Should the JSE be more transparent about who is trading in a company's shares, and WHEN?

Stephen Grootes talks to Caroline James, advocacy coordinator at the amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism, on The Money Show.

There have been a number of calls for the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) to be more transparent about the trades conducted on the bourse, timeously.

Recently, small miner Mantengu Mining took the exchange to court over refusing to allow it to publish a SENS announcement containing the full information the company wanted included.

In conversation with Stephen Grootes, JSE CEO Leila Fourie responded to a question about when trading information is released, by explaining that trading positions and shareholding are made public at the end of the month, but trading positions during trading periods 'are highly confidential'.

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Now the amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism has published an opinion piece titled 'The JSE displays an unhealthy obsession with secrecy'.

It's not about the Mantengu case, but concerns a company asking the JSE for specific trading info five years ago in 2020.

AmaBhungane advocacy coordinator Caroline James summarises what's at issue here, saying this is just one story they've encountered over access to JSE information.

"This company, Inhlanhla Ventures, had invested in a portfolio including shares in a specific company and suddenly that share price dropped... Inhlanhla realised that because of their arrangement with their broker, they'd have to foreclose on the shares that the broker held as security and would suffer precipitous financial loss."

Caroline James, Advocacy Coordinator - amaBhungane

"They did that and then a few days later, this share price that had dropped suddenly rose and made a handsome profit for the broker."

Caroline James, Advocacy Coordinator - amaBhungane

Finding this suspicious, Inhlanhla wondered whether perhaps there had been  a case of market manipulation and the only way they could establish whether this was true, was to get the information on who traded the shares and when.

However, when they submitted an application under the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA), the JSE flatly refused the request, says James.

"The JSE is a public body, and like all public bodies they're obliged to accept these requests and then answer them in accordance with the law... but the JSE said the info as set out in the legislation, was commercially confidential and had personal information, and as a result they were not allowed to disclose it."

Caroline James, Advocacy Coordinator - amaBhungane

James highlights the link between transparency and accountability, especially in our South African context where corruption is rife.

While in this specific company's case, it could be interpreted that amaBhungane is essentially saying that the information should be made public, they are not right now advocating for ALL information to be published on an accessible platform. 

It's just that at some stage people need to have access to information TO create a form of accountability, she says.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation