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Oliver Kazunga, Acting Business Editor
FOREX Trading School Africa is seeking Government and institutional support as it focuses on contributing to economic development and making Zimbabwe a financial hub of Africa.

The school, which is the first of its kind in the country, was established in 2016 churning out about 400 traders every month.

In an interview yesterday, the institution’s chief trading officer Mr Kuda Manzanga said online currency trading was a lucrative sector which the country can tap into to foster economic growth and development.

“This forex trading is an industry that generates over $7 trillion a day and in London that over $2,7 trillion that flows through London a day. So it means that it’s an industry with a lot of downstream benefits for other players so as Fotraz (Forex Traders Association of Zimbabwe) we are trying to do develop this sector into an industry in Zimbabwe.

“For instance, banks can provide Visa cards for our traders so that they can be able to receive their profits into their nostro accounts through Visa cards and MasterCards.

“And it is also transparent and allows money to have a clear direction of flow and it’s easy to see where the money is going to and where it came from,” he said.

Mr Manzanga said through the forex trading school, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) can also tap into the market by partnering with the institution.

“We have got Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and you cannot trade without Internet, so ISPs can play a key role in ensuring that the industry grows you can make specailised packages for traders.

“We are talking of over 5 000 traders in the country so we can come up with innovative packages such as Facebook data bundles, we can have an MT5 data bundles because we use a platform called MetaTrader 5 to trade which is like an equivalent of Facebook.

“A forward-thinking ISP will be able to say let’s cater for this niche market of 5 000 traders by giving them bundles for them to trade thereby creating an industry,” he said.

Mr Manzanga said apart from the ISPs, Zimbabwe’s institutional bodies like universities and banks can also play a key role in currency trading.

“Currency trading is a specailised skill in its own right where for example universities such as Unisa are offering a forex trading skills course.

“Every university should be able to think in that direction, and that’s why we are inviting universities to come at the launch of Fotraz, “ he said.

“We are very glad that universities are coming (at the launch ceremony) because they have understood that this is something that can be of benefit to themselves and the students. Fotraz will then come in to make sure that we give them accredited trainers who are genuinely making money from the markets.”

Fotraz will be launched in Bulawayo tomorrow with captains of Industry, and several Government officials including Industry and Commerce Deputy Minister Raj Modi expected to grace the ceremony.

With the incorporation of the institutional bodies, Mr Manzanga said, this would also allow Forex Trading School Africa to lobby the Government seeking support in setting up a special economic zone.

“A currency trading industry has to be created. And we also need support from the Government, NGOs, universities so that an industry can be created; you cannot call something an industry if you don’t scale it up,” he said.

“And for us to move towards having a currency hub, it is imperative to first develop a critical mass which effort can only sustained through the stakeholder support.

“If we can train 5 000 people a month because universities have partnered with us, it means by the end of the year we have got 60 000 people in Zimbabwe who understand what trading is. And you cannot fail to find 100 bullet traders from a pool of 60 000.”

The bullet traders will be given a platform that will enable them to become profitable traders.

“Once that happens, major financial institutions will definitely want to be housed in places such as Victoria Falls because they will know in Zimbabwe there are people who understand financial markets.

“So Victoria Falls being an international tourist destination, it has the potential to attract international funds and international corporations with traders taking care of the currency trading situation in Africa and thus creating a financial hub,” he said. — @okazunga.