Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE)

History of the Philippine Stock Exchange :

The current Philippine Stock Exchange is a conjunction of the Manila Stock Exchange (1927) and the Makati Stock Exchange (1963). The Manila Stock Exchange, when in existence, was the first exchange in Manila and the oldest in the Far East. Despite having existed separately for nearly three decades, the two bourses unified in 1992 under President Fidel Ramos. Unification was deemed appropriate because the two exchanges essentially traded the same listings. Ramos also aimed for a more efficient capital market. In 1994, its operations were in full swing with two trading floors - one in Pasig City; the other in Makati City.

On January 4 1993, the PSE incorporated the Stratus Trading System - a computerized approach for their operations. Six months later, on June 15, they also adopted the MakTrade trading system. Although the two systems were linked on March 25 1994 to allow for the same opening and closing prices, it was not until November 13 1995 that the systems were unified under the Unified Trading System - operating under the MakTrade. In 1998 the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission named the PSE a self regulating organization, which allowed it to implement its own policies and regulations. By 2001, the PSE had formed into a stock-shareholder based organisation by taking the shape of a profit earning corporation. It also began trading bonds.

By 2003, in an effort to be more publicly held, the exchange only allowed shares to be listed through an introduction, rather than an initial public offering. Thus, in 2004 the PSE sold 6,077,505 shares of its un-issued capital to five investors: PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund, SMC Retirement Fund, Government Service Insurance System, Kim Eng Investment Ltd. and KE Strategic Pte Ltd.