The Editorial Team |

Sanctioned Billionaire Finds a Haven in Tiny Congolese Bank

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) — A year ago in June, a group of bankers marched into a U.S. Treasury office in Washington on perhaps the most important mission of their careers: to save a country from financial collapse. Among them was Willy Mulamba, Citigroup Inc.’s top executive in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a resource-rich but devastatingly poor nation in central Africa. Mulamba, a 51-year-old Congolese banker who had returned home after years abroad,…

Who Will Lead the WTO and Help It Avoid Collapse?: QuickTake

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — The campaign to lead the World Trade Organization during the most turbulent period of its 25-year existence has officially begun. Playing out against the backdrop of a pandemic, a worldwide recession, the U.S.-China battle for trade supremacy, and the American presidential election, there couldn’t be more at stake. But Brazilian Director-General Roberto Azevedo’s decision to step down at the end of August, a year before his term ends, also…

Paris Club Debt Delays Reach $1.3 Billion For 18 Countries

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — The Paris Club has waived $1.3 billion in debt payments for 18 of the world’s poorest countries to help them free up resources to battle the coronavirus pandemic. So far, 32 of the 73 countries eligible for relief have requested a suspension of payments until the end of the year, the club, an informal grouping of 22 country lenders, said Tuesday in a statement. The suspension is part of…

Saudi Prince Calls OPEC Laggard Nigeria Amid Push for Oil Cuts

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Saudi Arabia, de facto leader of the OPEC cartel, held a call with fellow member Nigeria as the organization strives to deliver production cuts aimed at bolstering global crude markets. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari discussed “ways of cooperation to enhance the stability” of the market during a phone call on Monday, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported. It’s unusual for the prince, who is effectively the…

Angola Prosecutor Seeks Seven-Year Jail Term for Ex-Leader’s Son

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ANGOLA (Capital Markets in Africa) — Prosecutors are demanding a jail term of at least seven years for Jose Filomeno dos Santos, the son of Angola’s former president, who is accused of taking part in an illegal $500 million transfer before his father stepped down in 2017, state-owned news agency Angop said. Jose Filomeno, also known as Zenu, is the most high-profile figure linked to the previous regime to stand trial for corruption. The 42-year-old…

Zimbabwe Security Forces Sideline State With Economy Action

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) — Zimbabwe’s security force leaders sidelined the nation’s economic chiefs and forced the government to close the stock exchange and halt most mobile-money transactions, people familiar with the situation said. The June 26 order that sought to stabilize the nation’s currency came after pressure from the Joint Operations Command and was made without notifying the central bank, which regulates the mobile-money industry through which almost all of Zimbabwe’s commerce takes…

Eskom Looks to $58 Million Sukuk as It Widens Funding Search

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) — South Africa’s indebted power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd.plans to issue a 1 billion rand ($58 million) Sukuk bond as it tries to diversify funding sources to reduce borrowing costs. Eskom has appointed a lead arranger “to work towards establishing timelines for the issue,” spokesman Sikonathi Mantshantsha said in an emailed response to questions on Monday. The utility has about 450 billion rand in debt and no current plans…

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