The principal stock market of Qatar, Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) has mandated all it’s listed organizations to use the Q-Disclosure platform for their financial and non-financial disclosures from October 1.
According to the QSE statement on its official website, all listed firms are expected ot begin their disclosures on the Q-Disclosure platform with their third-quarter results.
The Q-Disclosure platform will be an addition to existing channels utilized by firms where all financial and non-financial disclosures are made.
“The company news service will remain a back-up mechanism until further notice,” the statement said.
Qatar is soon expected to introduce an XBRL-based reporting and disclosure system to facilitate mandated financial and non-financial disclosures by QSE listed companies under a collaboration of QSE and the Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA).
Available in both English and Arabic, the Q-Disclosure platform, an integrated web-based solution will make a stew of changes to the way financial disclosures like quarterly, semi-annual and annual reports and non-financial disclosures like corporate actions corporate announcements, and other regulatory announcements are done.
The QSE statement said that the new platform will not necessarily bring in any material change to the reporting obligations but will alter the “the way in which submissions are made”
“QSE has taken the opportunity to reword QSE Rulebook to clarify and emphasize the baseline obligation for Issuers to timely disclose complete and accurate information that enables securities holders to exercise their rights,” the statement added.
QSE’e new platform will utilize IFRS for financial disclosures with sector specific taxonomy for banks and financial institutions, real estate, consumer, industrial, telecom transport businesses, and insurance companies (commercial and Islamic).
A wide range of web forms and templates will be made available on the platform for non-financial disclosures including standard corporate actions like issuance of bonus shares, capital changes, dividends and rights issues along with company announcements like AGMs, EGMs, board meetings, changes to the board, ownership limits, disclosure dates of financial information and others.
The statement further added that “Issuers of ETF and REITs and similar non-corporate entities will be exempted from using the Q-Disclosure platform for their financial disclosures (not for their non-financial disclosures) and should continue to use the existing company news mechanism for financial disclosures until further notice.”
“The use of the Q-Disclosure platform will be free of charge in the first instance. However, QSE retains the right to impose service fees for the use of the platform in accordance with the QSE Rulebook,” it stated.
