Stock Exchange of Mauritius: Exchange-traded fund will track Top40

The Stock Exchange of Mauritius (SEM) plans to start an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that will replicate an index of the JSE’s 40 biggest companies. The bourse would begin the Erafi-40 ETF with Absa Bank by the end of next month, chief executive Sunil Benimadhu said in Port Louis on Friday. The ETF, the stock exchange’s third, would track the FTSE/JSE Africa Top40. The exchange would also replace its SEM-7 index with the SEM-10 index in October by adding three extra stocks. The gauge is being expanded after the recent listings of actively traded stocks with larger market values. It would have a “reserve list” of five stocks, instead of three, so investors could create a “benchmark portfolio of 15 actively traded stocks”, he said. The exchange is making rules for listing easier, including allowing multiple currencies, as it seeks to attract more companies and reach a market value equal to the size of the island’s economy. Benimadhu said it also planned a sustainability index and would step up regulations to weed out firms not meeting listing rules. – Bloomberg