সোমবার, ২৭ এপ্রিল, ২০১৫

Capital Market, Different trading Modes, Stock screening, Regulation

Class Lecture (Final)

Islamic Financial System (Fin-5402)

Capital Market

Definition of Stock/ Equity Market:

  A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock (shares) and derivatives at an agreed price.
  These are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.
  The stocks are listed and traded on stock exchanges which are entities of a corporation or mutual organization. The largest stock market in the USA, by market capitalization, is the NYSE.

Definition of Stock Exchange:

  Stock exchange can be defined as “an association, organization, or an individual who is established for the purpose of assisting, regulating, and controlling business in buying, selling and dealing in securities.”
  A market in which securities are bought and sold: "the company was floated on the Stock Exchange".
  The initial offering of stocks and bonds to investors is by definition done in the primary market and subsequent trading is done in the secondary market.
   A stock exchange is often the most important component of a stock market.
   Supply and demand in stock markets are driven by various factors that, as in all free markets, affect the price of stocks.

The Primary market is the market where investors purchase newly issued securities.

Initial public offering (IPO):  An initial public offer occurs when a company offers stock for sale to the public for the first time.  An IPO involves several steps.

1.      Company appoints investment banking firm to arrange financing.
2.      Investment banker designs the stock issue and arranges for fixed commitment or best effort underwriting.
3.      Company prepares a prospectus (usually with outside help) and submits it to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for approval. Investment banker circulates preliminary prospectus (red herring).
4.      Upon obtaining SEC approval, company finalizes prospectus.
5.      Underwriters place announcements (tombstones) in newspapers and begin selling shares.

Underwriting:

Securities underwriting refers to the process by which investment banks raise investment capital from investors on behalf of corporations and governments that are issuing securities (both equity and debt capital). The services of an underwriter are typically used during a public offering.

This is a way of distributing a newly issued security, such as stocks or bonds, to investors. A syndicate of banks (the lead managers) underwrites the transaction, which means they have taken on the risk of distributing the securities. Should they not be able to find enough investors, they will have to hold some securities themselves. Underwriters make their income from the price difference (the "underwriting spread") between the price they pay the issuer and what they collect from investors or from broker-dealers who buy portions of the offering.

The Secondary market is the market where investor trade previously issued securities. An investor can trade:
  Directly with other investors.
  Indirectly through a broker who arranges transactions for others.
  Directly with a dealer who buys and sells securities from inventory.

A secondary market can be organized as an exchange where buyers and sellers meet in one central location to conduct trades. An example of an exchange is the New York Stock Exchange. A secondary market can also be organized as an over-the-counter market. In this type of market, dealers in different locations buy and sell securities to anyone who comes to them and is willing to accept their prices. An example of an over-the-counter market is the federal funds market.

Stock Exchange in Muslim Countries:

Many Muslim countries, or those with a majority Muslim population, have well established stock markets, for example, Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia and Pakistan. These stock exchanges are basically Western style markets tolerating practices that may not strictly adhere to Islamic principles.


Importance/Roles/Functions of Stock Market:


The stock exchange helps achieve various benefits. It:
1.      provides a market place where a large number of sellers and buyers can meet,
2.      helps remove the apprehension of investors, the buyers, regarding future liquidity problems, that may encourage the investors to accept a lower rate of return than they would have done in the absence of the exchange and consequently lead to reducing the cost of equity capital, hence reducing the average cost of capital of the firm,
3.      helps provide more representative prices of securities than the case would be with separately organized markets,
4.      provides a means of testing the validity of securities by assigning a value to these securities, that is influenced by the views of specialized experts in the market, and
5.      Provides an effective way of absorbing new issues of securities which helps corporations to raise funds.


Islamic Stock Exchange:

Malaysia is making solid progress in establishing the necessary infrastructure to facilitate stock trading in accordance with Islam. Islamic broking houses and Islamic managed funds operate and a separate “Islamic Index” has been established comprising 179 permissible stocks on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange.

Listing on an Islamic stock exchange:

The listing requirements for an Islamic stock market will require scrutiny, not only of the financial performance and soundness of firms, but also of the religious acceptability of their business activities.

Non-Muslim in Islamic Stock exchange:

Example, where the major stockholders are not Muslims, but conduct their affair in a way that does not contravene any principles of Islam. Should these firms be allowed to list on an Islamic stock exchange?

Bank Islam Malaysia, for example, conducts a substantial amount of its financing activities with firms that are owned by non-Muslims. In Bangladesh, Islamic bank also provide services for non-muslim clients.

