Govt is Launching a Digitized Platform for the Investor/Broker Community

In a major move to facilitate investors, the government is all set to launch a digitized platform for investors/brokers community from the first week of April 2019.

Chairman Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) Farrukh Sabzwari, while talking to the media, said that National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited is scheduled to launch the Centralised Know Your Customer Organisation (CKO) from the first week of April 2019, which will make account opening, closing and shifting from one broker to another easy.

The CKO Regulations were finalized in 2017, the regime has yet to be implemented mainly due to resistance from the brokers, as they fear that their clients would easily shift to another broker. Besides, the CKO will also streamline several flaws related to money laundering laws in the stock market.

Sabzwari said, “The opening of an account with the brokers will be made easy as there will be biometric verification of the client anywhere in the country, which will make opening the account easy.” He added,

After the centralized biometric data with NPCCL, checking the clients” working with any brokers will be easy for the regulatory bodies.

However, the clients will also benefit as the KYC process will have to be performed only once and if the customer shifts brokers, the central data at NCCPL would be used to fill the KYC form with the other brokers.

Under the CKO regime, the trading account opening form and sub-account opening form will be merged into a standardized and simplified Customer Relationship Form (CRF).

In the first phase, the NCCPL will provide centralized KYC services to the brokerage and mutual fund industry and in the second phase, the same will be extended to the investors of the commodity market and insurance sector.

There will be no duplication in the KYC form and CRF, while the requirement of bank verification has been deleted in the CKO.


  • The CKO initiative is the first practical step towards Digitalisation of Pakistan and would provide a level playing field for small investors from this platform. Trust the SECP will be on the side of the consumer rather the brokers offering Gathia snacks to the minority investors.


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