The Securities Market which informally existed in Trinidad & Tobago for well over twenty years prior to the opening of the Trinidad & Tobago Stock Exchange really achieved significance in the early 1970's when Government decided as a matter of policy to localise the foreign owned commercial banking and manufacturing sectors of the economy. The thrust of the policy was to get such companies to divest and sell a majority of their shares to nationals.
Two bodies chosen to effect this policy were the Capital Issues Committee which was set up by the Ministry of Finance in July 1970 to direct developments in the primary market and the Call Exchange (an association of share dealers) which was established under the umbrella of the Central Bank in August 1965 to monitor activities in the secondary market.
