The Uganda Securities Exchange (USE) is the principal stock exchange of Uganda. It was founded in June 1997. The USE is operated under the jurisdiction of Uganda's Capital Markets Authority, which in turn reports to the Bank of Uganda, Uganda's central bank.

The exchange opened to trading in January 1998. At that time, the exchange had just one listing, a bond issued by the East African Development Bank. Trading was limited to only a handful of trades per week.

As of July 2014, the USE traded 16 listed local and East African companies and had started the trading of fixed income instruments. The exchange is a member of the African Stock Exchanges Association.

The USE operates in close association with the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange in Tanzania, the Rwanda Stock Exchange, and the Nairobi Stock Exchange in Kenya. According to published reports in 2013, there were plans to integrate the four exchanges to form a single East African bourse.

Uganda All Stock Index (ALSIUG) is the benchmark Index of the Uganda Securities Exchange.

Trading A published report in February 2011 claimed that USE would increase trading to five days a week in March 2011.

During the first quarter of 2010, the USE adopted the Settlement and Clearing Depository electronic trading system. According to a published report in January 2011, other electronic modalities were being considered for the exchange. In 2010, the USE was the best performing stock exchange in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an All-Shares Index return of 74 percent between January and November 2010. On 20 July 2015, the USE initiated its electronic trading platform, backed by three independent data servers, cutting to three days (previously five days) the time it takes to settle trades.

Market listing

Number Symbol Company Notes 1. BOBU Bank of Baroda (Uganda) Finance, banking 2. BATU British American Tobacco Tobacco products 3. DFCU DFCU Group Finance, banking 4. EABL East African Breweries Brewing, gin, distilled beverages 5. JHL Jubilee Holdings Insurance 6. KA Kenya Airways Aviation 7. KCB KCB Group Finance, banking 8. NVL New Vision Group Printing, publishing, broadcasting, television 9. SBU Stanbic Bank Uganda Limited Finance, banking 10. UCL Uganda Clays Limited Manufacturing, construction materials 11. EBL Equity Group Holdings Limited Banking, finance 12. NIC National Insurance Corporation Insurance13.UCHM Uchumi Supermarkets Supermarkets 14. NMG Nation Media Group Publishing, printing, broadcasting, television15. CENT Centum Investments Investments, private equity, real estate16. UMEME Umeme Electric power distribution17. QCIL Quality Chemical Industries Limited Pharmaceutical manufacturing18. MTNU MTN Uganda Mobile Telephony19. AIRTEL UGANDA Airtel Uganda Mobile Telephony

Notes on market listings (1) East African Breweries Limited, Kenya Airways and Jubilee Holdings, are primarily listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and are cross-listed on the Uganda Securities Exchange and on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. (2) Centum Investment Company Limited, Equity Group Holdings Limited, and Jubilee Holdings are listed primarily on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and are crosslisted on the USE. (3) Kenya Commercial Bank Group and Nation Media Group are listed primarily on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and are crosslisted on the USE, the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, and the Rwanda Stock Exchange. (4) Uchumi Supermarkets, a regional supermarket retailer with headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, is listed on the Nairobi Stock Exchange, is crosslisted on the USE and the Rwanda Stock Exchange, and plans to crosslist its shares on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange. (5) Umeme, the largest electric power distributor in Uganda, is listed primarily on the USE and is crosslisted on the Nairobi Stock Exchange. (6) Equity Group Holdings Limited is listed primarily on the Nairobi Stock Exchange (2006). It is crosslisted on the USE (2009) and the Rwanda Stock Exchange (2015). (7) In February 2015, Ugandan media indicated that both Housing Finance Bank and Crane Bank, which had intended to list their shares on the USE, have since changed their plans and put their IPOs on hold.

Ownership The exchange is owned by 16 stock brokers. In August 2016, a law was passed to allow the owners to sell shares in the stock exchange to members of the public through an initial public offering. On 18 May 2017, the USE demutualised and registered as a "public company, limited by shares". Its authorised share capital is USh 1 billion, consisting of 100 million shares of each. At incorporation, the paid up capital was USh 42 million, with each of the founding investor firms owning 6,000,000 shares, each valued at each.

The shareholding in the stock of the Uganda Securities Exchange is as depicted in the table below.

+ Uganda Securities Exchange Stock Ownership Rank Name of OwnerPercentage Ownership 1 African Alliance Uganda Limited 2 Baroda Capital Limited 3 Crane Financial Services Limited 4 Crested Capital Limited 5 Dyer & Blair Uganda Limited 6 Equity Stock Brokers Uganda Limited 7 UAP Old Mutual Financial Services Limited Total

Note The totals are slightly off due to rounding.

See also List of African stock exchanges Economy of Uganda ALTX East Africa Exchange Ugandan shilling List of stock exchanges in the Commonwealth of Nations

References

External links Uganda pension funds control 19% shares on the USE - 14 August 2016 Uganda Securities Exchange website