FTSE Group, the global index provider wholly owned by the London Stock Exchange Group, said this morning it is plotting a push into the Africa region in response to increasing demand for standardised benchmarks in emerging and developing markets.

The company said it had opened a Dubai office which it plans to use as a base for building new relationships with stock exchanges in Africa, in particular West Africa, where the index provider does not currently have individual partnerships. The company said it is quicker to access Africa from Dubai than by travelling internally.