ZSE launches ZEEX to help Zimbabwe SMEs raise capital and formalise

ZSE launches ZEEX to help Zimbabwe SMEs raise capital and formalise

For all the News from Mashonaland Central, Join One of Our Groups

The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) has launched the Zimbabwe Entrepreneurship Exchange (ZEEX), a new platform aimed at helping micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) raise capital for growth, while encouraging more businesses to formalise.

According to officials and industry representatives, ZEEX is intended to provide an alternative funding market for MSMEs, tackling a common obstacle in the sector: limited access to affordable finance. The platform is expected to offer a structured route for viable small businesses to secure funding to expand operations.

Zimbabwe Chamber of SMEs secretary general Mr Venacio Kurauone said many promising enterprises have been forced to depend on informal and costly financing, and argued the new exchange can help close that gap.

“Viable, promising businesses have been left to rely on informal financing, which is also expensive. It is this gap that the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange seeks to close. If you are formalised, you get access to capital. That is a very important incentive,” Kurauone said.

To Advertise Inbox Us

Government officials said ZEEX is expected to widen financing options for entrepreneurs and strengthen the contribution of MSMEs to Zimbabwe’s economy, including in communities outside the main urban centres.

Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Judith Ncube, described small businesses as central to economic transformation. “SMEs are literally the heartbeat of our economy. The number of individuals who benefit from SMEs is huge. This is where it gets exciting in leaving no one and no place behind,” she said.

Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Senator Monica Mutsvangwa, said ZEEX was designed as an inclusive platform for entrepreneurs in both towns and rural areas. “This will be an all-inclusive platform which brings all SMEs on board, whether they are in urban or rural areas. This is what we mean through the Government mantra of leaving no one and no place behind,” she said.

Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube said ZEEX aligns with Government measures aimed at improving the environment for small businesses and supporting formalisation without excessive burden.

“The Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion regards the growth of SMEs and entrepreneurs as central to its mandate. Government continues to improve the fiscal and regulatory environment to allow formalisation of small businesses without being overburdened. The ZEEX platform complements Government’s initiatives directly, offering a credible destination for the businesses our policies are designed to support,” he said.

Professor Ncube noted that SMEs contribute more than 60% of Zimbabwe’s gross domestic product and employ over 70% of the national workforce, but many still operate outside formal capital markets. He said ZEEX comes at a time when improved access to structured finance could support growth while also strengthening capital market development.

The initiative is expected to integrate more MSMEs into Zimbabwe’s formal financial system, creating additional avenues for investment and participation across the economy, including for entrepreneurs in Mashonaland Central seeking capital to scale up operations.

Follow Our WhatsApp Channel for all the News from Mashonaland Central – Bindura, Mbire, Guruve, Mount Darwin, Rushinga, Shamva, Mazowe & Muzarabani