Viewpoints | Oct 19,2019
Jul 11 , 2025
Ethiopia officially launched its first securities trading platform today, marking a moment in the country’s financial history. The Ethiopian Securities Exchange (ESX) began operations with the public registration and trading of government treasury bills (T-bills) on its secondary market.
The inaugural event took place at the Sheraton Addis Hotel today, where financial sector officials gathered to ring the ceremonial bell, signaling the start of a new era in the capital markets.
ESX CEO, Tilahun Kassahun (PhD), presided over the ceremony as representatives from Gadda Bank and Wegagen Bank, the first two financial institutions registered on ESX, rang the inaugural trading bell.
According to Finance Minister Ahmed Shide, the importance of the launch, noting that the move from physical to dematerialised T-bills, represents a more efficient way to manage public liquidity. He described the instruments as a "positive-yield investment opportunity" that could help diversify sources of domestic financing.
Jointly organized by the Central, ECMA and the ESX, the event marks Ethiopia’s formal entry into securities trading, to mobilise domestic capital, expanding financial access, and fueling long-term growth.
Mamo Mihretu, governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), said that traditional capital sources, taxes, loans, and grants, are no longer sufficient, making a formal capital market a strategic necessity.
For Hana Tehelku, director general of the Ethiopian Capital Market Authority (ECMA), the debut of T-bill trading is the “fruition of regulatory groundwork” and an important step toward building an inclusive investment ecosystem. She hopes to see that the listing of government bonds instill confidence in corporate issuers and help pave the way for corporate bonds in the near future.
Radar | Jan 10,2026
Life Matters | Jan 10,2026
Fortune News | Apr 25,2020
Radar | Apr 19,2026
Commentaries | Sep 04,2021
Photo Gallery | 185859 Views | May 06,2019
Photo Gallery | 175900 Views | Apr 26,2019
Photo Gallery | 171458 Views | Oct 06,2021
My Opinion | 139414 Views | Aug 14,2021
May 9 , 2026
The Ethiopian state appears to have discovered a fiscal instrument that is politicall...
May 2 , 2026
By the time Ethiopia's National Dialogue Commission (ENDC) reached the end of its fir...
Apr 25 , 2026
In a political community, official speeches show what governments want their citizens...
For much of the past three decades, Ethiopia occupied a familiar place in the Western...
Loading your updates...