A2X well positioned to face the challenges of the new year
Published Date: 2021-01-27 | Source: INCE|Community | Author: A2X Markets

Media Statement
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sandton, Tuesday, 26 January 2021: The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has ushered in significant uncertainty early in the new year, and while key participants in the financial sector are likely to continue taking a cautious approach to business, the prospect of a vaccine roll-out during the course year and the many lessons learnt from the first wave should help lay the foundation for a better year.
Most participants in the financial sector underwent a rapid and painful adjustment to enable them to survive and continue operating when the virus first hit. And while the second wave may be worse in terms of infections and deaths, the big shift to digital and remote working has largely taken place. This puts business in a much healthier position to tackle the second wave, says A2X Markets CEO Kevin Brady, one of South Africa's newest stock exchanges and the leading exchange for secondary listings.
Says Brady: "The focus in 2021 is likely to shift from last year's big survival challenges, which consumed a huge amount of time and resources, to refining their digital strategy and platforms, staff well-being and productivity and, of course, a relentless focus on cost savings. Many companies will have experienced the benefit of technology-driven savings and will now look to extract even greater efficiencies going forward."
Brady believes that companies that are able to leverage their technology platform to create an efficient and agile business that can deliver cost-effective solutions and products to their clients, while creating a fun and trusted work environment, will be the winners of tomorrow.
He believes A2X is well positioned to face the challenges of the new year as it uses the latest stock exchange technology and passes on efficiency gains in the form of much lower fees. In addition, the narrower spreads quoted on the exchange offer huge savings to investors in the form of price improvement. In a tough economic environment, he expects investors to pay increasing attention to reducing cost while at the same time trying to eke out improved returns.
It is part of the reason why A2X is enjoying continued growth in onboarding new companies to its platform as many want to offer their shareholders the opportunity to capture these very benefits.
In December 2020, A2X onboarded both Prosus, which is regarded as Europe's largest tech company, and Capital Appreciation, a leading provider of financial technology in South Africa.
This has brought the number of listed securities on A2X to 40 with a combined market value of R5,4 trillion. A2X is now the second-largest exchange in Africa by market value, after commencing its operations a mere three years ago.
Brady says the company's growing position is likely to be sustained by pending new regulation that includes the Best Execution rule, which will see brokers having to obtain the best possible result for their clients when executing orders on their behalf. The potential savings this regulation could unlock for end investors are estimated to be upwards of R1 billion per year.
The A2X focus in 2021 will be on expanding the range of securities available for trade on its platform.
"We remain committed to offering choices to all market participants. In addition to growing the number of secondary listings, A2X will also look to attract new listings to the platform that were previously not available to mainstream investors.
"We have also applied to the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) for approval to introduce a series of new trade types. These additions are aimed at assisting both investors and brokers to source fresh liquidity while at the same time reducing friction costs and improving market quality. The trade types have proven successful in both the United Kingdom and Europe and, when approved for local use, will assist in helping us grow and develop our market in line with international best practice," says Brady.
ENDS
About A2X
A2X Markets (A2X) is a South African stock exchange playing an integral part in the progression of the South African market-place. A2X began trading on 6 October 2017 and was named Best New Stock Exchange Africa 2019 in the 2019 Global Banjing & Finance Awards®. In addition, it won the category for Fastest Growing Stock Exchange South Africa 2020 in the 2020 Global Banjing & Finance Awards®, and was the International Business Magazine Award Winner 2020 for Best New Stock Exchange Africa 2020
An experienced team, advanced technology and an agile environment enable A2X to provide an efficient and cost-effective trading venue to secondary list and trade shares, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and exchange-traded notes (ETNs).
A2X has appointed Strate as its central securities depository and operates within the proven and reliable South African settlement structure. It uses technology developed by the UK's Aquis Technologies, which includes proven exchange-matching and surveillance systems and a clearing platform custom-built for A2X. The end-to-end costs of transacting on A2X are around 50% lower than the other trading venue in South Africa where the same shares can be traded.
Shares available for trade on A2X
Security Code |
Security Name |
Marjet Cap |
ACG |
Anchor Group |
R913 021 591 |
AFT |
Afrimat |
R6 284 224 852 |
AIL |
African Rainbow Capital Inv |
R4 678 101 204 |
APN |
Aspen Pharmacare |
R66 221 989 568 |
ARI |
African Rainbow Minerals |
R64 719 983 297 |
ASC |
Ascendis Health |
R371 997 169 |
AVI |
AVI |
R24 177 846 098 |
CLH |
City Lodge Hotels |
R2 013 113 857 |
CML |
Coronation Fund Managers |
R16 503 521 632 |
CTA |
Capital Appreciation |
R1 441 000 000 |
EQU |
Equites Property Fund |
R10 801 333 716 |
EXX |
Exxaro Resources |
R59 304 987 639 |
FBR |
Famous Brands |
R4 509 102 780 |
FVT |
Fairvest Property Holdings |
R1 781 719 522 |
GLD |
NewGold ETF |
R18 518 646 227 |
GRT |
GrowthPoint Properties |
R41 238 060 533 |
HDC |
Hudaco Industries |
R2 799 063 380 |
HUG |
Huge Group |
R1 040 245 958 |
IVT |
Invicta Holdings |
R1 856 387 388 |
IVTP |
Invicta Holdings Ltd pref |
R497 775 000 |
MRP |
Mr Price Group |
R43 268 516 263 |
MTM |
Momentum Metropolitan |
R24 049 454 217 |
NGPLD |
NewGold Palladium ETF |
R630 158 764 |
NGPLT |
NewGold Platinum ETF |
R9 369 900 000 |
NPN |
Naspers Ltd -N- |
R1 552 161 410 712 |
NRP |
NEPI Rockcastle |
R55 162 758 676 |
PRX |
Prosus N.V. |
R2 940 620 246 700 |
REN |
Renergen |
R1 502 928 177 |
SBK |
Standard Bank Group |
R202 022 865 057 |
SBPP |
Standard Bank Group pref |
R3 544 512 391 |
SLM |
Sanlam |
R129 387 213 105 |
SNT |
Santam |
R32 349 625 549 |
SOL |
Sasol |
R101 366 247 132 |
SWXTR2 |
Investec Swix Top 40 Tri ETN |
R1 051 850 000 |
SYG |
Sygnia |
R2 894 979 023 |
TCP |
Transaction Capital |
R15 980 682 409 |
THA |
Tharisa |
R7 040 000 000 |
TOPTR2 |
Investec Top 40 Tri ETN |
R1 164 967 500 |
VUN |
Vunani |
R443 178 766 |
ZCL |
Zarclear Holdings |
R802 533 221 |
|
|
R5
454 486 149 071 |
Twitter: @A2X_Markets
Images of Kevin Brady, CEO of A2X here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1D5JQ94SPnA4RXuIWlc8BiqaRLZzK7_lu?usp=sharin g
For further
information, photos or interviews for A2X, please contact Diane Bomberg on diane.bomberg@a2x.co.za or
082 641 9244