The UN Sustainable Stock Exchange welcomes two new partners exchanges – Q1 2020

31 March 2020

The Bolsa y Mercados de Valores de la República Dominicana (Dominican Republic) and Baku Stock Exchange (Azerbaijan) have solidified their commitment to the transparency and sustainability of their growing economies by becoming a member of the UN Sustainable Stock Exchanges. The SSE’s newest members join a network of now 96 stock exchanges around the world that are committed to sustainable development through transparent capital markets that align with sustainable development objectives.   Bolsa y Mercados de Valores de la República Dominicana  BVRD is currently one of the largest exchanges in the Caribbean region, offering listing, execution, market surveillance and reporting services for sovereign and corporate fixed income operations and open and closed investment funds. BVRD is the only stock exchange that operates in the Dominican Republic, offering services of listing and primary and secondary operations of public and private securities, and the registry of extra-stock transactions. BVRD has a "Green Bond Guide" (in Spanish) as part of its commitment to the development and diversification of financial instruments in the stock market of the Dominican Republic. BVRD has also a sustainability bond listing segment that has been established to promote negotiations of financial instruments between those seeking financing for beneficial initiatives to the environment, and investors seeking to allocate their resources for initiatives that meet globally recognized standards in green finance.   Baku Stock Exchange  Eldar Abdullayev, Acting Chairman of the Management Board of Baku Stock Exchange, said:
“We are very delighted to be part of sustainable stock exchanges initiative which is a global forum for sharing best practices on sustainability and capital markets. Baku Stock Exchange (BSE) has always been operating in framework of interests of The Republic of Azerbaijan and we believe that our cooperation with this community will contribute to the efforts of our country in achieving sustainable development goals and applying best practices in finance sector. As one of the leading financial institutions in Azerbaijan, we are highly enthusiastic in obtaining experience in the application of sustainable growth principles and developing ESG practice in our capital markets. For that purpose, we look forward to put our effort in cooperation with SSE to promote sustainable development goals.”
Founded in 1997 as a closed stock company, Baku Stock Exchange (BSE) aimed to establish and develop the market infrastructure that would provide the trading securities and efficient execution of trading transactions. The first trading operation at the stock exchange was carried out on September 1, 2000, and today BSE organizes trading of the stocks, bonds, and repo transactions. Now 18 companies are listed in two listing segments – premium and standard – that total market capitalization is about 1.44 bln USD

About the SSE

​The SSE initiative is a UN Partnership Programme organised by UNCTAD, the UN Global Compact, UNEP FI and the PRI. The SSE’s mission is to provide a global platform for exploring how exchanges, in collaboration with investors, companies (issuers), regulators, policymakers and relevant international organizations, can enhance performance on ESG (environmental, social and corporate governance) issues and encourage sustainable investment, including the financing of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The SSE seeks to achieve this mission through an integrated programme of conducting evidence-based policy analysis, facilitating a network and forum for multi-stakeholder consensus-building, and providing technical assistance and advisory services.