Definition of stock:

A stock represents a share of ownership of a corporation, or a claim on a firmʹs earnings/assets. Stocks are part of wealth, and changes in their value affect peopleʹs willingness to spend. Changes in stock prices affect a firmʹs ability to raise funds, and thus their investment.

Definition of 'Common Stock'


A security that represents ownership in a corporation. Holders of common stock exercise control by electing a board of directors and voting on corporate policy. Common stockholders are on the bottom of the priority ladder for ownership structure. In the event of liquidation, common shareholders have rights to a company's assets only after bondholders, preferred shareholders and other debtholders have been paid in full.

In the U.K., these are called "ordinary shares."
If the company goes bankrupt, the common stockholders will not receive their money until the creditors and preferred shareholders have received their respective share of the leftover assets. This makes common stock riskier than debt or preferred shares. The upside to common shares is that they usually outperform bonds and preferred shares in the long run.


Definition of 'Preferred Stock':



A class of ownership in a corporation that has a higher claim on the assets and earnings than common stock. Preferred stock generally has a dividend that must be paid out before dividends to common stockholders and the shares usually do not have voting rights.

The precise details as to the structure of preferred stock is specific to each corporation. However, the best way to think of preferred stock is as a financial instrument that has characteristics of both debt (fixed dividends) and equity (potential appreciation). Also known as "preferred shares".

'Common Stock' and Preferred stock in Islam:

Ownership shares issued by corporations and traded by investors include both common stock and preferred stock. While there are several ways in which the two types of stock differ, the most significant way, from an Islamic legal point of view, is that preferred stocks guarantee the amount of the dividend.

Such a predetermined and guaranteed rate of return is prohibited for the reason that it may be classified as riba. Thus, while an investor may share the risks of ownership with other investors, the preferred status of the preferred stock means that there is extra compensation for the owner for which the owner has not had to pay. This, in simplified terms, amounts to riba al fadl. In Lesson Two of this course, we will take a detailed look at riba and the forms it may take. For similar riba-based reasons, fixed-income securities, convertible notes, and the like are also prohibited.

As a general rule, then, Muslim investors may trade only in common stock.

In some cases, however, preferred stock may be offered without a fixed dividend or without a dividend at all. Even so, it is the right of the shareholders to change those terms through a vote at their shareholders? meetings. Thus, while a Muslim investor may purchase such stock, s/he may hold it only for as long as it carries no fixed dividend. If the status of the stock changes as a result of a vote, the Muslim investor will have to liquidate his/her interest in the company immediately. And if a fixed-amount dividend is received before the stock can be sold, the entire amount of the dividend will have to be given away as charity.

Some concept and their application Islam:

'Insider Trading':

The buying or selling of a security by someone who has access to material, non-public information about the security. Insider trading can be illegal or legal depending on when the insider makes the trade: it is illegal when the material information is still nonpublic--trading while having special knowledge is unfair to other investors who don't have access to such knowledge. Illegal insider trading therefore includes tipping others when you have any sort of nonpublic information. Directors are not the only ones who have the potential to be convicted of insider trading. People such as brokers and even family members can be guilty.

Insider trading is legal once the material information has been made public, at which time the insider has no direct advantage over other investors. The SEC, however, still requires all insiders to report all their transactions. So, as insiders have an insight into the workings of their company, it may be wise for an investor to look at these reports to see how insiders are legally trading their stock. 


Buying on margin or Margin trading:

Margin buying refers to the buying of securities with cash borrowed from a broker, using other securities as collateral. This has the effect of magnifying any profit or loss made on the securities. The securities serve as collateral for the loan. The net value—the difference between the value of the securities and the loan—is initially equal to the amount of one's own cash used. This difference has to stay above a minimum margin requirement, the purpose of which is to protect the broker against a fall in the value of the securities to the point that the investor can no longer cover the loan.
Example:
Jane buys a share in a company for $100 using $20 of her own money and $80 borrowed from her broker. The net value (the share price minus the amount borrowed) is $20. The broker wants a minimum margin requirement of $10.
Suppose the share price drops to $85. The net value is now only $5 (the previous net value of $20 minus the share's $15 drop in price), so, to maintain the broker's minimum margin, Jane needs to increase this net value to $10 or more, either by selling the share or repaying part of the loan.

Islamic perspective margin trading:

From an Islamic perspective margin trading is clearly unacceptable. This has been reinforced by the Council of the Islamic Fiqh Academy (CIFA) which considered margin trading at its 1993 meeting. The CIFA ruled that it is not permissible to borrow money with interest from a stockbroker, or other party, to buy shares and to deposit them as security for the loan. However, this does not outlaw the practice entirely, as it is possible to construct non-interest bearing financial contracts to achieve the same thing. For example, in Malaysia, Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad offers share financing through Mudarabah profit sharing contracts.

