Ethiopia’s capital markets regulator has licensed the first two investment banks-CBE Capital S.C. and Wegagen Capital S.C.-,as well as three other licenses as part of the country’s ongoing financial reforms.
- •Both CBE Capital and Wegagen Capital are new entities spun off from commercial banks as the country’s new rules allow commercial banks to wholly own capital market service providers.
- •The Ethiopian Capital Markets Authority (ECMA) also licensed the first securities dealer, Ethio-Fidelity Securities S.C., and issued two permits to investment securities advisors.
- •The move follows other reforms to liberalise the financial sector, which included the launch of the Ethiopian Securities Exchange (ESX) in January.
“As the Ethiopian capital market grows, so too will the expectations placed on these new service providers. They will be instrumental in building investor confidence, increasing market liquidity, and contributing to the development of capital raising instruments that will benefit both issuers and investors alike,” ECMA said in a statement on Friday.
The new licenses bring the total number of service providers licensed by the ECMA to nine. The first four are licensed as investment advisors.
Meanwhile, Ethiopia has reached an agreement ‘in principle’ with its creditors, the country’s finance minister said on Friday. The agreement is the latest step since Ethiopia decided to restructure its external date as part of its efforts to avoid defaulting on its obligations.
