By ETimes
The Zimbabwe Mercantile Exchange (ZMX) said it has issued 72 000 Metric Tonnes (MT) wheat warehouse receipts to date and they are ready for trading.
ZMX chief executive officer, Collin Tapfumaneyi said all ground work including the on-boarding of warehouses for the operationalization of the exchange are now in place.
“Trading has not started yet because trading is facilitated through warehouse receipts and our focus has been onboarding warehouses, onboarding warehouses operators, banks and other financial institutions and investors and we have done that.
“Now we have started issuing warehousing receipts. We have issued quit a few we are now up to 72 000 Metric Tonnes of wheat warehouse receipts. So those that will be interested in trading now will now be facilitated with trading as soon as possible,” Tapfumaneyi said.
The chief executive said the warehouse receipt shall be issued in favour of the farmer or contractor, while government guaranteed schemes deliveries and issuance of warehouse receipts will only be done through GMB depots.
In November, ZMX issued a statement regarding these trades saying, “All self-financed farmers and contractors who deliver wheat to designated warehouses shall be issued with warehouse receipt in terms of the Warehouse Receipt Act [Chapter 18:25].
“The following are the approved warehouses that will issue warehouse receipts in terms of the said Act: GMB depots — Aspindale, Banket, Bulawayo, Concession, Chinhoyi, Chegutu, Gweru, Lion’s Den, Magunje, Masvingo, Mrehwa, Norton, Bak Storage and S&P Logistics, Harare.”
The ZMX initiative is a partnership between the Government and the private sector led by Financial and Securities Exchange Limited (FINSEC), TSL Limited and CBZ Holdings.
The exchange was launched last year and operates an electronic warehouse receipt system (WRS) and a commodity trading platform for the trading and financing of agricultural commodities.
A WRS enables commodity holders like farmers to deposit their commodity with a designated warehouse in exchange for a receipt which is a negotiable instrument that can be used as collateral for credit facilities or for spot trading.
According to the government, farmers across the country are expected to deliver a combined 380000 tonnes, representing an 80 000-tonnes increase from 2021and 20 000 more tonnes than the national requirement.
ZMX said each farmer or contractor will be required to open a commodities trading account with ZMX using the *727# USSD short code across all mobile networks, www.zmx.co.zw, or the ZMX mobile app, adding that farmers or contractors shall deliver the wheat to GMB or any of the designated warehouses where the commodity shall be weighed, graded and a warehouse receipt issued in favour of the farmer or contractor.
ZMX highlighted that trading of wheat shall be in full compliance with SI 188 of 2021 which specifies the terms and conditions for the trading of wheat – Harare
