- FRA Reviews Centralized Lending System Progress and Evaluating Brokerage Training to Ensure Transaction Efficiency
Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman:
- All technical requirements and brokerage training modules to be completed soon.
- Unified efforts across market participants are vital to build awareness of newly introduced investment tools.
In line with ongoing efforts to operationalize short-selling mechanism, Dr. Islam Azzam, FRA Chairman convened a high-level meeting with senior executives from the Egyptian Exchange (EGX), Misr for Central Clearing, Depository and Registry (MCDR), technical development teams, and specialized departments from all three entities. The meeting aimed to evaluate operational readiness and digital systems under the recently unveiled regulatory framework.
Mr. Omar Radwan, EGX Chairman; Dr. Khaled Serry Seyam, MCDR Chairman; Mr. Mohamed El-Sayyad, FRA Vice Chairman; Mr. Mohamed Sabry, EGX Vice Chairman; Mr. Mahmoud Gabriel, Assistant to FRA Chairman; Eng. Hisham Mabrouk, MCDR Managing Director; and Mr. Khaled Amer, Managing Director of Taswyaat Clearing services, attended the meeting.
Participants reviewed technical updates regarding the Centralized Lending System which ensures seamless, secure integration among MCDR, EGX, brokerage firms, and custodians. Featuring precise technical controls, the system enforces full compliance with the new regulatory framework and documents all operational phases. Under this system, borrowing clients (short sellers) can view all available lending offers submitted by lenders to select options aligned with their investment strategy, while lending clients can monitor all other lending offers registered in the system.
Attendees highlighted the importance of training licensed short-selling brokerages on the operational infrastructure to guarantee smooth execution from day one. The meeting also addressed verifying that brokerages implement the necessary IT infrastructure to achieve full integration with the Centralized Lending System.
Dr. Islam Azzam emphasized the necessity of completing all technical prerequisites and training modules swiftly and efficiently soon, striking a balance between complete transparency, full governance and investor protection in line with international best practices.
FRA Chairman called for unified efforts across capital market entities to educate market participants on the significance of new exchange-traded instruments, noting that short selling enhances market liquidity, pricing efficiency and market depth.
Dr. Islam Azzam added that activating short selling represents more than a long-awaited milestone; it forms a core component of a comprehensive roadmap to rebuild and develop capital market instruments. This milestone follows the launch of derivatives market, the introduction of futures contracts and the regulatory framework establishing hedge funds and allowing existing investment funds to engage in hedge fund strategies—enabling them to execute short selling and trade in derivatives for the first time.
