The Editorial Team |

Nigeria’s Dangote Tops a Very Short List of African Billionaires

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Aliko Dangote’s $17 billion net worth makes the Nigerian the richest person in Africa and the only member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index from one of the 60 poorest countries. About half of Nigeria’s 190.9 million citizens subside on less than $1.90 a day, giving it a Gini coefficient (a measure of wealth distribution) of 48.8, compared with 41.5 for the U.S. and 29.2 for Sweden. Dangote, 61, is among just a few…

Steinhoff Financial Recovery Boosted by Quarterly Sales Gain

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Steinhoff International Holdings NV said it’s on track to publish audited financial results and is entering the final stages of a debt restructuring as first-quarter sales rose 3 percent. The South African retailer, which almost collapsed amid an accounting scandal in late 2017, has sold assets and held extensive talks with lenders as it battles to stay afloat. The owner of Conforama in France and Mattress Firm in the U.S….

Liberty in Talks to Sell Businesses to Focus on South Africa

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in AfricaA) – Liberty Holdings Ltd. is in talks to sell majority stakes in its health-insurance business as well as its asset-management operations in East and West Africa as the Johannesburg-based firm focuses on its home market. The firm’s property and casualty insurance units in Malawi and Namibia are also up for grabs as Chief Executive Officer David Munro pushes ahead with his plans to simplify the company, improve profitability and win…

Cedi to Rebound on Strong Ghana Economy, Says Central Bank

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ACCRA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The slump in Ghana’s currency to a record low against the dollar will be temporary and doesn’t reflect the West African nation’s positive economic fundamentals, according to the central bank. The cedi has declined 8.2 percent this year, the most among more than 140 currencies tracked by Bloomberg, posing risks to the inflation outlook and foreign-investor demand for the country’s bonds. Almost all of the losses came after the Bank of Ghana unexpectedly…

Credit Suisse Sued by Mozambique in London Courts Over Contracts

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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Mozambique’s government, caught up in a scandal after defaulting on $2 billion in loans, sued Credit Suisse Group AG and others in London. The lawsuit is against the Swiss lender, Privinvest Shipbuilding SAL and three individuals, according to a court document. The claim is being brought for potential breaches of commercial contracts and arrangements but the filing provided no further information. In December, the U.S. Department of Justice accused three former Credit Suisse workers,…

Zimbabwe Banks Said to Trade $7.7 Million on Interbank Market

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Zimbabwean banks traded $7.7 million since the central bank effectively created a new currency that’s its allowing to be bought and sold on an interbank market, a person familiar with the matter said. The amount is part of an initial allocation of $25 million that the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is providing to commercial banks to trade, the person said, declining to be identified because the information isn’t public….

How a `Giant Ponzi Scheme’ Destroyed a Nation’s Economy

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HARARE (Capital Markets in Africa) – Almost two decades of profligate monetary policy has destroyed Zimbabwe’s economy and fueled rampant inflation, decimating the savings of its people twice. Hyperinflation of as much as 500 billion percent in 2008 made savings worthless and led to the abolition of the local currency in favor of the dollar the following year. In 2016, former President Robert Mugabe’s cash-strapped government introduced securities known as bond notes that it insisted traded…

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