Riyadh: The Capital Market Authority issued the book “The Market Story”, which documents the journey and the history of the Saudi capital market through its three phases from 1926 to 2020. The book came in two editions: the comprehensive documentary edition covering the course of the capital market, and an illustrated documentary edition that displays photographs, official documents, and graphs.

This documentation effort adopted an academic methodology combining historical and descriptive approaches. It involved several steps, including collecting and reviewing hundreds of historical documents, conducting more than 80 interviews with personalities who contributed to and participated in the capital market journey, and many notable references. 

Spanning a century, the Saudi capital market evolved through three phases. The first phase began with the founding of the Kingdom and highlighted the increasing role of the private sector in state development, the creation of Saudi joint-stock companies, and the proliferation of stock trading through unlicensed offices.

The second phase began with moves toward regulating the trading of stocks of Saudi joint-stock companies. This included the issuance of the Royal Decree in 1983, which restricted the trading of stocks of Saudi joint-stock companies to commercial banks, and the formation of a Ministerial Committee to regulate stock dealing activities.

This preparation set the stage for the third and final phase, marked by the issuance of the Capital Market Law in 2003 and the formation of the Capital Market Authority. The developments of 2004, and those that followed, positioned it strongly among regional and global markets.

It is worth mentioning that the Capital Market Authority has provided various channels and tools enabling readers to view the “Main Book” and the “Photographic Book”. These are accessible through CMA’s website.

For more information, please visit “The Market Story” page at the following link: The Market Story

Contact:
Capital Market Authority
Communication & Investor Protection Division
Media@cma.org.sa
www.cma.org.sa

About CMA:

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) in Saudi Arabia unofficially started in the early fifties, and continued to operate successfully, until the government set its basic regulations in the eighties. The current Capital Market Law is promulgated and pursuant to Royal Decree No. (M/30) dated 2/6/1424H, which formally brought it into existence. The CMA is a government organization applying full financial, legal, and administrative independence, and has direct links with the Prime Minister.

For more information about CMA, please visit the official website: www.cma.org.sa