The Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) today welcomed CANAL+, a leading global media and entertainment company, to its Main Board, marking a significant milestone in the exchange’s continued evolution as a globally competitive marketplace. The secondary listing of CANAL+ signals strong international confidence in South Africa’s capital markets and reinforces the JSE’s role as a conduit between global capital and African growth opportunities.
CANAL+ enhances the JSE’s sectoral diversity and provides local investors with direct, rand-denominated exposure to a globally diversified media and entertainment business with a significant African footprint.
CANAL+ listed on the London Stock Exchange in December 2024 and, using the fast-track framework, today becomes the first ever French company to list on the JSE, further strengthening the links between the capital markets of South Africa and Europe. As the only global media and entertainment company listed on the JSE, CANAL+ provides investors on the JSE with a unique investment opportunity.
CANAL+ is a global media and entertainment company rooted in, focused on, and now listed in both Africa and Europe, with over 42 million subscribers worldwide (as at 31 December 2025), operations in over 70 countries, and approximately 15,000 employees. CANAL+ offers an unrivalled mix of local and global content, on a platform purpose built to ensure effortless discovery, which it makes available as widely as possible. In Europe, CANAL+ has over 18 million subscribers across 12 countries, and it holds leading positions in many of these markets. In Africa, where CANAL+ has operated for over 30 years, it now has 23 million subscribers across more than 40 African countries, and it offers content in over 50 languages.
The group’s listing on the JSE aligns with its long-term strategy to expand its presence in high-growth markets, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where rising connectivity, a young and growing population (expected to increase by 800 million by 2050), strong GDP growth (4.5% growth expected between 2026 and 2030) and accelerating demand for content and connectivity, continue to drive sector growth.
The JSE listing will increase CANAL+ liquidity and enable African investors to benefit from CANAL+ growth.
Maxime Saada, CEO of CANAL+ said:
“Joining the Johannesburg Stock Exchange is a statement of our ambition and illustrates our belief in Africa’s future and its creative industry.
“We are proud to become the first French company ever to list in Johannesburg and the only global media and entertainment company listed on the exchange.
“Following our listing on the London Stock Exchange 18 months ago, this dual listing reinforces our ambition to be a bridge between Europe and Africa and anchors our dual-continental approach, consolidating our unique position in the global media and entertainment industry.
“CANAL+ serves more than 40 million subscribers and generates €9bn in annual revenue. Africa will be our growth engine for years to come, and we are dedicated to creating value on the continent and sharing it with our African partners, investors and the creative community. By welcoming African investors we deepen our roots, diversify our investor base and lay the foundation for the next phase of our growth.”
For the JSE, listings of this nature represent a deliberate strategic strategic focus to deepen market liquidity, diversify the exchange across globally relevant sectors and connect local investors to international growth opportunities.
Commenting on the listing, Valdene Reddy, Group CEO of the JSE, said:
“We are proud to welcome CANAL+ to the JSE and to mark the first listing of a French company on our exchange.
CANAL+ has built one of the world’s leading media and entertainment businesses, with a significant and growing presence across Africa. Their listing on the JSE is an important milestone — not only for the company, but for the continued internationalisation of African capital markets.
It reflects the growing connectivity between African and global markets and reinforces the role of the JSE as a platform through which international companies and investors can participate in the continent’s long-term growth story.
We look forward to supporting CANAL+ in this next chapter as a listed company on the JSE.”
The listing further highlights the impact of the JSE’s recent regulatory enhancements, including improvements to its fast-track secondary listing process which enabled CANAL+ to efficiently complete its inward listing while retaining its primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). These developments continue to improve ease of access for international issuers while maintaining the high standards of transparency and investor protection that underpin the credibility of the South African market.
As Africa’s largest stock exchange by market capitalisation, the JSE continues to leverage its robust regulatory framework, global connectivity, and market infrastructure to attract issuers of scale and support capital formation across the region.
Following this listing, the total number of companies on the JSE stands at 263, with a combined market capitalisation exceeding R24.96 trillion.
Africa Fact: The Sudanese city of Meroë is rich in surviving monuments. Becoming the capital of the Kushite Empire between 590 BC until AD 350, there are 84 pyramids in this city alone, many built with their own miniature temple. In addition, there are ruins of a bath house sharing affinities with those of the Romans. Its central feature is a large pool approached by a flight of steps with waterspouts decorated with lion heads.
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South Africa is the second largest economy on the continent, only exceeded by Nigeria, which has more than three times the population size. Over the past decade, South Africa has experienced rapid change and is ranked by the World Bank as an “upper middle-income country”. Of the more than 400 companies on the continent earning more than $1bn annually, about half are in South Africa. The country is nevertheless highly divided, with a large part of the population living in poverty. The division makes South Africa an interesting economy with possibilities in many segments. The country have well-developed infrastructure and world-class financial sector to support business activities, and is one of the highest ranking African countries on the ease of doing business index.