The future of Exchange Traded Funds (ETF's) in Africa has been predicted by Absa Capital as very favourable for investors and local economies.
Absa Capital is the corporate and investment banking division of Absa Bank Ltd and affiliated with Barclays Capital.
To show the bank's commitment to grow further the range of investments products across the continent, Absa Capital recently listed the NewGold ETF on the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE).
NewGold ETF became the first ever ETF to be listed on the NSE on 19 December 2011. Dr Vladimir Nedeljkovic, Head of Investments at Absa Capital said: "The listing of the NewGold ETF on the NSE helps to further expand the Nigerian investment market.
The capital markets in Africa are still very underdeveloped presenting an opportunity for significant growth in the region."
"We believe that ETF's present a gateway to this growth, but further market maturity is required, especially when assessing just how far more extensive global ETF offerings are," added Nedeljkovic.
The NewGold ETF will help aid increase in liquidity on the NSE while its listing on the exchange is expected to assist in developing the investor market in Nigeria by widening the choice of asset classes available to local investors.
