The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has officially been admitted to the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) at the 58th General Assembly in Athens. This was after the bourse was approved as a full member during the WFE’s January 2018 board meeting.
The NSE was among five other new members; Tunis Stock Exchange, China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation (CSDC), London Stock Exchange Group, Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) and the Boursa Kuwait, that saw the number of full members in the global industry association, grow to 70.
According to Nandini Sukumar, CEO of WFE, members are the lifeblood of any trade association and he believes that the new members demonstrate the global breadth and multi-asset class depth of the WFE today.
“We are proud to represent such a diverse range of organisations and with full members now standing at 70 – the greatest number in the federation’s 57-year history – our role as the voice of the global market infrastructure industry has never been more important,” he said.
On the other side, Geoffrey Odundo, Chief Executive of NSE, sees the admission of the NSE as a full member of the WFE as a great milestone in the growth of the market as well as being in line with the bourses’ strategy to support a vibrant capital market in the country.
“This is a positive step towards our integration with global financial markets and reflects the Exchange’s commitment to implementing the highest standards of international best practices. The WFE membership further entrenches our vision to be a leading Securities Exchange in Africa, with a global reach,” he said.
Being a full member of the WFE, which was established in 1961, the NSE will participate in major decision-making forums on policy and regulatory matters pertaining to the global capital markets. Additionally, the bourse will also benefit from the interactions that the WFE exclusively offers to its members.
During the General Assembly in Athens, Nandini Sukumar added that with the ever growing membership base will be supporting the members by focusing on what matters to them such as critical business topics which include fintech, SMEs, CCP-related capital issues, sustainability, emerging markets, market integrity, regulatory coherence and cyber resilience.
The NSE makes Kenya one of the seven African countries, which include South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, Morocco, Mauritius and Tunisia, to be WFE full members through their bourses.
