In an interview with CNBC Africa today January 6, 2016, Pierre Celestin Rwabunkumba said three new companies could soon land on the Rwanda Stock Exchange.

Not disclosing the names of these companies, the executive however said they operate in the finance, transport and logistics industries. “We are currently talking with various companies to help them in the process but as you know, we do not talk about the listings before they are effective. It is up to the companies, once ready, to make the announcement,” said Rwabunkumba. However, he added: “These are goals we have set for ourselves for the year and you should know that every time we set goals for ourselves, we always achieve them”.

Crystal Telecom, local partner to MTN is the last of the seven firms that listed on the RSE. In April 2015, local media said the government intended to transfer 19.5% of its shares in the local subsidiary of Kenyan finance group I&M Holdings to the public securities market.

If these three companies successfully list on the stock exchange, it will then count 10 companies overall.

However, an important challenge remains: the attraction of investors to the RSE. Indeed, in 2015, all transactions amounted to only $45.5 million. “Few people know they can also enter the stock for secondary market transactions; it’s typical of young markets. So, in order to attract a lot more investors unto this segment, we invest a lot into awareness-raising,” Celestin Rwabukumba said.

The 2016 year had quite the shaky start for this segment. Despite the various offerings and demands of shares, no transaction has been registered on the stock up till January 5, 2016. Therefore, indicators for the various listed companies remained stable at the end of the trading day.  

Idriss Linge