The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has announced it is working on further increasing retail participation on the bourse as its newest product, the Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), scaled up by over 200 per cent six months after its introduction.
In September 2020, the bourse introduced the ZSE Direct, which has made investments much easier for the retail market.
Earlier this year, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) also launched Old Mutual among the Top Ten Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) to diversify product offerings on the exchange.
“There has been significant growth in retail participation year to date following the introduction of new products. The listing of the Old Mutual ZSE Top Ten Exchange Traded Fund in January 2021, significantly increased the participation of retail investors and the overall performance of the market. Going forward, the ZSE will continue to explore initiatives that promote retail participation and that aid in financial inclusion.” Chief executive officer Justin Bgoni.
Figures from the ZSE show that the ETF launched with 80 million units before rising by 79,5 per cent to 143,6 million as of June 30, 2021. The market capitalisation for the ETF has also increased by 221 per cent to $257 million as of June 30, 2021, from $80 million as of January 04, 2021.
For the six months ended June 30, 2021, the bourse realised a turnover of $21 billion, whilst the total volume traded stood at 3,4 billion while total market capitalisation was $745 billion.
Zimbabwe Stock Exchange Initiatives
Other initiatives implemented in the past 12 months include the ZSE Training Institute in February, which provides customised capital markets training, and the Zimbabwe Receivables Marketplace (ZRM) in August, which is expected to provide working capital solutions through receivables discounting.
Meanwhile, Mr Bgoni said the bourse would make the dematerialisation of equities smooth to investors after the ZSE was granted a license to operate a Central Securities Depository (CSD).
Read also; Zimbabwe Tops Africa as Best Stock with Highest Market Returns Since January.
