Colombian Bolsa Seeks Regional Integration

Colombia’s Bolsa de Valores is actively looking to merge with other LatAm exchanges and has been in talks with the Lima exchange as well as Panama’s, according to a New York-based equity analyst covering exchanges. “Colombia is pushing for integration and has already signed several MOUs with Lima,” says the analyst. One problem is that while the Colombia exchange has talked to Lima, it has not approached Cavali, Lima’s clearinghouse. The Lima exchange owns about 30% of Cavali and if an offer for the exchange does not include Cavali, another party could set up a trading system and acquire Cavali as its clearinghouse, according to the analyst. An official at the Lima exchange says that there were some conversations last year regarding the integration of the exchanges, but that no formal talks are taking place. Meanwhile, Panama’s securities commission says it is evaluating whether to recognize Colombia as an authorized jurisdiction, which would allow Colombian traders to list stocks on the Panama exchange.