CMA Issues English Version of ‘Market Story’ Book

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) issued the book “The Market Story,” which documents the journey and the history of the Saudi capital market through its three phases from 1926 to 2020. The book came in two editions: the comprehensive documentary edition covering the course of the capital market, and an illustrated documentary edition that displays photographs, official documents, and graphs.
The documentation effort adopted an academic methodology combining historical and descriptive approaches. It involved several steps, including collecting and reviewing hundreds of historical documents, conducting more than 80 interviews with personalities who contributed to and participated in the capital market journey, and many notable references.
Spanning a century, the Saudi capital market evolved through three phases. The first phase began with the founding of the Kingdom and highlighted the increasing role of the private sector in state development, the creation of Saudi joint-stock companies, and the proliferation of stock trading through unlicensed offices.
The second phase began with moves toward regulating the trading of stocks of Saudi joint-stock companies. This included the issuance of the Royal Decree in 1983, which restricted the trading of Saudi joint-stock companies to commercial banks, and the formation of a Ministerial Committee to regulate stock dealing activities.
This preparation set the stage for the third and final phase, marked by the issuance of the Capital Market Law in 2003 and the formation of the CMA. The developments of 2004, and those that followed, positioned it strongly among regional and global markets.
The CMA has provided various channels and tools enabling readers to view the “Main Book” and the “Photographic Book.” These are accessible through CMA’s website.