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How it works

Subscribing, step by step

You have decided to invest. What remains is knowing which route, in what order, and who does what. Four routes exist, and the same security can often be acquired in more than one way.

Our place in the chain

What we do for you

Access to the market runs through a licensed brokerage, and that is our business. We pass on your order, execute it, and have the securities registered in your name with the depository.

Your securities never appear on our balance sheet. They are registered in your name with the Cellule de Règlement et de Conservation des Titres (CRCT), which acts as central securities depository for the zone. That is what protects them should the intermediary fail.

You PURPOSE CAPITAL Order routing · execution · account keeping The market BEAC or BVMAC Your securities registered in your name
You PURPOSE CAPITAL Order routing · execution · account keeping The market BEAC or BVMAC Your securities registered in your name
You
PURPOSE CAPITALOrder routing, execution, custody
The marketBEAC or BVMAC
Your securitiesregistered in your name
The four routes

Four routes

Two institutions coexist in the zone. The BEAC runs the government securities market, where states raise funds by auction. The BVMAC is the regional financial market, where corporate bonds and shares are placed and traded.

A route is read from two criteria: the timing, at issue or afterwards, and how the price forms, whether from competing bids, from negotiation, or set in advance.

BEAC auction

States of the zone raise funds by call for bids. Submissions are ranked and filled until the announced need is covered.

When
At issue
Price
From competing bids
Securities
Treasury bills and bonds (BTA, OTA)

Fixed-price placement

The issuer sets the price and rate before subscriptions open. The operation is documented by an information memorandum approved by COSUMAF.

When
At issue
Price
Set in advance
Securities
Corporate bonds and shares by public offering

BVMAC session

Buy and sell intentions meet in a central order book. The last traded price is public.

When
After issue
Price
From competing bids
Securities
Listed securities

Over the counter

Two holders agree directly on a price and a size. There is no posted price: the counterparty has to be found. Listed securities, for their part, trade in session.

When
After issue
Price
By negotiation
Securities
Treasury bills and bonds (BTA, OTA)

One security may take several routes in succession: acquired at auction, it can later be sold over the counter.

The route depends on the instrument, but your objective weighs heavily on the choice when several are open: targeting the issue rate, obtaining quick execution, or building a precise size. That trade-off is what we advise on.
In detail

Step by step

Route
Route

BEAC auction

Government securities, at issue
The auction noticeThe issuing state, one of the six countries of the zone, announces the amount it seeks and the maturity. The BEAC organises the session and publishes the notice. The rate will form from the bids received.
Purpose Capital flags the sessions that match your horizon and sends you the calendar.
Your orderYou state the amount and, if you wish, the rate below which you will not subscribe.
Purpose Capital formats your order and passes it to the Treasury Securities Specialist before the close.
The sessionBids are ranked and the issuer takes the lowest until its need is met. You may be partly filled.
Purpose Capital reports the outcome and explains your allocation against the rates served.
SettlementDelivery against payment, on the date set in the notice.
Purpose Capital settles the trade and has the securities registered in your name at the CRCT.
The life of the securityCoupons on the scheduled dates, redemption at maturity, sale possible before term.
Purpose Capital keeps your securities accounts, collects coupons on your behalf and sends your statements.

Fixed-price placement

Public offering, at issue
The information memorandumApproved by COSUMAF, it describes the issuer, the use of proceeds, the guarantees and the risks. It is the reference document for the operation.
Purpose Capital provides it and talks you through the points that bear on your decision.
The subscription periodOpen for several weeks, sometimes extended. Price and rate are known from the outset.
Purpose Capital alerts you to the opening and to any extension, which may change the accrued interest due.
The subscription formYou enter the amount subscribed and your details.
Purpose Capital collects your form and verifies your identity and the source of funds, as the regulations require.
PaymentBy transfer to the bank named in the memorandum. Funds are held until allocation.
Purpose Capital supplies the bank details and tracks receipt of your funds.
AllocationIf demand exceeds supply, subscriptions are scaled back pro rata.
Purpose Capital sends the contract note setting out the securities allotted and returns any balance.

BVMAC session

Listed securities, after issue
The order bookBuy and sell intentions meet continuously. The last traded price is public.
Purpose Capital gives you the state of the book and the depth available on the security you are interested in.
Your orderAt market, it executes at the best available price. With a limit, it sets a price you will not exceed.
Purpose Capital helps you choose between the two given the security's liquidity, then enters the order in session.
MatchingThe exchange pairs compatible orders. A limit order may be only partly filled, or not at all.
Purpose Capital monitors execution and reports any unfilled balance.
SettlementDelivery against payment through the central depository, a few days after the session.
Purpose Capital settles the trade and updates your securities account.
After executionThe securities join your portfolio and follow the life of the stock.
Purpose Capital sends the contract note and adds the line to your statements.

Over the counter

All registered securities, after issue
Finding the counterpartyThere is no order book: the other side has to be found.
Purpose Capital canvasses its network of banks, insurers and funds across the zone to identify a buyer or a seller.
ValuationThere is no posted price. It is derived from rates observed on comparable maturities and the remaining term.
Purpose Capital produces the valuation and hands you the calculation, so you negotiate on a documented basis.
NegotiationPrice, size and settlement date are agreed between the two parties.
Purpose Capital conducts the negotiation on your behalf and reports back before any commitment.
SettlementThe transfer goes through the depository, delivery against payment.
Purpose Capital arranges settlement so that neither party is exposed to the other's default.
The recordOrder slip, contract note and securities account entries.
Purpose Capital produces the enforceable documents your auditor and your regulator expect.
Before you start

Before the first subscription

Whichever route you take, holding a security requires a securities account with a licensed brokerage. It is the prerequisite common to all four.

The securities account

It records your securities in your name at the depository. Your holdings are segregated from ours and do not form part of our assets.

Onboarding

Identity document, proof of address, source of funds. These checks are required of us and they protect you.

The cash account

Held with your bank. Funds pass through it while securities stay with the depository. The two never mix.

Fees and the taxation of interest change the yield you actually receive. The calculator applies them to the parameters you select.

Open the calculator →
Let's talk

Start with a conversation

Tell us your objective and the horizon you have in mind. Depending on your situation, we will point you towards a subscription, towards another solution, or simply towards the explanation you are missing. This first exchange carries no commitment.

Write to us → See frequently asked questions