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Enacy Mapakame Business Reporter
The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) is optimistic of bright prospects on its bourse in view of planned introduction of a wide range of new products and services in response to market  needs.

The local bourse currently has limited products on offer for investors but indications are that the market is open to new products and services such as commodities exchange, real estate investment trusts and exchange traded funds.

In an interview with The Herald Business, ZSE chief executive officer Justin Bgoni said there are great opportunities for market growth if the exchange introduced more products and services that the market needs.

“There are definitely big opportunities in the market,” he said in an interview on the sidelines of the C-Trade Investor Day Conference held in the capital recently.

“There are products and services that are currently not available on the market which we can explore. For instance, a commodities exchange for gold, platinum, the real estate investment trusts and exchange traded funds.

“Investors want these and we should look into it. It is a matter of us putting the framework together for their functionality,” he said.

In an earlier interview, the ZSE chief indicated that the introduction of the exchange traded fund (ETF) was expected by end of this quarter as part of efforts to broaden the products on the market.

The local bourse is also mulling floating the first ever municipal bond that should help raise funds for basic infrastructure projects for a local municipality, which could not be named as the process is still at a delicate stage.

Mr Bgoni told our sister paper Business Weekly that the bourse was already in discussions with one of the country’s top municipalities for issuance of the bond, taking cue from other countries like South Africa and Nigeria where municipal bonds have been a success.

He however highlighted that the success of such products would also be determined by the course that the economy takes in the short to medium term.

“There is also an element of the general economic performance, but If we bring more products to the market we can see the market growing into a vibrant exchange because these are some of the things investors want,” he said.

Already, the bourse is already working on the framework for the exchange traded funds and REITS in conjunction with the regulator, Government and other capital markets stakeholders.

“As ZSE, we should lead the process and work with market participants and the regulators, because we understand the market. At the moment in terms of the ETF, we are working on the framework,” he said.