Capital  markets regulators in the East African Community will soon start conducting regular joint inspections on stock brokers and investment banks as part of the efforts aimed at harmonising the regional bourses, Robert Mathu, the executive director of Rwanda’s Capital Markets Authority, has said.

Mathu said the decision was reached at during the East African Securities Regulatory Authorities (EASRA), meeting in Kampala, Uganda last week.

"The aim of the joint inspections is to provide a set of common practices that will be applied by all the capital market in the region,” he said in an interview with Business Times.

He added that the inspections would also build capacity for brokers operating in the region, thus allowing them to be able to practice their professional services anywhere in the region with ease.

Staff from regulators in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania will be involved in the exercises which are expected to begin by the end of this year.

Burundi does not yet have a stock exchange market.

EASRA has also been harmonising rules that will make it possible for regional Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), issuance of bonds and licensing of stockbrokers.

During the meeting, it was agreed to put caps on licence fees for brokers, investment banks and fees for an information memorandum such as those issued during an initial public offering to brief potential investors.