African Domestic Bond Fund lists on Botswana Stock Exchange

The African Domestic Bond Fund listing follows its primary US dollar listing on the Mauritius Stock Exchange in 2018.

The African Domestic Bond Fund (ADBF) has been listed on the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE). The listing on 15 September follows the fund’s primary US dollar listing on the Mauritius Stock Exchange in 2018. The Pula-denominated listing offers investors an innovative tool to gain exposure to African local currency fixed income.

African Domestic Bond Fund: Africa’s first multinational fixed income exchange-traded fund

ADBF is the first multinational fixed income exchange-traded fund in Africa. It was launched by the African Development Bank as part of initiatives to strengthen African economies by reducing their dependency on foreign-currency-denominated debt, increasing the range of available financing options and acting as a catalyst for regional market integration.

The fund mirrors the African Development Bank Bloomberg African Bond Indices (ABABI), a family of bond indices that tracks ten countries and represents about 90% of the total stock of outstanding African local-currency bonds.

Stefan Nalletamby, Director of the African Development Bank’s Financial Sector Development Department, said: “The listing aligns with our mandate to develop capital markets products across our regional member countries.”

USD 25 million investment

Ahmed Attout, Manager of the bank’s Capital Markets Development Division, said the African Development Bank had not only conceptualized the Fund, but was also investing up to USD 25 million in it as a sign of its commitment to the initiative.

The Africa Development Bank works to deepen Africa’s local currency bond markets and create an environment where African countries can access long-term financing.