The Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange (TTSE) is looking to supercharge its growth by recruiting new companies and retail investors to the exchange.

The TTSE is the largest stock exchange in the English-speaking Caribbean by market capitalization. However, it has only 30 listed companies, many of which do not trade frequently. 

Speaking on Taking Stock with Kalilah Reynolds, CEO of the TTSE, Eva Mitchell, said most of the exchange’s investors are institutional. 

“A lot of the investors in Trinidad are large institutional investors and they adopt a buy and hold position,” she said. 

She noted that this does not allow room for retail investors to enter the market and participate, which in turn reduces liquidity. 

However, Mitchell said that the company is working to increase liquidity by enlisting more companies to the market. 

She said that the TTSE has been working with the Government of Trinidad and Tobago to provide incentives for companies to list.

Among them is a 10-year tax incentive for small and medium-sized businesses that list on the exchange’s SME Market, which is very similar to the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s Junior Market. 

“For the first five years, companies would pay $0 in taxes and for five years after that, they would pay 50% of the taxes,” Mitchell explained. 

She said that the focus is on growing the SME Market because many Trinidadian companies would qualify. 

To qualify for Trinidad’s SME Market, companies must have a market capitalization between TT$5-50 million. When converted, that is twice the JSE’s Junior Market limit. 

The CEO added that the company is expanding its products and services. 

“We’re looking to expand our product offerings into exchange-traded funds and derivatives and we’re also developing the custody side of our business,” she said.

“We’re developing ourselves as a one-stop shop within the financial industry,” she said. 

Mitchell also said that as part of the exchange’s development initiative, it is looking to increase its investor base by strengthening its regional and international partnerships.

To that extent, Mitchell said an announcement will be made shortly about a regional collaboration that will benefit regional exchanges.

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