Zemedeneh Nigatu Becomes CEO of Ethiopia's First Investment Bank

Ethiopia has taken a big step in growing its financial sector by giving licenses to its first-ever investment banks. One of the most important events was the appointment of Zemedeneh Nigatu as the CEO of CBE Capital S.C., a new investment bank in the country.

Zemedeneh is an experienced Ethiopian-American investment advisor. He was chosen to lead CBE Capital right after it received its official license from the Ethiopian Capital Market Authority (ECMA) on March 21. This makes CBE Capital one of Ethiopia’s first legal investment banks.

CBE Capital is owned mostly by the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) and Dallol Capital, a private investment firm. The bank will offer services like helping companies sell shares (IPOs), managing big business deals (mergers and acquisitions), and trading stocks and bonds. In the future, it also plans to offer Islamic finance and portfolio management.

Zemedeneh brings many years of experience. He was the East Africa Managing Partner at Ernst & Young and currently leads a U.S. investment firm called Fairfax Africa Fund. He said he is proud to help start investment banking in Ethiopia, a country with over 130 million people and big economic potential.

In the same announcement, Wegagen Capital Investment Bank S.C. also received a license to operate. Both banks are the first to be licensed after new financial rules were introduced in Ethiopia. These rules now allow regular banks to fully own capital market companies.

Along with these two investment banks, ECMA also licensed three more service providers:

• Ethio-Fidelity Securities S.C. – a securities dealer,

• HST Investment Advisory Services PLC, and

• Equation Securities Investment Advisor PLC – both offering investment advice.

  
  

Before this, Ethiopia had only four licensed companies in the capital market, and all were only advisors. With these new licenses, there are now nine companies, helping to make the capital market more active and open to more investors.

ECMA said this is a historic moment for Ethiopia. The capital market will now have more ways for businesses to raise money and for people to invest. ECMA’s Director General, Hana Tehelku, said the new companies must be honest, professional, and work hard to grow the market.

Also, two of the new firms are led by female CEOs, showing growing inclusivity in Ethiopia’s financial sector.

With these changes, Ethiopia is entering a new stage. The Ethiopian Securities Exchange (ESX), which launched in January 2025, will now work together with these new banks and advisors to help people invest and grow the economy.