The United Arab Emirates has floated an initiative to integrate securities markets of all member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The initiative will see the markets operating under the same policies and regulations. Minister of Economy Sultan bin Saeed Al- Mansoori outlined this in a statement during the first meeting of the Ministerial Committee of chairmen of GCC regulators board held in Riyadh. The UAE Minister, who is also the board chairman of the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA), called for concerted efforts and better coordination among the member states to overcome the repercussions of the global financial crisis. The initiative calls for a comprehensive strategy that would be implemented in stages, over a period of time.