The Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM) started this week by welcoming banking major Barclays corporate and investment banking division on the platinum exchange traded fund (ETF), NewPlat. Barclays Mauritius is part of the Barclays Africa Group which is one of the largest financial services providers in Africa.
Barclays explained that the listing of 400,000 NewPlat debentures on the SEM gives investors in Mauritius the opportunity to invest directly in platinum bullion as the EFT has the ability to track platinum prices.
Each Platinum Debenture is equivalent to approximately 1/100 ounce of platinum bullion held in a secure deposit on behalf of investors.
Vladimir Nedeljkovic, Barclays Africa head of exchange traded products, said that, with the listing of NewPlat on the SEM, local investors will benefit from more choices among asset classes while the SEM gains the advantage of increased liquidity.
According to Barclays, the listing of NewPlat on the SEM follows last year’s listing of Barclay’s gold bullion EFT— NewGold — on the exchange.
This makes the SEM stand out as the first bourse of Southern Africa to list both NewPlat and NewGold, marking yet another step in broadening the suite of exchange-traded products in African markets.
“In rolling out both NewGold and NewPlat across the continent, we endeavour to help people prosper and deepen African investment markets [by providing] greater liquidity,” Nedeljkovic said.
Exchange Traded Funds are considered as the fastest growing investment funds in major markets across the world.
Many markets across the world are attracted by the ETFs because of their low costs, tax efficiency and stock-like features.
The management fee amounts to 0.40 per cent per annum accrued daily while the trading fees is 0.35 per cent of the transaction value.
Barclays stated that NewPlat or NewGold offered a low-risk route of investing in physical metal without taking the risks associated with mining the metal that are posed by equity investments.
Also, investment in the NewPlat ETF will not affect the relative foreign exposure limits applicable to retail, institutional investors and Authorised Dealers (ADs).
As the pioneer of international banking in Mauritius, Barclays is strategically positioned for a new world of emerging business opportunities between Africa, Asia and the rest of the world.
Image (via Proudly African): This makes the Stock Exchange of Mauritius stand out as the first bourse of Southern Africa to list both NewPlat and NewGold, marking yet another step in broadening the suite of exchange-traded products in African markets.
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