The JSE is proposing further amendments to its listing requirements that aim to divide its main board into two distinct segments to make things easier for smaller companies.
The bourse currently has a two-tiered equities market, its Main Board and Alternative Exchange, or AltX. The latter is a parallel market established in 2003 that provides small and medium-sized companies with a pathway to access capital. The JSE now wants to introduce market segmentation to the main board to tailor regulatory requirements according to the size and liquidity of main board equity issuers. Under the new market segmentation proposal, the JSE would split its main board into Prime and General segments, with the latter aimed at smaller listed companies that can be subjected to slightly less onerous listing requirements. South Africans need to be in the know if we want to create a prosperous future.