Hipmi members to trade at JSX

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Association of Young Indonesian Businessmen (Hipmi) signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday with the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) management in a move to increase investors in the bourse within the next three years.

Under the memorandum, the association will encourage its members to become investors and list their companies on the stock market, while the JSX management will provide Hipmi members with training on the capital market.

Hipmi chairman Sandiaga S. Uno said on Wednesday that through the memorandum, the association would actively be involved in programs arranged by the JSX. The stock market management plans to boost the number of its investors to two million by 2008.

At present, about 500,000 investors are actively involved in the trade of the 334 companies listed on the JSX.

"At least 5 percent of the (JSX) two million target, or 100,000 new investors, will come from Hipmi," said Sandiaga, who kicked off trading on Wednesday.

He added that Hipmi had the potential to achieve the target, regarding its 25,000 members in 30 provinces and 228 regencies across the country.

"All these years, many Hipmi members have kept their money in savings accounts or time deposits. Now, we will encourage them to use their money wisely by investing in the capital market," he said, adding that the remaining 75,000 of the 100,000 target would come from Hipmi senior members and their colleagues.

"Most of our members in regions outside Java are small and medium entrepreneurs. By raising new capital in the stock market, they can develop their companies to become big enterprises," Hipmi secretary-general Made Suryadana said.

Hipmi aims to have five companies owned by members listed on the JSK by the end of 2008.

"This year, two companies are preparing initial public offerings," Made said.

JSX director Erry Firmansyah said that starting on Wednesday, the bourse would help the association promote the capital market to Hipmi members, especially those in regions outside Java, so that the number of local investors would hopefully increase.

"At present, some 60 percent of the trading activities are dominated by foreign investors. We hope in the next three years the number of foreign and domestic investors will be equal," he said. (006)