Tanzania Sees Launch of 3rd Exchanged Traded Fund (ETF)

On 17^th August 2026, Tanzania’s Zan Securities launched the Zan Timiza Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) and the Timiza Plus Fund in Dar es Salaam.

The two funds have received regulatory approval from the Capital Markets and Securities Authority (CMSA), with NMB Bank serving as custodian and trustee.

The Zan Timiza ETF is the first regional “Fund of Funds” designed to invest in a diversified pool of collective investment schemes operating within the East African Community (EAC).

This includes corporate bonds, government securities, money market instruments, and equities listed across EAC exchanges.

The ETF is designed to give investors cross-border exposure through a single investment product, reducing the need to independently navigate foreign exchange conversions, international brokerage arrangements and separate regulatory regimes.

The IPO runs from 17 August to 17 September 2026, with units priced at TZS 100 each and a minimum subscription of TZS 20,000, equivalent to 200 units.

The ETF will then be listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) secondary market, allowing investors to trade its units in real time like individual listed securities.

The Timiza Plus Fund is an open-ended mutual fund designed to provide capital preservation and predictable periodic income.

Between 50% and 100% of its assets will be invested in government bonds, corporate bonds and short-term money market instruments, while listed equities can account for a maximum of 50% of the portfolio.

The fund will distribute income quarterly, providing four distributions each year.

The structure is intended to serve investors seeking regular cash flows, including low-to-middle-income earners, retirees and local businesses requiring accessible liquidity for household expenses, education and business operations.

The Timiza Plus Fund IPO also runs from 17 August to 17 September 2026, at TZS 100 per unit, with a minimum investment of TZS 20,000 or 200 units.

Unlike the ETF, which is traded on the DSE secondary market, Timiza Plus investors redeem their holdings through the fund manager or designated channels.

A panel discussion held during the launch focused on democratising capital markets in East Africa, with participants examining how Tanzania can move from financial access to meaningful participation and ownership.

The discussion covered financial health, retail investor participation, digital distribution, investor education, regional market integration, and the barriers facing women, young people, and rural populations.

Panelists noted that Tanzania’s financial inclusion rate stands at about 76%, while smartphone penetration is approximately 40%, highlighting the need for accessible investment channels such as USSD to reach people using feature phones.

The panel also discussed the importance of investment objectives, liquidity, time horizon, risk, returns, and diversification when choosing investment products, as well as the need to combine digital platforms with investor education and human support.

Speaking on behalf of Zanzibar President Dr. Hussein Ali Mwinyi, Zanzibar’s Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Juma Malik Akil, stated: “The private sector has been given a major role in implementing this vision, with more than 70% of our vision expected to be implemented by the private sector. I congratulate our young people who have started becoming investors through this initiative, and I congratulate Zan Securities for starting this initiative and beginning to build our young people early to develop a culture of saving.”

On his part, CMSA’s Director of Policy, Research and Planning, Alfred Mkongo, stated: “CMSA has reviewed the offering documents and the operating agreements, or trust deeds, of the collective investment schemes. This step brings the number of collective investment schemes in our capital market to about 30.”

“Our country has started implementing the National Vision 2050, whose long-term objectives include reaching a high-middle-income economy and a USD 1 trillion economy by 2050.To achieve this vision, it is important for citizens to use the various opportunities available to invest in market products,” added Mkongo.

The CEO of DSE, Peter Nalitolela, added: “Zan Timiza will be the third ETF to be listed on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange, and as of Friday, 14^th August, the total market capitalisation of ETFs had reached TZS 207 billion, which is significant growth. We want to see more Tanzanians move from being consumers to becoming owners and investors and participating in the growth of our economy.”

The CEO of Zan Securities, Rafael Masumbuko, commented: “Today is another major step in our ambition to enable Tanzanians of all income levels to participate in the capital markets. Zan Timiza ETF is a fund of funds, the first of its kind, which invests in a combination of investment funds from countries in the East African Community.”

Zan Securities Board Member, Abdulsalam Hatibu, explained that the collective investment fund has grown from TZS 10.3 billion to more than TZS 50 billion, representing a 369% increase, and has generated a 15% return.

In her address, NMB Bank’s Head of Global Markets, Gladness Deogratius, stated: “In our role in overseeing this system and these assets, we will ensure that investors’ assets are safely held and managed in accordance with all capital market laws and regulations, as well as international best practices.”

On his part, Tanzania’s Member of Parliament, Clayton Chipando stated: “Investing from TZS 20,000 makes me see an opportunity for my bodaboda operators to invest through Timiza Plus or the ETF, because TZS 20,000 is an amount within our normal financial circulation.”

He called for investment platforms to include Swahili-language options in order to access the rural community and called for a simplified registration process.

Chipando proposed using the National Identification Authority (NIDA) database to streamline registration by automatically populating standard customer information from NIDA identification details.

About ETFs in Tanzania

Zan Timiza is the third exchange-traded fund to list on the DSE since the asset class was introduced less than a year earlier, following two prior listings that each established a different structural model.

The Vertex International Securities Exchange Traded Fund (DSE: VIS-ETF) became Tanzania’s first ETF when it listed on 16 October 2025, tracking a diversified portfolio of actively traded equities on the DSE and giving investors exposure to the domestic market through a single security.

Managed by Vertex International Securities Limited with NBC Bank as custodian, the VIS-ETF’s initial public offer was oversubscribed at 136%, with retail investors accounting for 82.2% of participation against 17.8% from institutional investors.

The iTrust EAC Large Cap Exchange Traded Fund (DSE: IEACLC-ETF) followed on 3 February 2026 as the first regional ETF listed on any stock exchange in East Africa, holding large-cap equities directly across the Tanzanian, Kenyan and Ugandan markets, including CRDB Bank, NMB Bank, Safaricom and Equity Group Holdings.

Managed by iTrust Finance Limited, also with NBC Bank as custodian, the fund’s initial public offer was oversubscribed by more than 540%, with retail investors making up 99.44% of participation against 0.56% from institutional investors.