Qatar allots $275m to a new market-making program

Qatar allots $275m to a new market-making program

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has allotted $275m (QAR1bn) towards a permanent market-making program as the country seeks to attract more foreign investments and deepen its capital markets. The Qatari wealth fund said the initiative will run over the next five years and it will cover 90 per cent of the size of the market capitalisation listed on Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE). said the local bourse attracted the largest foreign investment flows in its history in 2022 and it was launching the market-making program “to support the continuation of this momentum and contribute to the growth of the Qatari economy.” The permanent program will help enhance liquidity in the market, improve price discovery and diversify the capital markets by increasing investor confidence and helping attract more foreign asset managers to invest in the Gulf country. “The commitment from QIA aligns with its mandate to support the development of a competitive Qatari economy,” the wealth fund said in a statement. QSE is working to increase listings, introduce more exchange-traded funds (ETF) and derivatives to help investors diversify their portfolios and better manage their investment risks. The strategy comes as Qatar’s stock exchange is set to welcome its first initial public offering (IPO)