LONDON (Reuters) - Gibraltar will next month open its first stock exchange, which will list collective investment schemes known as open-ended funds, after receiving approval from its financial regulator.
The Gibraltar Stock Exchange, to be known as GSX, will launch on Nov. 1, when it will begin inviting firms to apply to become listing members.
In a statement, GSX said it has already received "keen interest" from a number of applicants.
The full opening, when open-ended funds will be able to list on the exchange, will take place in the first quarter of 2015.
Companies will not float on the exchange during this first phase.
The prospective exchange said it had been marketing its services over the last 18 months in Europe, Asia and the United States and had found demand from both the funds and their investors.
The exchange will give funds greater exposure to investors in the European Union, while the listing process will require the funds to become more transparent, benefitting investors wishing to take advantage of Gibraltar's strengths, it added.
Gibraltar is part of the EU through its ties to Britain, to which it was ceded about 300 years ago. It has a population of about 30,000 and a booming economy largely based on online gambling, insurance firms and tourism.
It regularly clashes with Spain, which wants to reclaim the territory from Britain.
Its new bourse will be led by Marcus Killick, a former head of the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission and barrister. He has also worked for the Isle of Man Financial Supervision Commission and ran the banking and investments department at the Cayman Island Monetary Authority.
(Reporting by Clare Hutchison; Editing by Mark Potter)