Trillions in Financial Assets But Too Little Reaches Markets

Ethiopia's financial-sector assets reached 5.6 trillion Br by June 2025, a 40 percent increase from the previous year and representing 37.2 percent of GDP, yet the challenge is not a lack of capital but the narrow channels through which it moves. A newly drafted masterplan reveals a system heavily dependent on commercial banks and government securities. Per ECMA senior advisor Assefa Sumoro, planned real estate investment trusts (REITs) would package underlying assets, including large real-estate developments, into tradable units for collective investment schemes.