The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was established pursuant to section 3 of the repealed Securities Act, Cap 354 of the Laws of Zambia and its existence has been continued under the new Securities Act, No. 41 of 2016 (the Act”). The Commission’s mandate is to ensure that investors in the Zambian capital markets, both local and foreign, are protected. It is also the mandate of the Commission to develop the capital markets. The Commission has to ensure there is a right balance between investor protection and Capital Market Development. The principal function of the SEC is to regulate the capital markets so as to foster fair and efficient trading.
Section 8 of the Act entrusts the implementation of the Act to the Commission Board which has been mandated to exercise the functions of the Commission as provided in the Act and oversee the administrative affairs of the Commission by putting in place effective, efficient and transparent systems of corporate governance. This is critical as all decisions relating to the regulation of the securities market are made at Board level.