4 Africa Exchange (4AX), a newly formed company, is keen to set-up a stock exchange in South Africa that will rival the current incumbent, the JSE. The firm has roped in The Maponya Group as its empowerment partner. By Gugu Lourie
4AX applied for a licence from the Financial Services Board (FSB) in June 2015 and aims to become the second licenced exchange in South Africa, catering for companies who are seeking a listings alternative.
The firm has also appointed Fay Mukaddam as a permanent CEO.
Mukaddam takes the reins from Stephan van der Walt, the current acting CEO and founder of 4AX, who will remain on the board of 4AX as a non-executive director.
As the outgoing President of the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a Chartered Director (SA) with the Institute of Directors and a member of the Black Lawyers’ Association, amongst others, Mukaddam has a strong business foundation to take 4AX forward.
Empowerment partner – The Maponya Group – will be represented on the board of 4AX by Chichi Maponya.
Maponya is currently the Chairperson of Brand South Africa.
“Our mission is to enable, develop and deepen capital markets in South Africa – by providing an efficient marketplace to raise capital locally and savings to be invested. We believe that Ms. Maponya will add tremendous value to 4AX in creating an effective vehicle for change and are confident that our diverse shareholder base, representing various stakeholders within an exchange environment, brings together the required local and international knowledge and expertise to establish and operate an exchange. We look forward to what the future holds,” said Mukaddam.
The current shareholders of 4AX are The Maponya Group, Global Environmental Markets Ltd, Capital Markets Brokers, Intercontinental Trust Ltd, NWK, Pallidus Group and Trifecta Capital.
Five months ago, ZAR X, a newly formed company, announced it was keen to set-up a stock exchange in South Africa that will compete with the current incumbent, the JSE.
ZAR X claims that it is a platform that lets everyday South Africans transact shares quickly, cheaply and conveniently, even if they have never formally invested money or opened a bank account before.
The firms plans to compete with the JSE, which was formed in 1887 during the first South African gold rush. Following the first legislation covering financial markets in 1947, the JSE joined the World Federation of Exchanges in 1963 and upgraded to an electronic trading system in the early 1990s. The bourse demutualised and listed on its own exchange in 2005.
South Africa has mature capital markets that serve the domestic economy and the wider continent. The JSE is currently ranked the 19th largest stock exchange in the world by market capitalisation and the largest exchange in the African continent.