Short Selling'

The sale of a security that is not owned by the seller, or that the seller has borrowed. Short selling is motivated by the belief that a security's price will decline, enabling it to be bought back at a lower price to make a profit. Short selling may be prompted by speculation, or by the desire to hedge the downside risk of a long position in the same security or a related one. Since the risk of loss on a short sale is theoretically infinite, short selling should only be used by experienced traders who are familiar with its risks.

Consider the following short-selling example. A trader believes that stock SS which is trading at $50 will decline in price, and therefore borrows 100 shares and sells them. The trader is now “short” 100 shares of SS since he has sold something that he did not own in the first place. The short sale was only made possible by borrowing the shares, which the owner may demand back at some point.

A week later, SS reports dismal financial results for the quarter, and the stock falls to $45. The trader decides to close the short position, and buys 100 shares of SS at $45 on the open market to replace the borrowed shares. The trader’s profit on the short sale – excluding commissions and interest on the margin account – is therefore $500.

Suppose the trader did not close out the short position at $45 but decided to leave it open to capitalize on a further price decline. Now, assume that a rival company swoops in to acquire SS because of its lower valuation, and announces a takeover offer for SS at $65 per share. If the trader decides to close the short position at $65, the loss on the short sale would amount to $15 per share or $1,500, since the shares were bought back at a significantly higher price.



Islamic perspective of Short Selling'

Umer Chapra strongly advocates the abolition of short selling in an Islamic market, arguing that such sales are speculative and fail to perform any useful economic function. The public interest, masalahah, is better served by prohibiting short sales. The element of speculation involved in short sales further suggests that short selling is unacceptable.

Speculations and arbitrage:

SPECULATION : It is the transaction of members to buy or sell securities on stock exchange with a view to make profits to anticipated raise or fall in price of securities.

A speculator will buy stock in anticipation of prices rising usually with a short-term horizon. The danger of this, as observed by Brailsford and Heaney (1998), is that what is initially planned as a short-term position, with a sale to be completed before taking delivery of the stock, may well result in a longer term position when the stock does not perform as expected. Such purchases are often financed on margins or other forms of borrowing.

A speculator will sell in anticipation of prices falling. This strategy may involve a short sale whereby the speculator borrows stock from a broker with a view to subsequently buying it at a lower price, thereby completing the deal.

Arbitrage: The simultaneous purchase and sale of an asset in order to profit from a difference in the price. It is a trade that profits by exploiting price differences of identical or similar financial instruments, on different markets or in different forms. Related to speculation is the practice of arbitrage. An arbitrageur is a particular type of speculator who seeks to obtain a risk free return with a zero investment. An example of a potential arbitrage opportunity is the existence of identical assets at different prices in different markets. Such practices are more difficult with modern communications and computerised trading, as price discrepancies in different domestic markets are quickly eliminated from the system. Arbitrage will be regarded as one aspect of speculation.

Islamic Perspective of Speculations and arbitrage:

Islamic economists and scholars that speculation, as described above, is unacceptable because of its association with gambling and excessive risk taking. In addition, speculation creates volatility. This undermines the orderly functioning of the stock market while the profits of speculators are achieved at the expense of other investors. Any potential benefit of speculation, for example by injecting liquidity into the market is not considered by Islamic scholars to outweigh the negative aspects. If any activity is deemed to be forbidden and Haram, that activity cannot be acceptable under any circumstance.


BROKER: He is one act as an intermediary on behalf of others. A broker in a stock exchange is a commission agent who transacts business in securities on behalf of non-members.
  A broker deals with the jobber on behalf of his clients. in other words, a broker is a middleman between a jobber and clients
  A broker is merely an agent, buying or selling securities on behalf of his clients
  A broker gets only commission for his dealings
  The  broker deals in all types of securities

Definition of 'Hedge':



Making an investment to reduce the risk of adverse price movements in an asset. Normally, a hedge consists of taking an offsetting position in a related security, such as a futures contract. An example of a hedge would be if you owned a stock, then sold a futures contract stating that you will sell your stock at a set price, therefore avoiding market fluctuations. Hedging naturally belongs to Islamic economic objectives as long as it does not involve pure speculation and gambling-like activities


Regulatory body:

SEC-securities and exchanges commission
CRB-Company Regulatory body
SAC-sharia Advisory council


Islamic capital market screening system:


(Collected from :islamic capital market product: development and challenges, published byIRTI,IDB)






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