Bahrain Investment Market officially opens for business

Manama : With the vision of diversifying Bahrain’s economy by boosting the private sector, Bahrain Investment Market (BIM), an innovative equity market, was launched yesterday.
A bell-ringing ceremony was held yesterday at Bahrain Bourse premises in Manama to inaugurate the equity market. The market is expected to provide companies an alternative cost-and time-effective means for raising capital.
The ceremony was attended by Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism (MoIC) in Bahrain and the Minister-In-Charge of Bahrain Bourse Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani, Bahrain Bourse CEO Shaikh Khalifa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, Tamkeen Chief Executive Dr. Ebrahim Janahi, Managing Partner of KPMG in Bahrain Jamal Fakhro, and Managing Director of Keypoint Wajdi Al-Jallad.
According to Bahrain Bourse, listing in BIM will help companies in many ways; apart from providing an innovative financing option, it also gives access to professional advice and guidance, higher brand recognition, and an easier path in transferring to the mainboard market.
As per BIM rules, companies must appoint and retain a sponsor before and during the listing process. In return, the sponsor is responsible for providing companies the required support and guidance to fulfil the BIM admission and financial disclosure requirements. BIM looks to follow the successes of regional equity markets such as Nomu of Saudi Arabia, Qatar Venture Market of Qatar and NILEX of Egypt. Internationally
London Stock Exchange - AIM and Singapore Stock Exchange - Catalist are similar to BIM.
Shaikh Khalifa said that BIM will address the financing gap faced by fast-growing companies who seek growth capital but are not yet at the level where they are able to meet the criteria of the Bahrain Bourse Mainboard.  
“I am pleased to say that the Bahrain Investment Market is now officially open for business. Having two of the leading advisory firms coming on board as authorized sponsors and more expected to join soon, as well as Tamkeen’s new dedicated support program, adds even more value to the BIM’s innovative world-class equity market ecosystem.”
Commenting on this announcement, Tamkeen’s Chief Executive Dr. Ebrahim Janahi said, “Tamkeen’s support for the Bahrain Investment Market comes as part of our efforts to support enterprises across all stages of development and making the private sector the key driver of economic growth.
In addition to access to capital, listed companies will benefit from the implementation of globally-accepted standards for financial auditing and reporting such as the IFRS and AAOIFI, as mandated by the BIM.
Managing Partner of KPMG in Bahrain Jamal Fakhro, noted, “KPMG has had a presence in the country for nearly 50 years, and we understand the needs and challenges that local enterprises face.  We are looking forward to combining our local expertise with our global network and resources to provide companies wishing to be listed within the BIM with market-leading insights and tailored Advisory services.”
Managing Director of Keypoint Wajdi Al-Jallad, commented, “ This is a first step towards a robust and well-regulated stock market platform that will aim to assist various sizes of companies from different economic sectors who are seeking expansion and growth. We pledge our commitment to play an effective role to support the vision of the Bahrain Bourse to make Bahrain Investment Market a successful initiative”
“Start-ups represent the largest and fastest-growing segment of the private sector. According to figures released by Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism earlier this year, the number of commercial registrations in Bahrain nearly tripled, from 9,000 in 2015 to nearly 27,000 in 2016.  Therefore, initiatives such as the BIM will fill an important financing gap in the market.” Bahrain Bourse said in a statement yesterday.
Bahrain Investment Market is open to all companies in the GCC and MENA region. Companies interested in listing on Bahrain Investment Market and specialised advisory firms interested in becoming authorised by Bahrain Bourse may contact the Bahrain Bourse Help Desk by calling (+973) 17 261260 or email bim@bahrainbourse.com.