Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) chief executive officer Mr Justin Bgoni has acknowledged that the potential departure of telecoms giant Econet Wireless Zimbabwe would represent a failure by the local bourse to meet shareholder expectations, though he moved to assure investors that the market would survive the loss.
In an interview on the "Business Focus" programme on Capitalk FM on Thursday, Mr Bgoni, who is also the chief executive of the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange (VFEX), dwelt on the landmark corporate action, which he confirmed is subject to shareholder approval at the end of February.
Discover moreBusiness news reportsNational parks tour packagesLocal news updates"If the shareholders approve the delisting, it means the shareholders have decided that the platform hasn't met their expectations," Mr Bgoni said.
Econet has cited chronic undervaluation as its primary reason for seeking to leave the ZSE, a move that would remove a counter constituting approximately 35 percent of the bourse's market capitalisation.
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Mr Bgoni attributed the undervaluation not to a (local) flaw in the exchange itself, but to macroeconomic constraints.
He pointed to the significant liquidity challenges facing the ZSE, which trades exclusively in the local Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG) currency.
"For the share price to go up, there needs to be (local) natural demand for . . . if the money to buy it is constrained, then there tends to be less demand on the share," he explained.
"We are probably one of the few exclusively (local) currency-denominated platforms . . . and because of the liquidity, it is constrained quite a bit."
Responding to a listener's question that the departure of both Econet, which, together with Delta, account for over 90 percent of turnover, could "kill the market for good", Mr Bgoni pushed back against the doomsday scenario.
Discover moreFish exploitation reportZimbabwe travel guideLifestyle and health productsHe argued that capital freed from Econet would likely be redeployed to other counters, and pointed to the company's complex restructuring, which will see its green cycle business list on the over-the-counter market, retaining some investment avenues for shareholders.
"We don't think it kills the market," Mr Bgoni stated firmly. "We believe that if the money gets spread across maybe two or three other counters, we'll benefit from it."
He said the bourse was working on getting "one or two listings to come in that will take the place of what's happening now".
A tale of two exchanges
The interview highlighted the stark contrast in performance between the ZSE and the US dollar-denominated VFEX during 2025.
While the ZSE saw modest gains of nearly 30 percent against approximately 15 percent inflation, the VFEX enjoyed a "stellar year", with its All-Share Index surging by 70 percent and turnover nearly doubling.
Mr Bgoni attributed the VFEX's success to both its hard-currency denomination and the strong performance of gold mining companies, which benefitted from high global gold prices.
He dismissed concerns that the growth was merely a flight of local capital from ZiG, arguing that valuations on the VFEX are now in line with regional peers and are, therefore, sustainable.
"If you look at that number on the VFEX compared to others in the region, the number was almost half to a third," he said, referring to price-earnings multiples.
"But if you look at the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange, that price is closer compared to what you get from other peers. So, it's a sustainable number for the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange."
New strategy for VFEX
Mr Bgoni used the platform to unveil a strategic pivot for the VFEX, signalling a move away from a generalist approach to listings towards a focused drive to fund mining exploration.
He cited the successful secondary listing of Kavango Resources from the London Stock Exchange, which raised US$4,5 million from local investors in 2025, as a template.
Mr Bgoni argued that Zimbabwe remains "largely underexplored" and that the VFEX aims to replicate the successful Canadian and Australian models of junior mining markets.
"The area that we want to put a lot of effort in and we are partnering with . . . , is to get funding for exploration companies," he said. "So, Zimbabwe is largely underexplored and if Zimbabwe is to grow, especially in the mining sector, there needs to be exploration.
"What we want to do is, companies like Kavango, an exploration company that is dually listed, we want to extend that kind of funding to local companies."
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Turning to the unhealthy concentration of turnover, where the top five companies account for nearly 90 percent of activity, Mr Bgoni admitted it is a common but undesirable trait in African markets.
He pledged to improve liquidity by marketing the other 40-plus listed companies to investors.
On the performance of ZSE Holdings' own self-listing in July 2025, the CEO adopted a long-term view.
"We've got a long-term view on it and we are confident that over time people will understand what we're doing," he said, citing the group's diversification across two exchanges as a key strength.
On a positive note for retail investors and product diversification, Mr Bgoni revealed that the VFEX was close to finalising its first exchange-traded fund (ETF), with a listing expected within the next two months.
"There's an ETF that we're working on now that is close to being finalised. So, we should be seeing an ETF in the next month or two," he confirmed, adding that a second ETF is expected to list before the end of the year.
