A Comparative Study of Financial Market Development Indicators in Africa

Abstract

Financial markets in Africa have been experiencing growth in its market development indicators in recent years. Evidence of growth is seen in market capitalization of stock exchanges, level of liquidity in the stock market, bank credit made available to the private sector, etc. This growth is attributed to market development policies introduced to enhance economic growth as postulated by the finance - growth proponents. However, despite the recorded growth, African financial markets lag behind in development measures when compared with markets in Asia and South America.