Kenya’s market regulator grants listing approval for first ETF

NAIROBI (Capital Markets in Africa) – Kenya’s market regulator has allowed the listing of the country’s first-ever Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), which will track the price of gold, the regulator said on Friday.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange has been investing in new infrastructure to include trading of new products like ETFs, to diversify from equities and bonds, its chief executive Geoffrey Odundo, told Reuters last November.

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA) said in a statement the ETF will be issued by NewGold Issuer (RF) Ltd, which is incorporated in South Africa.

The NewGold ETF will was first listed on the Johannesburg bourse in 2004 but it has since had secondary listings in other African exchanges, the CMA said.