Algeria Facilitates SME Financial Market Access

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

02 January 2012

Algeria’s Finance Minister Karim Djoudi has recently unveiled details of a series of actions and fiscal measures designed to facilitate financial markets access for businesses in Algeria, notably small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

According to Finance Minister Djoudi, the government is currently considering the idea of setting up a financial markets segment specific to SMEs, providing “much simpler” and “less restrictive” access conditions, and is also envisaging reducing the charges and costs of market entry.

Finance Minister Djoudi revealed that the government has already embarked on its plans to modernize the financial markets, noting that it has established legislative provisions providing for a reduction in the fiscal burden for financial market entry, and explaining that Cosob, the surveillance committee responsible for stock market operations, has been tasked with implementing agreed plans.

As part of its plans to modernize the sector, the government plans to ask public economic operators to open up their capital onto the market, the minister continued, adding that the country’s financial authorities are also considering the idea of extending the existing range of stock market products.

Algeria’s Finance Minister also alluded to the country’s 2012 finance bill, currently under examination by the government, noting that the bill provides for an increase in global growth of 4.7% and for maintaining inflation at 4%. The 2012 budget will be drawn up on the basis of the same framework as the previous finance law, Djoudi announced, noting that the text also provides for a slight increase in imports, and for a 20% increase in ordinary taxation.

Under government’s plans, local communes will also benefit in future from a much greater share of ordinary fiscal revenues, within the framework of its reform of local finance, the minister noted.

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