The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) is searching for a new Chief Executive Officer, to replace Geoffrey Odundo whose term ends in March 2024 following a one-year extension.

Appointed in March 2015, Odundo’s tenure as NSE Chief Executive has had its fair share of challenges and successes.

For instance, while the NSE has struggled to attract fresh listings, the bourse has seen a flurry of new products, under Odundo’s watch.

On the list of the NSE’s most recent innovations is the introduction of two new market indices, the NSE 10 Share Index (N10) and the NSE Bond Index (NSEBI), which provide a performance tracker for the ten most liquid stocks and listed benchmark bonds respectively.

It has been during Odundo’s tenure that the monthly value of bonds traded at the NSE reached a two-year high in September 2023. In addition, the market also recorded a historical single-day high trading of KSh 16.5 billion worth of fixed-income trades in the same month. This surge in fixed-income trading activity underscores the depth and potential of Kenya’s capital markets, extending beyond equities.

The NSE is considered among the leading exchanges in Africa offering 5 public market platforms and 1 private market platform as well as an array of products, which include trading and capital-raising opportunities via equities, Government and corporate bonds, green bonds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), derivatives, real estate investment trusts (REITs) and unquoted securities.

Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) in its August 2023 review of Kenya, noted that the market dividend yield stood at 8.63% compared to 4.28% for the peer average group of stock exchanges in the MSCI Frontier Markets Index.

As Odundo prepares to exit, significant challenges remain for the NSE. Foreign investors, who have been key drivers at the bourse, continue to give the market a wide berth. This is despite the fact the perception that listed stocks at this exchange are still grossly undervalued.

The NSE is still not where it should be, with liquidity levels still low. The Nairobi bourse also has its trading volumes dominated by only 5 top companies, which is still high and a risk.