Saudi Arabia

Capital Market Authority (CMA) is an independent financial regulatory body that is charged with overseeing, developing, and regulating the capital markets of Saudi Arabia. As one of the pillars of the economic landscape of Saudi Arabia, CMA enjoys total financial, legal, and administrative independence and reports directly to the Prime Minister. The main responsibility of this regulatory body is to ensure that there is a transparent, sound, and highly competitive investment environment by regulating security issuance, licensing financial intermediaries, guaranteeing strict disclosure of information, and shielding investors from fraudulent transactions. Under the overriding vision of Saudi Vision 2030, CMA serves as the chief architect in internationalizing the Tadawul (Saudi Stock Exchange) by eliminating all traditional barriers to foreign direct investment in order to make the country a global capital market hub.

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) is an authority in regulating, developing, and overseeing the securities market in Saudi Arabia with respect to structure, protection of investors and their interests, and ensuring transparency in transactions in the stock market. The authority carries out its mission by implementing the relevant regulations through drafting strict implementing regulations, handling public offerings and the listing of corporations on the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), and licensing all Capital Market Institutions (CMIs), which include investment advisors, broker-dealers, and asset managers. To prevent any disruptions in the market, the CMA has strong capacity to enforce laws and carry out investigations with regard to market crimes, market manipulation, and insider trading. Moreover, following the vision of Saudi Vision 2030, the CMA liberalizes the financial sector through carrying out progressive structural reforms such as the removal of qualification requirements for international investors and asset classes and algorithmic trading to attract global capital inflows.