The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) has reported its financial performance for the first half of 2023 with Profit after tax surging by 72% to Kshs. 69.4 million from Kshs. 40.2 million in H1 2022.
During the period under review, the exchange said that equity turnover managed to increase by 9% to Ksh 59 billion, up from Kshs. 54 billion in the same period last year. During the review period, major frontier markets experienced subdued performance, attributed to increasing interest rates in developed economies. The benchmark NSE 20 Share Index and the All Share Index decreased by 2.35% and 14%, settling at 1,574 points and 107 points, respectively during the period.
The equities market capitalization also saw a decrease, standing at Kshs. 1.67 trillion in H1 2023 compared to Kshs. 1.97 trillion in the same period last year.
The NSE’s profit before expected credit losses and fair value movements reached Kshs. 90.2 million in H1 2023, compared to Kshs. 85.8 million in H1 2022. The board of NSE noted that equity turnover contributed to the performance, increasing to Kshs. 59 billion in H1 2023, driven in part by a block transaction of Kshs. 22 billion in March 2023 as British multinational Diageo bought additional EABL shares. The increased turnover led to a 9% rise in equity levy income to Kshs. 141.6 million in H1 2023.
In contrast, bond turnover saw a decline of 19% from Kshs. 386 billion to Kshs. 309 billion. As a result, bond trading levy faced a 35% decrease from Kshs. 47.4 million in H1 2022 to Kshs. 31 million in H1 2023 mainly as a result of reduced secondary trading activity in Government bonds due to rising yields.
New Listings, Projects
In the second half of the year, the exchange says it will engage with potential issuers in both the private and public sectors. Plans are also underway to onboard a company on the main market and list an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF).
In the coming months, NSE plans to launch NSE Connect, an online platform that will connect financiers with companies seeking capital.
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