Independent body for listing mulled

[SINGAPORE] An independent listing committee, tighter listing standards and stronger enforcement powers for the Singapore Exchange (SGX) are among the ideas that regulators are exploring in the wake of last October's penny stock selloff, market sources say.

Those ideas are expected to be included in a public consultation that could open in the next few weeks in what would be one of the widest-ranging reviews of Singapore's capital market rules since the global financial crisis, said sources, who declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the issues.

Parts of the review began before Oct 4, 2013, before stock prices for a number of companies collapsed to trigger rare intervention measures by SGX and an investigation by the authorities. But some of the issues raised in the Oct 4 selloff are also part of the current review.