Abu Dhabi Tabadul Hub Adds Botswana As First African Market

Economy Middle East reported that the Botswana Stock Exchange will join Abu Dhabi’s Tabadul cross-border trading hub after signing with ADX Group, making it the network’s first African market.

The agreement with Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange Group will make the Botswana Stock Exchange the 11th member of Tabadul.

The platform lets investors access eligible securities on connected markets through local brokerage firms.

Tabadul Will Connect Botswana Through Local Brokers

The Abu Dhabi ceremony included Neo Mooki, chairperson of the Botswana exchange, Aobakwe Aupa Monyatsi, its chief executive officer, and senior executives from both market operators.

Once integration is completed, investors across the Middle East will be able to trade eligible instruments listed on the Botswana Stock Exchange through local brokerages.

Botswana-based investors will also gain access to securities available through participating Tabadul markets.

Tabadul currently connects markets representing more than $1 trillion in combined market capitalisation.

The participating exchanges collectively cover more than 700 listed companies and over 11 million registered investors, according to Economy Middle East.

ADX Lists AED13.5 Billion In 2026 Tabadul Trading Value

The report said Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Bahrain Bourse initiated Tabadul in 2022 as a cross-border digital trading link.

The platform has since added markets in the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Armenia and Jordan.

ADX put trading value through Tabadul at AED13.5 billion so far in 2026, already above the value recorded across the full 2025 calendar year.

The exchange attributed the latest expansion to investor demand, trading-member participation, institutional and retail adoption, and market-infrastructure improvements.

Abdulla Salem Alnuaimi, ADX Group Chief Executive Officer, described the Botswana addition as a link across capital markets in the Middle East and Africa.

He called Tabadul a digital bridge for cross-border trading and framed the expansion as wider investor access across participating markets.

Botswana Exchange Brings 33 Companies And 121 Bonds

The Botswana Stock Exchange is based in Gaborone and is the country’s only stock exchange.

The report described it as Africa’s third-largest exchange by market capitalisation and dated its founding to 1989.

The exchange is home to 33 companies, 121 bonds and eight exchange-traded funds, according to the report.

The report said it surpassed 1 trillion Botswana pula in total market capitalisation for the first time on May 11, 2026, equivalent to about 2.5 times Botswana’s gross domestic product.

Monyatsi described Tabadul Exchange Hub membership as a way to expand cross-border investment opportunities for Botswana investors and licensed brokers.

He added that Botswana-listed companies would be presented to more regional and international capital providers through the agreement.

Tabadul Keeps Exchange Access Subject To Local Rules

Under Tabadul’s operating model, investors registered with eligible local brokers can access connected markets subject to the requirements imposed by the exchange receiving the orders.

The Jordan agreement broadened the available scope to initial public offerings and other opportunities on participating exchanges.

The report said Kazakhstan Stock Exchange joined the operating network in February 2025.

The link gave Kazakh investors access to eligible foreign securities while settlement remained in Kazakhstani tenge through local clearing infrastructure.

Economy Middle East did not report the final integration date.