The Editorial Team |

Ousted by Protests, Bouteflika Was Once Algeria’s Savior

ALGEIRS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who led Algeria out of civil war to become its longest-serving president, has resigned after throngs of protesters and even his military allies told the ailing president he’d overstayed his welcome. Though Bouteflika has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, his political demise will deepen uncertainty in the North African OPECmember. His resignation late on Tuesday might not be enough to assuage demonstrators whose demands have expanded…

Singapore’s Biggest Online Mall Fights Alibaba With Blockchain

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LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – In the last decade, Ku Young Bae—a serial entrepreneur and South Korean transplant—has built Singapore’s biggest e-commerce company and fended off giant rivals like Alibaba, Amazon and Tencent. Now he’s keen to expand beyond his home base into Southeast Asia. To do that, and to compete with his cash-rich rivals, he’s hatched an audacious plan to unleash the efficiencies of blockchain technology on e-commerce. In January, his Qoo10 (pronounced “Q-ten”) online mall started a separate…

Bitcoin Price Action Suggests This Is No Crypto-Glitch

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LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – The weirdest thing that’s happened in markets this week is the fact that we’re talking about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies again after a sudden surge in prices late on Monday night. So is this the beginning of a new Bitcoin spring or just a blip? Obviously I have no idea, but there are two things that jump out when looking at the market action. Literally every coin basically climbed at the…

Bitcoin Is Surging Again. Just Ignore It: Leonid Bershidsky

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LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – The latest spike to $5,000 is just another blip as cryptocurrencies stumble toward maturity. Bitcoin spiked briefly above $5,000 on Tuesday, a level it hasn’t reached since it crashed spectacularly in November. The surge pulled up other cryptocurrencies, too. But have no fear of missing out: Whatever the explanation, there’s no good reason to turn bullish on crypto. If you go to crypto websites or follow the market’s opinion leaders on Twitter, it’s…

IMF Says Nigeria Growing Too Slowly, Urges Single Naira Rate

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – The International Monetary Fund said Nigeria’s economy was growing too slowly to reduce poverty or joblessness and urged the government to boost revenue and scrap its system of multiple exchange rates. “Growth is not enough,” Amine Mati, the IMF’s mission chief for Nigeria, said in an interview in Lagos on Wednesday as the Washington-based lender released its latest Article IV report for Africa’s biggest oil producer. “Our number-one recommendation…

Investor Darling Egypt Eyes Lower Debt Yields in Test for Market

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CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) Egypt is targeting lower yields on local debt in the new fiscal year, confident that its securities will remain coveted among investors. The goal of 15.5 percent, laid out in the 2019-2020 budget that begins on July 1, compares with the government’s yield target of 18 percent on Treasury bills and bonds in the current fiscal year. Much of the foreign capital that entered Egypt over the past couple of years…

SBM Mauritius Shares Tank on Tripling of Bad-Debt Provisions

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PORT LOUIS (Capital Markets in Africa) – SBM Holdings Ltd. shares sank to a 4 1/2-year low after the owner of Mauritius’s second-biggest bank said a tripling in bad-debt provisions halved profit last year. The stock fell as much as 2.7 percent and closed down 2.3 percent at 5.86 rupees in Port Louis, the Mauritian capital. That’s the lowest since October 2014, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “Sentiment on SBM remains weak as investors continue…

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