MerQube launches MerQube South Africa Top 30 Index to power the Oribi South Africa Top 30 Index Prescient Exchange Traded Fund
· MerQube South Africa Top 30 Index offers a unique alternative to traditional benchmarks creating balanced exposure, without concentration risk, across the SA economy
· Launch starts a strategic expansion into emerging markets for MerQube
EMBARGOED FOR 20 July 2026 – MerQube, a US-based technology provider specializing in the design and calculation of innovative, rules-based investment strategies, is proud to partner with Oribi Capital Partners and Prescient Management Company (Prescient), as the index provider powering the Oribi South Africa Top 30 Prescient ETF with the MerQube South Africa Top 30 Price Return Index (ZAR) MQZA30P.
The Index is a sector-balanced benchmark providing unique, diversified exposure to the largest companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE). It represents the largest 10 stocks from each of the sectors “Resources” “Financials”, and “Diversified”. Launched on 6 May 2026, the index is available in Price Return (MQZA30P), Total Return (MQZA30T), and Net Total Return (MQZA30N) variants to suit different mandates.
The Index creates a unique, differentiated alternative to traditional South African equity benchmarks, which are often heavily concentrated in a small number of mega-cap stocks. By selecting the 10 largest and most liquid companies within each of the three key sectors and assigning each sector an equal weight of 33.3%, the index delivers balanced exposure across the South African economy.
Unlike existing South African benchmarks, which either apply market-cap weighting to the broader Top 40 or provide equal-weight exposure within individual sectors, the MerQube South Africa Top 30 Index integrates all three major sectors into one unified framework. This structure enables investors to access a diversified large-cap allocation without the need to combine multiple sector-specific products.
The index employs a straightforward and transparent methodology. Eligible constituents must be common equities primarily listed on the JSE and domiciled in South Africa, with a minimum free float factor of 10%. Within each sector—defined as Resources (Energy and Materials), Financials (Financials and Real Estate), and Diversified (all remaining sectors)—securities are ranked by free-float market capitalization. The top 10 names from each sector are selected, with equal weighting applied at both the sector and constituent levels. The index is reviewed annually, with reconstitution based on data as of the end of February and implemented on the third Friday of March.
The result is a 30-stock benchmark that reduces reliance on individual companies or sectors, helping create balanced economic exposure which mitigates the impact of commodity cycles, financial sector volatility, or single-stock dominance.
Zack Bezuidenhoudt, Head of Sales EMEA and APAC at MerQube , said: “South Africa’s flagship indices have long been dominated by a handful of companies creating concentration risk for investors. This index was designed to create an alternative, providing a transparent, rules-based benchmark that spreads exposure across sectors without sacrificing scale or investability. We are proud to partner with Oribi and Prescient to make balanced exposure to this dynamic economy available through an ETF structure. ”
The MerQube South Africa Top 30 Index is available as an ETF on the JSE, managed by Oribi and Prescient, offering investors immediate access to this balanced exposure. As Index Sponsor, Administrator, and Calculation Agent, MerQube is responsible for the full lifecycle of the index, including methodology design, sector classification, rebalancing, and daily calculation.
The launch marks a strategic expansion of MerQube’s capabilities into emerging markets, forming part of a broader initiative to develop a global suite of sector-aware benchmarks. The South Africa Top 30 Index will serve as a cornerstone of MerQube’s emerging markets offering, alongside forthcoming indices covering markets such as South Korea and Taiwan.
