The chairman of the Saudi Capital Market Authority, said he expects companies and banks to begin trading bonds (sukuk) in the Saudi market as early as this year.

In an exclusive interview with CNBC Arabiya, Dr Abdulrahman Al Tuwaijri said that the authority is technically preparing the capital market to accommodate the trading of sukuk and noted that the authority urges companies in general, and banks in specific, to launch bonds to Saudi nationals trading in the market.

He also explained that easy access to loans in the past was among the reasons for the delay in launching bonds.

Highlighting the importance of transparency, Al Tuwaijri confirmed that all companies are committed to releasing their financial results on time, in addition to the market enjoying very high levels of transparency.

Al Tuwaijri also added that the Saudi Financial Market is the only market in the region for which its publicly listed companies release their financial results on time, noting that not one company held up its results during the last two financial quarters.

He added that the Authority had introduced a specific form for announcing company news, in which investors can acquire the important information which can have a major effect on the company's market performance.

The Authority has also implemented a fining system, to encourage companies to apply the highest levels of transparency in the market to avoid the leakage of potential information before any public announcement.

Al Tuwaijri concluded that the authority's role is to protect investors and the general public from unfair and unsound practices involving fraud, deceit, cheating, manipulation and insider trading, in addition to achieving fairness, efficiency and transparency in securities transactions.-TradeArabia News Service