Safaricom, KCB, MTN Uganda Among Top 20 Firms in New East African Stock Index
- EASEA has launched the EAE 20 Share Index, a market capitalisation-weighted index ranking the top 20 listed companies across the Nairobi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda stock exchanges
- Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) CEO Frank Mwiti described the launch as a significant milestone that will enhance market transparency and attract regional and international investment
- The EAE 20 Share Index includes major firms such as Safaricom, KCB Group, Equity Group, MTN Uganda, CRDB Bank, and Tanzania Breweries among others
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Elijah Ntongai, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, has more than four years of financial, business, and technology research and reporting expertise, providing insights into Kenyan and global trends.
Nairobi – The East African Securities Exchanges Association (EASEA) has launched the EAE 20 Share Index.
Source: Twitter
This is a market capitalisation-weighted index that ranks the top 20 listed companies across the Nairobi, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda stock exchanges.
NSE chief executive officer Frank Mwiti hailed the launch as a milestone for regional markets.
"The EAE 20 Share Index is poised to enhance market transparency, attract both cross-border and international investment, and provide a dependable benchmark for tracking regional market performance. It also reinforces ongoing efforts to promote the harmonisation and integration of East African exchanges, fostering deeper collaboration across the region, including laying a strong foundation for the development of innovative financial instruments, including exchange-traded funds and other index-linked products,” Mwiti noted.
Source: Twitter
Which firms are in the EAE 220 share index?
According to a statement by the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), the EAE 20 Share Index includes prominent firms such as Safaricom Plc, KCB Group Plc, Equity Group Holdings Plc, Absa Bank Kenya Plc and The Co-operative Bank of Kenya Limited from Kenya.
The index also includes Tanzania Breweries Limited, Tanzania Cigarette Corporation, and Bralirwa Limited from Tanzania; I&M Bank (Rwanda) Plc and Cimerwa Plc from Rwanda; and MTN Uganda Limited, Stanbic Uganda Holdings, and Bank of Baroda (Uganda).
Other notable inclusions are CRDB Bank Plc, NMB Bank Plc, BK Group Plc, Airtel Uganda Limited, and Quality Chemical Industries Limited.
Collectively, these companies represent over 85% of the region’s equity market universe.
What are the qualifications for the EAE share index?
To qualify for the index, companies must be primarily listed on one of the participating East African securities exchanges, have maintained a continuous listing for at least one year, and be recognised as blue-chip firms with strong profitability and a consistent dividend payment history.
The index will track price movements and changes in market capitalisation, providing a transparent benchmark for investors, analysts, and policymakers in the East Africa region.
EASEA is the umbrella body representing securities exchanges and depositories in the region, including the Nairobi Securities Exchange Plc, Uganda Securities Exchange Plc, Dar-es-Salaam Stock Exchange, Rwanda Stock Exchange, Somali Stock Exchange, Burundi Securities Exchange, Ethiopia Securities Exchange, National Securities Exchange of Somalia, and the Central Depository & Settlement Corporation (Kenya).
NSE extends suspension of Umeme Ltd.
In other news, the NSE has extended the suspension of Umeme Limited shares until May 12, 2025, or until further notice.
The move has come due to ongoing regulatory processes and unresolved issues surrounding the end of the company’s 20-year electricity distribution concession in Uganda, which expired on March 31, 2025.
The Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) took over operations on April 1, 2025, aiming to lower electricity costs, but tensions persist over the buyout amount owed to Umeme for unrecovered capital investments.
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Source: TUKO.co.ke
Elijah Ntongai (Business editor) Elijah Ntongai is an MCK accredited journalist and an editor at TUKO.co.ke's business desk, covering stories on money, the economy, technology, and other business-angled stories. Ntongai graduated from Moi University with a Bachelor's in Linguistics, Media and Communication. Ntongai is trained and certified under the Google News Initiative and Reuters Digital Journalism. For any correspondence, contact Ntongai at elijah.ntongai@tuko.co.ke.
Jackson Otukho (Copyeditor) Jackson Otukho is a multi-media journalist and current affairs editor at TUKO.co.ke. In 2019, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Media Science from Moi University. He has over seven years of experience in digital and print media. He initially worked as a news editor at Standard Media Group (2014-2017) and Citizen TV (2019 May- 2019 September). Through his career, he has won several awards, including the editor with the cleanest copy and with the most social media engagement. Mail: jackson.otukho@tuko.co.ke
