[Last updated: 1 January 2024, unless otherwise noted]

The JSE Limited (JSE), which is commonly referred to as the JSE, was established in 1887 and is Africa's premier and largest exchange by market capitalization. The JSE has been a member of the World Federation of Exchanges since 1963.

Since 2017 a few new exchanges have been granted a license to operate a securities exchange in South Africa, including 4 Africa Exchange (commonly referred to as the 4AX), A2X Markets (commonly referred to as the A2X), Cape Town Stock Exchange (CTSE) and Equity Express Securities Exchange (EESE). However, these exchanges presently have a relatively small number of securities listed on them, although they are becoming more attractive to small to medium sized issuers as alternative exchanges and for diversified instruments. Accordingly, this document does not deal with 4AX, A2X, CTSE or EESE but rather only with the JSE. 

The JSE is a full-service exchange and offers a variety of investment products (including equities, depository receipts and a broader range of exchange-traded funds and debt instruments) in a range of markets issued by South African and international issuers. The JSE offers five financial markets, namely, equities and bonds, financial, commodity and interest rate derivatives. The JSE provides (i) a primary market, (ii) a secondary market, (iii) post-trade services, (iv) technology services and (v) information services. In addition, the JSE regulates both the primary and secondary markets.

The JSE equity market is currently comprised of two boards, the Main Board and the Alternative Exchange Board (AltX):

• The Main Board is a market for companies that meet the profit and other financial criteria of the JSE. Companies can list their shares or debt instruments as a primary or secondary listing on the Main Board.
• AltX is a parallel market focused on good quality, small- and medium-sized high growth companies and provides these smaller companies not yet able to list on the Main Board with a clear growth path and access to capital.

This summary focuses on the Main Board only.

Under the Financial Markets Act 2012, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority is the licensing authority in relation to the establishment of securities exchanges and overall supervisory authority in relation to securities services in South Africa. However, the JSE is the primary regulator for listings on its Main Board. The board of directors of the JSE is the competent authority with primary responsibility for applications by applicant issuers for the listing of securities on the JSE and an annual revision of the list. The board of directors has delegated its authority in relation to the Listing Requirements of the JSE to the management of the Issuer Regulation  Division of the JSE. In certain instances, such as where an offer of securities is made to the South African general public, the South African companies' authority, the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC), would also be involved in a proposed listing on the Main Board.

The JSE allows foreign companies with a primary listing on a "recognized/ approved exchange" other than the JSE to list their securities on the JSE as secondary listings, provided that the foreign company registers as an external company in South Africa, if required. Approved exchanges in relation to the Main Board include the Australian Securities Exchange, London Stock Exchange, NYSE, Toronto Stock Exchange, Nasdaq Stock Market, Euronext Amsterdam, Euronext Brussels, Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Luxembourg Stock Exchange, SIX Swiss Exchange and, as of November 2023, the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd.. Such foreign companies must be in compliance with the listing requirements of the exchange where it has a primary listing.

Due to the decline in companies and foreign investment companies listing on the JSE and the increase in delistings, the JSE has announced its intention to completely overhaul the JSE Listings Requirements in an attempt at simplifying the requirements (Simplification Project).  The complete overhaul of the JSE Listings Requirements presents an opportunity for the JSE to reform and regulate listings in a manner that accommodates potential issuers, listed companies, sponsors, shareholders and investors. The Simplification Project aims to simplify the Listings Requirements using plain language to record concise regulatory objectives, allowing better understanding and application of the requirements by listed companies, sponsors, investors. An additional benefit of the simplification will be the significant reduction in the volume of the JSE Listings Requirements. During the process, the JSE will also assess the regulatory relevance of each provision and ‘cut red tape’ where possible to ensure that the JSE Listings Requirements are fit for purpose, aimed at an effective and appropriate level of regulation.