Botswana Mercantile Exchange BMX+
A Real-Time Agriculture, Diamond & Gold Exchange — established by Presidential Directive CAB 20(B)/2022 to facilitate trade, enhance market transparency, and diversify Botswana's economy.
Watch BMX+ Live Exchange
Project Overview
What Is the BMX+?
The Botswana Mercantile Exchange (BMX+) is a national commodities and derivatives exchange mandated by the Government of Botswana in August 2022. It is a real-time digital platform for trading agriculture, diamonds, gold, minerals, and energy products — powered by live data streaming via icdn.video and accessible as a downloadable PDF reference.
A mercantile exchange allows buyers and sellers to transact in goods like agricultural products, metals, and energy resources through futures, options, and spot contracts. BMX+ facilitates trade, manages price risks, and ensures a transparent, regulated environment for all market participants.
🌾 Agriculture
Grains, livestock, fresh produce
💎 Diamonds & Gold
Real-time mineral trading
⚡ Energy
Oil, gas, electricity
📈 Derivatives
Futures, options, swaps
Economic Context
Botswana's Economic Challenges
BMX+ was created to directly address structural vulnerabilities in Botswana's economy. Understanding these challenges explains why a real-time commodities exchange is urgently needed.
Unemployment
High youth unemployment persists as the formal sector lacks diversification to generate sufficient jobs.
Diamond Dependency
Diamond mining dominates GDP and exports, leaving the economy vulnerable to global price fluctuations.
Income Inequality
Wealth is concentrated in a small segment, limiting broad-based growth and creating social tensions.
Infrastructure Gaps
Rural areas lack adequate transportation and digital connectivity, hindering diversification efforts.
Limited Diversification
Tourism, agriculture, and manufacturing have had limited success in reducing diamond dependency.
Vision & Strategy
BMX+ Vision & Strategic Objectives
"To become the leading commodities exchange in Africa, facilitating real-time trade in energy, metals, agricultural products, and financial derivatives."
Economic Diversification
Reduce dependency on diamonds by promoting agriculture, minerals, and energy sectors through structured trading.
Market Efficiency
Create a transparent real-time platform for price discovery and risk management in commodities.
Regional Integration
Position Botswana as a regional trading hub, enhancing trade relations within SADC, COMESA, and ECOWAS.
Job Creation
Stimulate economic activities through job creation and local business development across all sectors.
Governance
Key Stakeholders & Their Roles
Partner Institutions
Core Institutional Partners
Botswana Savings Bank (BSB)
BSB acts as custodian of traded commodities, issuing Commodity-Backed Securities (CBS), Commodity-Linked Bonds, and Mineral-Backed Securities (MBS). BSB also facilitates loans for small-scale traders to ensure inclusive finance on the BMX+ platform.
Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE)
BSE collaborates to launch Mineral-Backed Securities for gold, copper, and other minerals. BSE integrates its technology platform with BMX+ trading systems for seamless futures, options, and derivatives trading, while ensuring full regulatory compliance.
Botswana Oil
Botswana Oil trades oil, gas, and energy products on BMX+. A joint initiative with Air Botswana and SEZA establishes a jet fuel supply chain facilitated by BMX+, ensuring stable and transparent fuel pricing for local and regional markets.
Trading Ecosystem
Working With BMX+: Sector Partners
🌾 BAMB
Trades grains, pulses & livestock for better farmer pricing.
🚀 CEDA
Funds entrepreneurs in agriculture & mining on BMX+.
🌍 BEMA
Promotes exports & integrates Botswana into global trade.
🥩 BMC
Uses futures contracts for meat price discovery & hedging.
⛏️ Dept. of Mines
Issues mineral-backed securities to attract investment capital.
🛡️ BECI
Provides credit insurance & risk management for exporters.
📊 BPOPF
Institutional investor support; commodity-linked investment products.
💡 LEA
Onboards SMEs in agriculture & mining onto BMX+ platform.
Market Data
Trading Volumes: Hard & Soft Commodities
Hard Commodities — 1.58 Billion Tonnes
Zambia dominates at 80% of hard commodity volumes. Total hard commodity revenue: $539.5M USD.
Soft Commodities — 16.99 Million Tonnes
Angola leads soft commodities at 47%. Total soft commodity revenue: $8.75M USD.
Employment Impact
Employment Creation from BMX+
Direct Employment
BMX+ forecasts direct employment growing from 4,500 in 2025 to 24,600 by 2031 — a more than 5× increase driven by exchange operations and commodity trading activities.
Indirect Employment
Indirect jobs are projected to grow from 1,500 in 2025 to 8,200 by 2031, supporting logistics, agriculture, finance, and technology sectors across Botswana.
Strategic Roles
Botswana & Zambia: Strategic Roles in BMX+
🇧🇼 Botswana's Role
Ownership & Governance
Own and operate BMX+ through SEZA with full regulatory oversight.
Infrastructure
Develop warehousing, storage, and logistics for commodity trading.
Financial Services
Collaborate with BSB to offer commodity-backed securities and hedging tools.
Trade Facilitation
Integrate with BURS to streamline customs and cross-border trade.
🇿🇲 Zambia's Role
Commodity Supply
Provide gold, copper, and agricultural products — 80% of hard commodity volumes.
Cross-Border Collaboration
Integrate ZRA with BURS; signed MOUs formalizing trade relations in March 2024.
Strategic Partnerships
Co-develop commodity-backed securities and joint infrastructure with BSB.
Progress & SEZs
Progress to Date & Special Economic Zones
Dec 2023
BSB engagement begins — custodial role and commodity-backed instruments discussed.
Feb 2024
Ministry of Agriculture meeting — soft commodities trading opportunities explored.
Mar 2024
MOU signed between Botswana and Zambia — formalizing mineral and agricultural trade.
May 2024
Delegation visits Zambia — engages Reserve Bank, Ministry of Mines, and stakeholders.
Jun–Jul 2024
Internal stakeholder consultations; strategic direction set with Office of the President.
Aug 2024
Botswana Oil invited to participate in the BMX+ energy trading platform.
BMX+ trade is centered around Botswana's Special Economic Zones (SEZs), spanning from Pandamatenga (agriculture, P4B) and Francistown (mineral beneficiation, P21.3B) in the north, to Gaborone (electronics, pharma, P14.9B) and Lobatse (meat, textiles, P5B) in the south — unlocking over P75 billion in localization value across key sectors.
Next Steps
Launch Roadmap & BMX+ Institutionalization
A budget is urgently required to execute all six stages. The BMX+ organizational structure is led by an Executive Director overseeing six directorates: Commodity Trading, Derivatives Market, Clearing & Settlement, Research & AI, Regulatory & Compliance, and Corporate Services — with Financial Controller, IT Executive, and Corporate Affairs Executive reporting to Corporate Services.
🌾 Agriculture Exchange
Real-time grains, livestock & horticulture trading via BMX+
💎 Diamond & Gold Exchange
Live mineral-backed securities and spot trading
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Real-time streaming data and PDF documentation