Staff Writer
The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has officially launched the Zimbabwe Entrepreneurship Exchange (ZEEX), a dedicated platform designed to expand access to capital for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), in a move expected to transform financing opportunities for one of the country’s most important economic sectors.
The exchange was officially launched in Bulawayo last Friday following regulatory approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Zimbabwe (SECZim) in June this year, allowing the ZSE to operationalise its SME exchange under the ZEEX brand.
ZEEX is a technology-driven entrepreneurship-focused exchange that seeks to bridge the long-standing funding gap facing SMEs by providing multiple avenues for raising capital and improving access to finance.
The platform comprises four key components: ZEEX Private Markets, which enables entrepreneurs to raise capital through structured private placements before listing; ZEEX Public Markets, which facilitates public capital raising, listing and secondary market trading; Invoice Discounting, a working capital solution that enables businesses to convert unpaid invoices into immediate cash; and the Bondholding Company (BHC), which provides a collateral structure that helps smaller enterprises access debt financing on more favourable terms.
Speaking during the launch, Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Professor Mthuli Ncube said ZEEX represented more than the introduction of another capital market platform, describing it as a strategic intervention aimed at addressing the financing challenges that have historically constrained SME growth.
He said the exchange was designed to correct a long-standing imbalance where businesses that form the backbone of Zimbabwe’s economy had limited access to capital markets.
“The establishment of ZEEX gives these businesses the tools to formalise, to scale, and to access the kind of patient capital that has historically been reserved for large corporates. ZEEX is a direct, practical expression of the policy intent set out in our National Development Strategy (NDS 2),” he said.
Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Senator Monica Mutsvangwa said the launch marked a significant milestone for the SME sector, noting that the ZSE had transformed years of engagement, capacity building and collaboration into a practical financing solution for entrepreneurs.
She said SMEs make an immense contribution to Zimbabwe’s economy and the new platform would broaden their participation in the country’s capital markets.
Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Judith Ncube welcomed the decision to base the Zimbabwe Entrepreneurship Exchange in the city, saying Bulawayo has a rich financial history dating back to one of the country’s earliest stock exchanges established around 1896.
She said the launch reaffirmed Bulawayo’s historical position as a centre for finance and enterprise.
The ZSE said stakeholders can immediately access the ZEEX platform together with the complementary InvoiceX platform, which supports invoice discounting services for businesses seeking improved liquidity.
The exchange also acknowledged the support received from the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion, the Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development, SECZim and other market participants in bringing the initiative to fruition.
