adminStockbrokers are allegedly seeking legal opinion in their bid to claim ownership of the local bourse in a move suspected to be targeted at slowing down proposed demutualisation of the exchange.
However, Minister Biti, who has previously described the ZSE as a “mafia operation,” said the bourse was a creation of the state and therefore a state owned enterprise.
“The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange was created by an Act of Parliament, it is some kind of parastatal,” he said.
“It is the government which owns the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange but we are demutualising it.”
Minister Biti said demutualisation would allow other stakeholders such as stockbrokers to partially own the ZSE.
“Demutualisation will allow the stock exchange to be listed on its own market so any ordinary Zimbabwe can actually buy shares so we are actually democratising it. If the stockbrokers say they own it, what percentage do they own?” asked Minister Biti.
Minister Biti has previously said stockbrokers were the “players, referees, umpires and overseers” of the bourse due to poor corporate governance in the management and running of the ZSE which government has since corrected.
Minister Biti said as part of efforts to demutualise the bourse, the Ministry of Finance had written to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in South Africa and the Mumbai Stock Exchange in India, encouraging them to take up shares in the ZSE when it eventually lists on its own exchange.
He said this would allow the two exchanges, which are far bigger than the ZSE, to provide guidance, knowledge and expertise in the planned automation of the local bourse.
The government has for long planned to automate the ZSE but shortage of funding estimated at around $2.5 million, has scuttled the plans.
Minister Biti expressed optimism that the exchange would be fully automated by the end of February next year.
Automation is anticipated to promote efficiency in the ZSE trading and settlement systems. — New Ziana
Online Reporter