Uganda Stock Exchange: Electronic accounts vital

Thursday, 8th September, 2011


Brokerage firms are encouraging investors on the Uganda Securities Exchange to open Securities Central Depository (SCD) accounts to allow for the full transition to automated trading.

Robert Baldwin, the chief executive of Crested Stocks Securities (USE), said opening SCD accounts would go a long way in building capital markets.

In May 2010, the USE began phasing out paper share certificates and moving to an electronic system for share custody.

The combined total number of registered shareholders is about 40,000, but the number of investors who have opened SCD accounts in Uganda is between 8,000 and 9,000. In Kenya, the number of investors with CDS accounts is over one million.

On the trading floor on Tuesday, Stanbic Bank regained poll position with sh126m, from sh5.6m in turnover. Fewer companies traded, but both the volume and value of trade shot up.

Stanbic Bank sold 897,622 shares, from 40,114, trading at an average of sh140 per share. It also had offers of over 800,000 shares that were not bought.

The total value traded on the day was sh130.5m, from sh14m.
Uganda Clays (UCL) and Bank of Baroda were the only other two active companies.

UCL turnover slowed to sh735,600, from sh4.9m and sold volumes also fell to 14,000 from 89,000. It traded at a revised average price of sh53 per share.

Overall sold volumes rose to 926,324 from 132,532 shares.
The all share index fell to 943.61 from 988.97, while the locally quoted share index rose slightly to 253.70, from 253.62.

By David Mugabe: The New Vision Newspaper