Standard Investment Bank's MansaX Funds Win International ID Numbers to Court Foreign InvestorsStandard Investment Bank's MansaX Funds Win International ID Numbers to Court Foreign Investors
Key Highlights
- Two MansaX funds run by Standard Investment Bank now carry international identity numbers that custodians, banks and institutional investors can use to identify, hold and report their holdings.
- The bank wants to widen its investor base beyond individuals to pension funds, corporates, family offices and international investors.
- No fund sizes or returns were disclosed, so how much money the two funds manage remains unclear.
Two Kenyan investment funds now carry international identity numbers, a step their manager says will help it reach bigger and foreign investors.
The Nairobi Securities Exchange issued International Securities Identification Numbers (ISINs) to Standard Investment Bank's MansaX Special Fund and MansaX Shariah Special Fund at a ceremony on the exchange's trading floor, Citizen Digital reported on 13 October. The codes are KE9930009213 for the MansaX Special Fund and KE9930009437 for the Shariah fund.
An ISIN is a 12-character code that identifies a financial product worldwide. Custodians, banks and institutional investors use it to identify, hold, reconcile and report their holdings, which is why it matters to them.
Pension funds and family offices in sight
Nahashon Mungai, Executive Director for Global Markets at Standard Investment Bank and Portfolio Manager of the Standard Investment Trust Funds, spoke at the ceremony. "For an investment fund, identity matters," he said. He added: "Kenya has significant pools of domestic capital and enormous investment potential."
The bank says MansaX wants to widen its base beyond individual investors to institutions, corporates, pension funds, family offices and international investors. It also says the aim is to mobilise domestic savings and deepen participation in Kenya's capital markets.
The report gives no fund sizes or returns, so it is not yet clear how much money the funds manage. An identifier makes it easier for institutions to hold a fund; it does not by itself bring in money. That is Mwenendo's reading.
Other products courting Kenyan savers
Mwenendo earlier reported on how Safaricom opened a Shari'ah fund on M-PESA that customers can join from KSh 100 ($0.77). As Mwenendo earlier reported, the Dangote refinery offer uses global depositary receipts intended to be listed on the exchange, subject to further approvals.
Both show Kenyan savers being offered a wider menu of products. Whether MansaX draws institutional money will depend on performance, fees and the size it reaches, none of which the report discloses.
In Summary
- Who issued the numbers and to whom?
- The Nairobi Securities Exchange, to Standard Investment Bank's two MansaX funds.
- What did the funds receive?
- ISINs: KE9930009213 for the MansaX Special Fund and KE9930009437 for the MansaX Shariah Special Fund.
- When was it reported?
- 13 October 2026.
- Where was the ceremony?
- On the Nairobi Securities Exchange trading floor.
- Why does it matter?
- Custodians, banks and institutions use ISINs to identify, hold and report holdings.
- How does the bank plan to grow?
- By reaching institutions, corporates, pension funds, family offices and international investors.