SECP registered 766 companies during the month of January 2017. Incorporation of new companies has witnessed an unprecedented 48 percent growth in recent three months with constant increasing trend. It may be recalled that SECP introduced numerous facilitation measures simultaneously with introduction of new Company Law through Companies Ordinance in November, 2016.
Although the Companies Ordinance 2016 was withdrawn on rejection by the Senate of Pakistan, it may be recalled that a variety of facilitative measures were announced by the Chairman SECP Zafar Hijazi in a press conference held on 2nd December, 2016.
He anticipated that these measures would lead to 100% increase in rate of new company incorporation in few months. The growth witnessed so far substantiate his claim.
Around 86 percent companies were registered as private limited companies, while around 11 percent companies were registered as single member companies.
Three percent of the companies were registered as public unlisted, association's not-for-profit, and foreign companies. The service sector took the lead with the incorporation of 151 companies, construction with 88, followed by trading with 46, information technology with 44, education with 30, food & beverages and tourism with 25 each, real estate development and engineering with 20 each, pharmaceutical with 16, communication with 14 and 287 companies were registered in other sectors. Moreover, three foreign companies were also registered by the CRO in Lahore, Peshawar and Islamabad.
Foreign investment has been reported in 49 new companies. These companies have foreign investors from, Australia, Bahrain, China, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Philippines, Oman, Switzerland Turkey, the UK and the US.
During the month, the highest numbers of companies, ie 252, were registered at the Company Registration Office (CRO), Islamabad, followed by 247 and 158 companies registered at CRO Lahore and Karachi respectively. The CROs in Peshawar, Multan, Faisalabad, Quetta, Sukkur and Gilgit-Baltistan registered 44, 33, 20, 9, 2 and 1 company respectively.-PR