Johannesburg Stock Exchange
Africa’s largest and most developed stock exchange, founded to finance the Witwatersrand gold rush. It is well regulated by emerging-market standards and offers equities, bonds and derivatives. Several of its largest constituents are global businesses whose earnings have little to do with the South African economy.
- Location
- Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Trading currency
- South African rand (ZAR)
- Trading hours
- 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday
- Trading days
- Monday to Friday, excluding South African public holidays
- Time zone
- South Africa Standard Time (UTC+2, no daylight saving)
- Market capitalisation
- Approximately USD 1.1 trillion (2025)
- Listed companies
- Approximately 280 (2025)
- Settlement
- T+3 through Strate, the South African central securities depository.
Top performing companies today
Ranked by the current session’s percentage move, strongest first, from the companies this platform covers on this venue.
Retrieving current-day prices for the companies covered on this venue…
What trades here
Major indices
- FTSE/JSE All Share (ALSI)
- FTSE/JSE Top 40
Major listed companies
- Naspers
- Prosus
- Anglo American
- FirstRand
- Standard Bank
- Gold Fields
Major sectors
- Mining and precious metals
- Financials
- Technology holdings
- Retail
- Telecommunications
How the market works
Market structure
An electronic order book running on the same trading technology as the London Stock Exchange, with a Main Board and AltX for smaller and growing companies. The JSE is a self-regulatory organisation for listings, supervised by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority.
Trading mechanisms
An opening auction from 08:30, continuous trading 09:00 to 16:50, and a closing auction that determines the official closing price. Volatility auctions interrupt lines that move outside their price bands.
Listing requirements
A Main Board listing requires subscribed capital of at least R50 million, a profit history of R15 million before tax over three years, at least 20% of shares in public hands, a minimum of 500 public shareholders, and compliance with the JSE Listings Requirements and the King IV governance code. AltX thresholds are substantially lower.
Settlement
T+3 through Strate, the South African central securities depository.
Regulatory authority
Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA). The JSE is itself a licensed exchange and self-regulatory organisation for listings.
How to invest in this market
What it takes to open an account and deal on JSE, separated by where you live — the two answers are rarely the same, and on some markets they are not even the same process.
Domestic investors
Residents of South Africa
South African residents open an account with a JSE-authorised member firm or one of the low-cost online platforms. Tax-Free Savings Accounts are the standard sheltered wrapper.
- An account with a JSE-authorised member or an FSCA-licensed financial services provider.
- South African identity document, proof of address and a tax number under FICA verification.
- No statutory minimum; several platforms allow fractional-share investing from small amounts.
- Tax: 20% dividends tax withheld at source; capital gains are taxed by including a portion of the gain in taxable income. Securities Transfer Tax of 0.25% applies to purchases.
Foreign investors
Open to foreign investors
Open to foreign investors, and the most practical entry point for African equity exposure. Exchange controls apply to South African residents moving money out, not to foreigners bringing money in.
- A broker with JSE access, or a local member firm that accepts non-resident clients.
- Passport and proof of address under FICA.
- Funds should be introduced through a non-resident account so that the proceeds are freely repatriable — get this right at the outset, because it is what makes the capital remittable later.
- Tax: 20% dividends withholding tax, reduced by treaty in many cases. Non-residents are generally not subject to South African capital gains tax on listed shares unless the company is land-rich.
- Securities Transfer Tax of 0.25% applies on purchase regardless of residence.
Foreign ownership limits
No general limit on listed shares. Sector-specific restrictions apply — notably ownership and control conditions in banking, insurance, mining and broadcasting.
Currency considerations
Quoted in South African rand, one of the most volatile emerging-market currencies. Several of the largest JSE constituents earn most of their income offshore, so their share prices often rise as the rand falls.
Regulated routes to an account
- EasyEquities
- Standard Bank Online Share Trading
- Interactive BrokersOffers JSE access to non-resident clients.
Licensed intermediaries and official exchange platforms, listed to show the regulated routes into this market. This is not a recommendation and not an exhaustive list — check any firm against the regulator’s register before opening an account.
Verify before you act
Why this market matters
Why investors follow it
It is the natural entry point for African equity exposure and for platinum-group metals and gold. It is also a widely used template for other African markets, since several regional exchanges have modelled their rules on the JSE’s.
Interesting facts
- It was founded to raise capital for gold mining after the 1886 Witwatersrand discovery.
- Naspers and its spin-off Prosus have at times dominated index weightings because of a single early investment in Tencent.
- It has been repeatedly ranked among the world’s strongest exchanges for regulation of securities markets.
Official sources