Nairobi Securities Exchange to launch digital platform to trade tokenized real-world assets

The Kenya Digital Exchange (KDX), designed in partnership with DeFi Technologies, is set to launch before the end of the year.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange has partnered with global technology company DeFi Technologies to launch the Kenya Digital Exchange (KDX).

This will enable the digitization and trading of both intangible real-world assets —like equities, debts, and exchange-traded funds — as well as tangible commodities such as gold and oil, all on the blockchain-based KDX platform.

The details

• In a press release, DeFi Technologies announced that it worked with its exchange-traded products (ETPs) issuance subsidiary Valour and the capital markets liquidity provider SovFi to design KDX.
• The Kenyan Digital Exchange is built on the Hedera network, to whose governing council the NSE belongs, the company announced.
• DeFi Technologies plans to roll out the KDX in phases starting with onboarding investors, issuing primary tokens and ensuring regulatory compliance, all scheduled to be completed before next year.
• In subsequent phases, it plans to introduce advanced trading strategies powered by artificial intelligence and secondary market trading while also ensuring the exchange is interoperable with other platforms.
• KDX’s launch is a sequel to a memorandum of understanding previously signed between all three firms to allow the issuance and trade of Valour’s ETPs on the Nairobi Stock Exchange.
• According to the company, the listing process of these ETPs is at an advanced stage and should be completed before the end of September.

Key quotes

Frank Mwiti, CEO of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, said:

“By collaborating with DeFi Technologies and SovFi to design and launch the KDX, we are laying the foundation for a dynamic digital marketplace that will unlock new investment opportunities, deepen market access, and position Kenya as a trailblazer in the tokenization and trading of real-world assets across the continent.”

Before now

• The Nairobi Securities Exchange has been working to digitize its operations and broaden its listings to include digital assets.
• Last year, Mariblock reported that the NSE joined the Hedera Governing Council to allow it launch tokenized securities on a blockchain.
• This was seen primarily as a move by the otherwise traditionally run stock exchange to go digital and attract Kenya’s mostly tech-savvy youth to trade on the exchange.
• However, several tokenization projects globally are still in experimental phases. As such, the NSE’s digitization move does not have much to look to by way of successful precedents.

Source: mariblock