SEC must gain independence to regulate complex markets: BASL President

• Asserts autonomy crucial to attracting and retaining professionals capable of overseeing an increasingly complex and evolving capital market
• Stresses the direct link between institutional independence and operational effectiveness
• Says regulator must be empowered to determine its own cadre requirements and staff remuneration
• Emphasises the need for a clear structural separation between Market Regulation and Market Development functions

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Sri Lanka must be granted full financial and operational independence, Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) President and former SEC Commissioner Rajeev Amarasuriya said, so that its regulatory effectiveness is strengthened. 

Amarasuriya asserted that the autonomy is crucial to attracting and retaining professionals capable of overseeing an increasingly complex and evolving capital market.

“Having that autonomy will allow the SEC to act independently and also to take steps to regulate the market effectively,” said Amarasuriya while speaking at the 2026 Capital Market Symposium organized by the BASL yesterday.

He shared his views while speaking at a panel discussion, moderated by former Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) Chief Regulatory Officer Renuke Wijayawardhena, which brought together key voices in Sri Lanka’s capital market landscape.

Amarasuriya went on to stress the direct link between institutional independence and operational effectiveness. 

Under the SEC Act, he argued, the regulator must be empowered to determine its own cadre requirements and staff remuneration, which in turn would ensure that the SEC can hire and retain professionals with the expertise necessary to regulate a market that is becoming increasingly sophisticated. 

While acknowledging the regulator’s progress in recent years, he emphasized the need for a clear structural separation between Market Regulation and Market Development functions, a distinction which is essential to safeguard the credibility and integrity of the SEC.

Amarasuriya also noted that although the SEC has been able to act independently under the current framework, autonomy remains vulnerable without statutory safeguards. Drawing comparisons with global standards, he stressed that leading capital market regulators derive their effectiveness precisely from institutionalized financial and operational independence.