ooking forward, newly-elected Philippine Stock Exchange president Francisco Lim wants to end his three-year term with a bourse that has more listed companies, more investors putting in their hard-earned money in the market, and a stock exchange with a reputation for upholding transparency and accountability.
A tall order, indeed, but if there is one person who can do it, it may be Lim, former managing partner of the Accra law office, who took over the presidency of the PSE last 16 September.

Atty. Lim says that many of PSE's problems are legal in nature, thus, he also plans to discuss the refinement of securities laws with the SEC and the Courts

Demystifying the Stock Market
Lim said in an interview that one of the first items on his agenda is to embark on an extensive awareness campaign, to get more Filipinos to invest in the market. “Not too many of our people invest in the stock market, unlike in Hong Kong and Singapore, where even cab drivers and housewives know about the market,” he said.

To correct the situation, he said that there are plans to embark on an information campaign, particularly in the provinces, to drum up interest in the market. There are even plans to tie-up with a popular game show to get ordinary Filipinos to know more about the market, unlike now when about the market, unlike now when the gains from the stock market are largely limited to business people and institutional investors.
“There are a lot of untapped markets out there, particularly Overseas Filipino Workers. They can now invest in the market through the Internet. We should take advantage of the advent of technological advances,” he said.
Lim acknowledges that one of the main stumbling blocks to getting more investors is the lack of trust in the system.
“Rightly or wrongly, that is the perception and we want to change that perception,” he said.
One way of quelling suspicion of unfair play is the creation of a Market Integrity Board, which Lim introduced before he became president, when he was still a member of the PSE Board of Governors.
MIB is an independent board, which would discipline erring brokers and listed companies.
It is chaired by former Supreme Court Justice Jose Vitug, with former Securities and Exchange Commissioner Monico V. Jacob as Vice Chairman. Two representatives from the ranks of the member-brokers would sit on the board, plus an independent director of the PSE, and Lim as non-voting member of the board.
“The board has really been introducing reforms toward transparency. The public should know that,” he said.