How to buy shares on the Ghana Stock Exchange

How do you buy shares in Ghana?

Shares of listed companies change hands on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE). The exchange's own guide says those securities are bought and sold only through Licensed Dealing Members, also called stockbrokers. An investor does not buy by going to the exchange in person.

A Licensed Dealing Member is a company licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Ghana and by the Ghana Stock Exchange to trade securities for clients. The GSE publishes the current list of Licensed Dealing Members. The SEC publishes its own list of licensed broker-dealers. Look the firm up on both lists before you open an account or send money. Seeing a name in an advertisement does not mean the firm is licensed.

Yanci is not a broker. Reading this page, or joining the waitlist, does not buy a share.

What is a share on the Ghana Stock Exchange?

A share is a unit of ownership in a company. The GSE's how to buy and sell shares guide describes the practical side. You open a depository account through a stockbroker, which it compares to opening a bank account. Shares you buy are credited to that account. Shares you sell are debited. The guide says the Central Securities Depository (Gh) Ltd sends statements showing how many shares you hold in each company. The GSE's FAQ calls the same record-keeper CSD Ghana Ltd, and describes it as the official record of ownership. You can ask the depository for a statement rather than relying only on what a broker tells you.

The FAQ calls the account you open first a securities account with a brokerage firm. The how-to guide calls it a depository account. You open it through the broker, not by visiting the exchange.

This page is about shares that are already listed. A company selling new shares to the public can use a different process. If you are looking at a new offer, read that offer's documents and ask the broker how it differs from buying on the market.

Can beginners buy GSE stocks?

The GSE says trading is open to eligible investors in Ghana and to eligible foreign investors. A beginner uses the same route as anyone else: a Licensed Dealing Member, an account, and an order the broker places. "Eligible" is the broker's decision under the current rules. This page cannot tell you that a particular firm will accept you.

Nothing here says a particular company is a good first share. Prices move, and you can get back less than you paid. If you want the exchange itself explained before the purchase steps, that guide is still being written. It is listed under related guides.

How do you invest in shares on the GSE?

The GSE's how-to guide and its FAQ describe the same order of events. In short:

1. Choose a Licensed Dealing Member from the GSE list, and check the SEC's broker-dealer list as well.
2. Contact that firm and ask to open a securities account. The FAQ says this starts with an account-opening form, and gives examples of what it asks for: personal particulars, a passport picture, a national ID and a contact address. It also says "etc.", so that is not a complete list.
3. The SEC has published a directive on using the Ghana Card as the identity document for securities-market transactions. It is listed on the SEC's directives and guidelines page. The GSE FAQ and that directive do not use the same words. If you do not hold a Ghana Card, including if you live outside Ghana, ask the broker what they accept today and read the directive yourself.
4. Decide which listed company you are interested in, or ask the broker to explain the choices. A broker may recommend shares. That recommendation is theirs, not Yanci's, and you do not have to follow it.
5. Tell the broker what to buy. The broker places the order on the GSE's trading system. You do not place it on the exchange yourself.
6. After the trade, the broker sends a contract note. The FAQ says the note shows the securities, the price, the total value and the fees. The how-to guide also says it shows the date and the number of shares. Read the FAQ for what the note must include, and for how soon the broker has to send it.
7. The shares are credited to your depository account. Ask CSD Ghana Ltd for a statement if you want to check the holding against the broker's note. The FAQ describes that statement as a way to verify the official record.

How do you check the broker before you send money?

Ask these questions, and keep the answers:

• Is this firm on the GSE Licensed Dealing Members list today, under this exact name?
• Is it on the SEC list of licensed broker-dealers?
• What will this purchase cost, and which lines on the contract note show those charges?
• How do I pay for the shares, and how would I receive money if I later sell?
• How do I get a statement from the depository, and how often will you send one?

If the name is not on those lists, do not treat the firm as a GSE broker.

If something goes wrong, the GSE FAQ says to raise it first with your Licensed Dealing Member. If you still need help, contact the Ghana Stock Exchange or the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Where do you see prices, and when does the market trade?

Share prices change through the day. This page does not quote them, because a copied price goes stale. Use the GSE's trading and data pages for listed shares and prices, and its market reports for the exchange's own summaries.

The GSE FAQ publishes the days and hours when equities trade. Check that page for the current times rather than a clock time written here.

What fees will you pay?

A broker charges a commission or other fees. The contract note is where you see the amount for that trade. The GSE says the note includes the fees and commissions. This page does not copy a percentage, a levy or a fee schedule, because those figures change. Ask the broker for the current charges before you place an order, and read them on the contract note afterwards.

What if you live outside Ghana?

The GSE FAQ says trading is open to eligible foreign investors as well as investors in Ghana. The pages this guide relies on do not spell out how a person abroad opens an account, moves money into Ghana, or takes sale proceeds back out.

Those steps depend on the broker and on Bank of Ghana foreign-exchange rules, which change. Do not follow wiring instructions from a blog or from a chat. Ask a Licensed Dealing Member what they currently accept from non-residents, and read the Bank of Ghana's current notices at bog.gov.gh.

What can Yanci do today?

Yanci is educational until it launches through a licensed brokerage partner. When investing launches, brokerage execution is intended to be supported through that partner, Teak Tree Brokerage. Check any firm, including a partner, on the live GSE and SEC lists. The lists change, and this page does not keep its own.

Kofi can explain the steps. The app cannot open a depository account or buy a share for you today. Joining the waitlist does not buy shares and does not make Yanci your broker.

Sources

• Ghana Stock Exchange, How to buy and sell shares (PDF on gse.com.gh)
• Ghana Stock Exchange, Frequently asked questions
• Ghana Stock Exchange, Licensed Dealing Members
• Ghana Stock Exchange, Trading and data and market reports
• Securities and Exchange Commission Ghana, FAQs
• Securities and Exchange Commission Ghana, licensed broker-dealers
• Securities and Exchange Commission Ghana, directives and guidelines (includes the Ghana Card identity directive)
• Bank of Ghana, bog.gov.gh, for foreign-exchange rules that can affect money moving into or out of Ghana