Namibia Securities Exchange to Provide LEIs Africa-wide on pTools LEILex Platform

Namibia Securities Exchange (NSX) announced at the WFE General Assembly and Annual Meeting in Kuala Lumpur recently,  that it is to offer Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) across Africa using the pTools LEILex platform.  The pTools LEILex platform is an LEI-affiliate solution launched by pTools Software, the leading provider of market information and AI automation solutions for exchanges.  

Namibia Securities Exchange is one of Africa’s largest exchanges and, as a pTools LEILex partner-affiliate, will provide LEIs across the African continent.  This marks a significant milestone as the first continent-wide agreement of its kind. 

The pTools LEILex platform will  help the Namibia Securities Exchange to extend its service and provide LEIs in all 54 countries in Africa. The partnership underscores pTools’ achievement in helping clients address the ever-increasing requirement for LEIs worldwide and ensure efficient issuance of LEIs for organisations engaging in international trade. 

The Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) comprises a 20-character alphanumeric code that adheres to the ISO 17442 standard formulated by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). This code serves as a crucial link to essential reference details, facilitating a distinctive identification of legal entities participating in financial activities. Embedded within each LEI is comprehensive ownership structure data that clarifies the question of "who is who” and "who owns whom”. 

Tiaan Bazuin, CEO of Namibia Securities Exchange, commented: "I am delighted to be partnering with pTools and LEILex to be supplying LEIs to the African market. The NSX has long believed in smart partnerships and see this as the newest in a long line of partnerships.  

"We also believe we can supply LEIs to a broader market than just Namibia and invite other African exchanges to join us in this partnership as we are in a position to extend this partnership to them as well."

Tom Skinner, pTools Managing Director and Chairman, commented: "Our work in LEI now extends to more than a decade. The partnership with NSX represents the next important step in a process that sees us helping clients across the planet provide and manage LEIs.  

"This partnership underpins our LEILex initiative and offers an extraordinary opportunity to help develop the provision of LEI across the continent of Africa.  

"I want to thank and to credit Mr. Tiaan Bazuin for his vision and commitment. It is a great joy to work with someone of his calibre and energy and I look forward to our work together in the coming years."

Keith Wood, CEO at pTools Software, added: "This collaboration between pTools LEILex and NSX underscores the importance of establishing a reliable framework for financial operations and LEI and vLEI in Africa, empowering exchanges and businesses alike to adopt the LEI standard. This will not only provide clarity and efficient identification of legal entities but also enhance the integrity of financial transactions throughout the continent.  

"Our role is to underpin the initiative with technology that seamlessly supports NSX and LEI client companies throughout the process from applications requests to company verification and on to renewals. I look forward to working with the team at NSX and see this as just the beginning of our work together."

This partnership will mark a notable advancement in cultivating a secure financial market ecosystem in Africa while emphasising the vital role and urgency of Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) within the sector. Through this partnership, pTools, LEILex and Namibia Securities Exchange aim to streamline the understanding and adoption of LEIs across financial organisations, facilitating the transition to this essential framework in Africa. 

About Namibia Securities Exchange: 

The Namibia Securities Exchange (NSX) is the primary securities exchange of Namibia and the second-biggest exchange in Africa. It was established in 1992 and was recently awarded the best managed exchange in Africa by London-based Capital Finance International. It is based in Windhoek, the capital city, and operates under the regulatory oversight of the Namibia Financial Institutions Supervisory Authority (NAMFISA). NSX has a technical partnership with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and is in the process of demutualisation and launching Central Securities Depository (CSD) with the Bank of Namibia.  

The NSX actively seeks dual listings and prioritises simplifying the listing process to diversify its market and enhance local content. In recent years, the NSX has added more sectors to its boards through various listings and commodity Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). The NSX authored and published the Corporate Governance Code for Namibia (NamCode) which is applicable to all listed companies.  

Improvements in governance have strengthened Namibia's position in African investment, deepened its capital markets and attracted a broader pool of international investors. The recent discovery of more than 11 billion barrels of oil offshore has elevated Namibia’s profile.  This discovery is expected to have a beneficial impact on Namibia’s macro-economic development  as well as its capital markets. 

For more about NSX, please visit: https://www.nsx.com.na/  

About pTools Software: 

pTools is a leading provider of market information services for securities exchanges and related organisations including; LOUs, NNAs, CSDs, CBs and Central Banks. pTools provides packaged software, bespoke solutions, outsourced and support services for applications including; LEI and ISIN Issuance, Corporate Actions and Announcements, Sanctions Screening and ESG Validation, Asset Tokenisation and Listing. With offices in Dublin, London and Bangalore, pTools clients include London Securities Exchange Group, Qatar Central Bank and Strate South Africa. pTools works across technologies with specific capability in AI and NLP, Blockchain and Notarisation, Digital Risk Mitigation/Scoring and Data Quality Management. pTools delivers solutions on-Premise, on-Cloud, and as-a-Service. pTools is a long-term partner of WFE, the World Federation of Exchanges, and has additional partnerships with global technology providers: GLEIF, LSEG, IBM, AWS and Microsoft. 

For more about pTools Software, please visit: https://www.ptools.com/  

About LEILex Affiliate Initiative:  

The LEILex affiliate initiative, a collaborative effort between pTools and the London Stock Exchange Group, aims to streamline the provision of Legal Entity Identifiers (LEIs) while actively contributing to the enhancement of global financial market security. 

Becoming an LEILex affiliate offers an exceptional advantage to our clients as they can swiftly begin providing LEIs within weeks. This streamlined process not only saves costs by eliminating the need for significant IT/infrastructure investments and staffing expenses but also enables clients to more efficiently handle the complexities associated with ensuring data quality and meeting regulatory requirements. With LSEG and pTools providing the necessary support and infrastructure, LEILex affiliates can focus solely on providing LEIs to businesses. 

For more about LEILex, please visit: https://www.leilex.com/  

To get in touch, please contact: Suraj Pandey, Business Development Manager – Market Information Services – pTools Software - [email protected]

(Photograph: Tiaan Bazuin, CEO of Namibia Securities Exchange and Tom Skinner, Managing Director of pTools Software.)