growth and Emerging Markets Steering Committee (GEMSC), which is charged with representing the interests of more than 80 per cent of the membership of IOSCO, covering the spectrum of emerging markets including the Brics, frontier and nascent capital markets.
Kenya has been recognised as a key voice in articulating policy concerns unique to emerging markets and is fast gaining recognition as a reference point in discussions around technology innovations within the financial services sector.
Commenting on the recent appointment, Muthaura said; “The appointment is a welcome opportunity to take the lead in discussions at the regional level and to influence key policy and global regulatory standards at the IOSCO Board level.”
Muthaura added that his election as the AMERC Vice Chair gives Kenya an opportunity to position the country as a thought leader, given the major strides the country has made in transforming the capital market landscape by facilitating a robust legal and regulatory framework that enhances issuer and investor confidence while encouraging innovation.
Muthaura stands out among regulators in the growth and emerging markets for his role in spearheading the implementation of key reforms in the capital markets in Kenya, which have facilitated accelerated innovation.
Some of the key innovations include; the introduction of a principle-based approval regime for new products and services, the roll out of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Exchange Traded Derivatives, Exchange Traded Funds, the overhaul of the corporate governance standards and the strengthening of the anti-money laundering laws.