DSE's income creeps up 1pc

Net income of the Dhaka Stock Exchange rose 1 percent year-on-year in the second financial year after the demutualisation of the bourse.

The DSE's net income stood at Tk 135.6 crore and earnings per share Tk 0.75.

The net asset value per share stood at more than Tk 11 at the end of June last year, up from Tk 10.93 a year earlier.

Most of the income was generated from interest on fixed deposits rather than the bourse's core business or operating income, which includes share transactions and listing fees, DSE officials said.

The average daily turnover, the main source of operating income, came down to below the Tk 450-crore mark from upwards of Tk 500 crore a year earlier.

The DSE is yet to decide whether it will propose any dividend for its shareholders for the 2014-15 financial year.

A decision on the dividend issue may be taken in the upcoming board meeting, said a member of the DSE board. If there is any proposal on dividend, it will be placed at the bourse's annual general meeting on March 24, the member added.

The prime bourse did not give any dividend for 2013-14, the first financial year after its demutualisation.

The bourses were demutualised in 2013 to bring more transparency and accountability into the capital market.

Demutualisation is a way of separating the management of the bourses from ownership. It transforms a stock exchange into a profit-oriented company owned by shareholders and ensures alternative business models and operational efficiency.

Prior to demutualisation, Bangladesh's stock exchanges were non-profit cooperative organisations owned by the exchange members, who are usually stockbrokers.