ISLAMABAD: Within seven months of their appointments, the Federal Cabinet on Friday changed chairmen of both Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and its Policy Board ending a long-standing dispute between the two.

Replacing Farrukh Sabzwari, the cabinet has approved the appointment of Aamir Khan as chairman SECP for a period of three years with immediate effect while Syed Masoud Ali Naqvi has been appointed chairman of the SECP Policy Board in place of Khalid Mirza.Mr Sabzwari and Mr Mirza developed differences over policy issues eventually leading to the dismissal of both.

Aamir Khan has almost 30 years experience in banking, capital markets, structuring of financial solutions/products, leading national initiatives, business transformation, and regulatory reform.

Head of Policy Board, with whom the chair had developed differences, also shown the door

He has been serving as executive director since 2012 in various SECP departments including the launch of Commodity Murabaha at PMEX, agri-related initiatives and bringing microfinance companies onto SECP’s regulatory ambit.

Mr Khan has also served on senior positions at Standard Chartered Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, and American Express Bank Ltd.

However, Mr Sabzwari will remain commissioner in the SECP. He was appointed chairman SECP in December 2018.

The other three commissioners in the SECP are Tahir Mahmood, Shaukat Hussain and Shauzab Ali. Mr Naqvi is currently at the board of Central Depository Company (CDC) and Member of Tax Reforms Implementation Committee of FBR.

He was a former senior partner of KPMG Taseer Hadi & Co for 28 years and also served as president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan and Management Association of Pakistan, served on Pakistan Institute of Corporate Governance and was chairman of the Tax Reforms Commission of Pakistan formed in 2014. He had been a director on the board of Karachi Stock Exchange.

The cabinet also decided to appoint Nida Rizwan Farid, aerospace engineer and energy efficiency consultant as Managing Director of National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (Neeca).

Established in mid 1980s Neeca is an attached Department of the Power Division, Ministry of Energy. It serves as a federal focal agency mandated for initiating, catalysing and coordinating all energy conservation activities in different sectors of economy.

The cabinet also decided to remove Managing Director National Fertiliser Corporation of Pakistan Engineer Omar Saeed Malik from the post, whereas Syed Intikhab Alam has been appointed the charge of acting managing director of Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation.

Published in Dawn, August 10th, 2019