JSE boss urges investors to back small and mid-cap firms

Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) CEO Dr Leila Fourie has called for greater risk appetite among investors to support small and mid-cap companies - the real engines of job creation.

- Liesl Peyper

Speaking at a PSG event in Cape Town on Monday, Fourie said SA's markets were "institutionally based" and investors must be willing to invest in smaller and medium-sized companies.

"When one looks at the delistings we've seen on the JSE, those are almost exclusively in the small and mid-cap space," Fourie said.

"The reason is they don't achieve the share price that they should be getting relative to their net asset value, because there isn't appetite from investors to invest in small enterprises."

She said SA needed more “speculative, open-minded investors” to start growing the smaller enterprises “because that’s where the job creation sits”.

Her remarks formed part of a panel discussion that elaborated on this year’s PSG Think Big SA Competition theme about how capital markets can drive growth and create jobs.

Policy shifts needed

Fourie, who was one of five judges, said SA’s market capitalisation was 250% of the country’s GDP.