The latest Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX) membership auctioned was concluded by Orchid Business Plc’s winning for a price of 1.6 million Birr. The price Orchid offered is 12 fold of the original seat value.

The second and third place offers were 1.42 million Birr and 1.41 million Birr.

ECX seat is permanent as well as transferable. It enables any eligible person or organization to trade at ECX. There are two kinds of members at ECX; Trading and intermediary. Trading members will only their own personal account while intermediary members have the option of trading with their own account or on behalf of other clients.

According to The Reporter, a client is typically a “seller” or a “buyer”.

Ever since its establishment six years ago, ECX has transferred 14 membership seats via auction. During these years the Exchange grew from 100 full members to 346. Its number of clients has also shot from 600 to 14,000.

Number of warehouses administered under it also grew to 65 from a mere of two. The capacity of the warehouse also grew to 3,000 tones and the number of delivery centers also reached 19 from just one. Commodities traded at the Exchange include Coffee, Sesame, white pea bean, Mung bean, maize and wheat.

Orchid Business Group, the winner of the latest bid for a seat at ECX, is composed of several investment companies. Subsidiary companies of the Group include Orchid Transit, Bodywise, Wonderwheel Business, Nile Spring Water PLC, S&S Farms, Real Salon, Rainbow Flowers and Gifts, Sportsfield, MetroLuX Flowers and Café Pannini. The well known business figure, Akiko Seyoum, is the CEO of the Group.

Source: The Reporter