Qatar Stock Exchange Holds 9th Annual Investor Relations Conference in Doha

November 20, 2018

Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) today held the 9th Annual Investor Relations Conference at the Rotana City Center in Doha, with the participation of representatives from listed companies, market participants, regulatory bodies and investors. The conference aims to promote the adoption of international best practice in the field of Investor Relations (IR) amongst its listed companies, in an interactive type sitting so that all listed companies and the investment community can gain greater exposure to the latest IR strategies and effective practices utilized worldwide.

Mr. Rashid bin Ali Al Mansoori, CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange, stressed in a speech during the opening of the conference on the importance of investor relations in light of the growing competition to attract capital and investments, and added that the QSE strives to promote the sustainability of its listed companies, especially in this important period in the history of the state. Now is the time for responsible companies that aspire to expand and grow to enhance their credibility in the minds of its investors, the market and the community in general.

Mr. Al Mansoori pointed out that the process of defining the strategic goals of the company and communicating it to employees is one of the pillars that improve transparency and raise the company's valuation, while effective communication between the departments of companies and investors is vital to the success of any company. This falls on the shoulders of the Investors Relations Officer alone, who should provide assistance and support to disseminate information, handle inquiries and meetings, manage crises, and deliver feedback and information to management.

Mr. Al Mansoori stressed the importance of access to Executive Management of companies in the current regulatory environment (Access to Management), which has become imperative, especially as the way to access Executive Management of companies is expected to change compared to its traditional form, and the number of independent service providers is projected to increase. Hence, promotional campaigns and roadshows for listed companies are going to become increasingly important.

“Well-crafted web sites will reinforce your brand, show corporate transparency and educate as well as inspire your stakeholders. Good sites will deepen your relationships with investors.” Al Mansoori said.

Mr. Al Mansoori spoke about Environmental, Social and Governance disclosures (ESG), one of the most attractive subjects to an increasing number of investors. Mr. Al Mansoori told the conference participants that it was agreed with Qatar Financial Markets Authority to launch the Sustainability Reporting Platform on the QSE website within one month, and invited the listed companies to provide the QSE with any comments or suggestions.

“Effective from 1st of October 2019, Qatar will be introducing a mandatory “rules-based” framework for IR; the Rules reflect best-practice and should in any case be standard for listed companies in today’s regulatory capital markets’ environment. For some, this will represent only ‘business as usual’ but for others you will undoubtedly need to pay more attention to your IR function and its resourcing.” Al-Mansoori added. 

“We are working hard to adopt a number of initiatives aimed at developing investor relations by listed companies. These initiatives are a continuation of efforts launched by the Stock Exchange in cooperation with Qatar Financial Markets Authority several years ago, where the focus was on developing the performance and practices of Investor Relations players within listed companies. We seek to support the sustainability of our listed companies in the coming years and decades. This is an important moment in the history of our country. Now is the time for responsible companies desiring to grow and flourish to enhance the confidence of their investors, market and society as a whole.

Mr. Abdul Aziz Al Emadi, Listing of QSE, said: “The event builds on the ground work of prior events and is specifically designed this year to give our listed companies the opportunity to interact with industry experts in the area of IR.  The agenda topics of this conference give the listed Qatari companies the opportunity to interact with investor relations experts and identify the most important actions that a company must take to in any possible unforeseen circumstances.

“At QSE, we strive to deliver the necessary tools and the know-how in developing your IR strategies within your respective companies and better yet communicating an effective strategy to the international investment community.” Mr. Al-Emadi concluded.

The conference was attended by a number of prominent speakers from investment companies, financial institutions and major companies listed on the Qatar Exchange. The conference included a number of important topics covering the best global practices in the field of investor relations and highlighting the methods of developing websites dedicated to investor relations, as well as topics around Environmental, Social and Governance disclosure.

Qatar Exchange and its listed companies have worked together for many years to ensure the development of disclosure and transparency practices through greater focus on investor relations. This has played an important role in Qatar's inclusion of the MSCI, S&P and FTSE indices for emerging markets to increase interest in Qatar's stock market and all of its listed companies.