• BRVM highlights resilience amid global uncertainty at 2025 annual briefing

• WAEMU growth hit 6.7%; record CFA 4.2 trillion raised, mainly sovereign bonds

• Exchange outlines 2026-2030 plan focusing on technology, sustainability, new products

West Africa’s regional stock exchange (BRVM) held its annual press briefing on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026, at its headquarters in Abidjan’s Plateau district (Côte d’Ivoire), where it presented its 2025 activity report and outlook to local and international media.

The event went beyond a review of the numbers. BRVM Director General Edoh Kossi Amenounve used the occasion to place the regional market’s performance in a rapidly shifting global environment, while reaffirming the exchange’s role in funding the economies of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).

He began by putting 2025 into a broader international context, citing rising protectionism, modest growth and easing inflation. He also pointed to persistent geopolitical tensions and high global public debt. In his view, these trends reflect a transition that could reshape the global economic order, making it more fragmented and less predictable and forcing financial markets, including regional ones, to adapt.

Against that backdrop, the BRVM said capital markets can no longer be assessed solely through equity performance. It argued they must also be seen as a way to channel domestic savings, support long-term investment and act as a buffer against external shocks.

WAEMU backdrop seen as a pillar of stability

With global uncertainty still high, BRVM officials stressed the strength of WAEMU’s macroeconomic fundamentals, presenting them as a key factor behind the regional market’s resilience. They said growth across the bloc reached 6.7% in 2025, alongside a sharp narrowing of fiscal deficits, which averaged 4.1% last year, down from 8.4% in 2022. The exchange said the trend supports investor confidence.

The BRVM framed the market’s recent trajectory as part of a broader push toward fiscal consolidation and gradual economic structuring, which it said should help deepen the market and strengthen trust among issuers and investors.

Amenounve also said the heavy reliance of WAEMU governments on the regional market should be viewed in the context of pressing infrastructure needs, largely financed through bond issuance. In 2025, a record 4,204.7 billion CFA francs ($7.5 billion) was raised on the primary market, driven mainly by bonds, which accounted for 87.6% of the total. More than 95% of those issues came from sovereign borrowers.

Rather than viewing that dominance as a structural weakness, the BRVM described it as a phase in the market’s development. It said government issuance provides a foundation for credibility that could, over time, support the rollout of more sophisticated instruments and a broader investor base.

A market positioning itself as a trusted platform

Throughout the presentations, Amenounve sought to underline the regional market’s broader role beyond its 2025 performance. The exchange described itself as a key channel for mobilising long-term domestic funding in a region where financing needs remain substantial, both on the primary and secondary markets.

He added that global investor appetite for equities has held up despite uncertainty, citing gains in major international indices as a sign that stock markets remain a preferred venue for allocating capital in a complex environment.

The BRVM also pointed to the gradual diversification of instruments available to investors, including thematic bond issuance designed to address current financing priorities linked to social development, the environment and financial inclusion. Without detailing volumes, the exchange said the regional market is now recognised as Africa’s second-largest listing venue for social bonds.

Dollar dominance, capital flows and opportunities for emerging markets

Asked about shifts in the international financial system, including questions around the dollar’s dominant role, Amenounve struck a cautious tone. He noted that the U.S. currency still accounts for a major share of global reserves and international trade, and said any meaningful change would have wide-reaching consequences.

However, he did not rule out the possibility that such shifts could create indirect opportunities for emerging markets. With yields in advanced economies expected to remain relatively low, some capital could seek higher returns elsewhere. For the BRVM, the challenge will be to position the regional market as credible, transparent and sufficiently developed to attract part of those flows when conditions allow.

2026-2030: BRVM outlines a transformation agenda

Beyond the 2025 review, the briefing also set out the BRVM’s medium-term strategy. Under its 2026–2030 plan, the exchange aims to pursue a broad transformation built around several priorities.

Technology will be central to that agenda. The BRVM said it intends to integrate new tools to improve efficiency, transparency and market access, citing artificial intelligence, blockchain and data analytics as areas of focus as it seeks to align more closely with international standards.

Sustainability is another key pillar. The exchange said it wants to strengthen its role in promoting more inclusive finance that responds to social needs, while supporting governments and companies in structuring funding aligned with social and environmental priorities.

The BRVM also flagged plans to develop new products, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and the gradual introduction of a derivatives market, which it said would help investors hedge risk and enhance returns. These ambitions, it added, will be supported by a renewed focus on investor education, seen as essential to widening participation and anchoring the market more firmly in WAEMU economies.

Moutiou Adjibi Nourou