Moneyweb notes that the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) now hosts roughly 263 listed companies, down from more than 850 in the late 1990s. For investors, the headline figure can look alarming, but the article explains why the change does not automatically translate into a weaker market.
The drop in listings is largely the result of mergers, acquisitions and companies moving to offshore exchanges for greater liquidity. Those exits were not failures, the piece says, and the remaining firms still cover the resource, financial and industrial sectors that drive South Africa’s economy.
In practical terms, the story matters to anyone with a South African portfolio. A diversified mix of sectors, from mining to banking, can smooth returns when one part of the market falters. The article points to 2026 performance as a case in point: after a strong 2025 powered by a precious-metals boom, the resource sector saw a sharp pullback as global demand slowed, yet industrial stocks rose about 6% in the first half of the year. Companies such as Grindrod, Omnia Holdings and AECI delivered solid gains, while Sasol recovered strongly from earlier lows. Financial stocks including Capitec, FirstRand and Standard Bank also performed well.
These outcomes illustrate the value of geographic and sector diversification. The piece advises investors to spread exposure across both local and offshore markets and to limit any single stock to no more than five percent of the portfolio. Staying invested through volatility and keeping a modest cash reserve, often called “dry powder”, can allow investors to buy quality shares when prices dip.
New listings signal a possible turnaround
The JSE is trying to reverse the delisting trend by simplifying its listing requirements, a move approved after discussions with the Financial Sector Conduct Authority. Early signs of progress include Cell C’s main-board debut in November 2025, which adds another telecommunications operator alongside MTN and Vodacom. Optasia, a global AI-driven financial-infrastructure platform, also completed a landmark initial public offering. More recently, French media group Canal+ completed a secondary inward listing after acquiring MultiChoice.
While it is still early, these additions suggest the exchange can still attract high-profile companies. The article quotes Wendy Myers, head of Securities at PSG Wealth, who stresses that the JSE remains an exchange worth being on, provided investors keep diversification front and centre.
One cautionary note in the article is a claim that the JSE All-Share Index, measured in ounces of gold to adjust for purchasing power, has fallen 70% over the past 20 years, even though it rose 370% in rand terms. The piece argues that this erosion of real value, combined with capital-gains tax and estate duty, reduces the effective return for savers. That calculation is presented as the author’s analysis, not an independently verified figure.
For South African business owners and entrepreneurs, the takeaway is clear: the JSE still offers exposure to sectors that can hedge against global shocks, but success depends on a balanced, long-term approach rather than betting on a single stock or market.
A trend not unique to South Africa
Shrinking listing counts are a global phenomenon, not a JSE-specific one. The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq combined have fewer listed companies today than they did in the late 1990s, and the London Stock Exchange has lost several hundred listings over the past two decades, largely for the same reasons Moneyweb cites here: consolidation through mergers and acquisitions, and companies choosing private equity funding or a bigger offshore exchange over a public listing at home. Fewer listings does not automatically mean a shallower market if the remaining companies are larger, more liquid and better capitalised, which is the argument the JSE and its defenders are making.
What differs for South African investors specifically is the currency and country risk layered on top of ordinary market risk. A JSE-listed diversified portfolio is still, ultimately, a bet on the rand and on South African macroeconomic policy, which is why advisers like the one quoted here consistently pair “stay invested locally” advice with “diversify offshore too” rather than treating the two as substitutes. The JSE’s push to simplify listing requirements is aimed squarely at reversing the exodus by making a local listing less costly and slow to maintain relative to a secondary listing abroad, an approach several emerging-market exchanges have also adopted in the past decade with mixed results.
