CSE seeks BSEC approval to offload 35% shares, list on Dhaka bourse
The Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) has sought approval from the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) to offload its remaining 35% blocked shares and list on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), aiming to complete the demutualisation process after more than a decade.
In a letter to the regulator, the CSE stated that its board, at the 143rd meeting held on 13 July 2025, decided to proceed with the share offloading in compliance with the Exchanges Demutualisation Act 2013.
Under the plan, 20% of the shares will be offered to four or five reputed foreign or local institutions that are neither existing shareholders nor connected parties. The share price will be determined by the CSE board and subject to BSEC approval. The remaining 15% will be offered to the general public through a specially designed book-building process. As part of the initiative, CSE will also be listed on the DSE.
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CSE Managing Director M Shaifur Rahman Mazumdar told The Business Standard that the board has decided to move forward with the listing process. "Once we receive regulatory consent, we can proceed with the matter," he said.
He added that the Demutualisation Act requires a stock exchange to be listed either on its own board or on the board of another exchange. There is no fixed deadline for such listing, but it must have the approval of both the board and the BSEC. Currently, there are no self-listing regulations for stock exchanges.
At the end of June 2024, the CSE had a total of 623 listed securities. During the fiscal year 2023-2024, a total of 189.17 crore shares were traded, which is 15.18% higher than the 164.24 crore shares traded in the same period of the previous year. The total turnover value for the same period was Tk7,478 crore, representing a 23.28% increase compared to the previous year.
Under the demutualisation framework, 40% of CSE shares are held by the initial shareholders. Most local institutions are connected to these shareholders and therefore are not eligible to buy additional shares. This creates an opportunity for foreign institutions, with a maximum ownership limit of 5% per institution.
CSE plans to sell 20% of its shares to four foreign institutions and distribute the remaining 15% shares to general investors through an IPO.
As part of its earlier demutualisation process, CSE sold 25% of its shares to ABG Ltd, a concern of Bashundhara Group, at Tk15 per share. If approved by the BSEC, the share offloading and listing plan could open the door to greater foreign participation and help revive CSE's position in Bangladesh's capital market.
