Eurotunnel Says It’s Ready for Worst-Case, Hard Brexit Scenario

Eurotunnel Says It’s Ready for Worst-Case, Hard Brexit Scenario

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Eurotunnel, the operator of the tunnel under the Channel that links the U.K. to Europe, says it stands ready for a hard Brexit. With the vote Tuesday in the U.K. parliament raising the possibility of Britain crashing out of the European Union on March 29, companies like Getlink, Eurotunnel’s parent, are beginning to pull out their plans for the most extreme outcome. “Eurotunnel has been actively preparing for all…

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Whatever Happens to Brexit, Here’s the Damage to Britain So Far

Whatever Happens to Brexit, Here’s the Damage to Britain So Far

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Britain’s vote to leave the European Union has already come at a cost regardless of where Brexit goes from here. Some of the damage is tangible, such as jobs, investment and capital; some of it less so, like international clout and talent.   Prime Minister Theresa May is aiming to renegotiate the most contentious part of her separation deal with the European Union after it was rejected by Parliament. Officials in Brussels have already warned they won’t even consider her demands….

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Tanzania Lawmakers Approve Controversial Political Parties Law

Tanzania Lawmakers Approve Controversial Political Parties Law

DAR ES SALAAM (Capital Markets in Africa) – Tanzanian legislators adopted controversial amendments to a new law that rights groups and the opposition warn will criminalize dissent and give the registrar of political parties unmerited powers to supervise the activities of political parties. “Parliament has passed the amendments to the Political Parties Act that will bring more openness to political parties and strengthen the country’s democracy,” the government’s spokesman, Hassan Abbasi, said on Twitter. The…

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Moody’s Places Access Bank, Diamond Bank Ratings Under Review

Moody’s Places Access Bank, Diamond Bank Ratings Under Review

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Moody’s Investors Service Ltd. placed on review for downgrade Access Bank Plc’s ratings and an upgrade for Diamond Bank Plc’s ratings. The reviews are on Access Bank’s foreign-currency deposit ratings and long-term counter-party risk rating and assessment, among others, Moody’s said Tuesday in an emailed statement. Some of the ratings under review for an upgrade at Diamond include its Caa1 long-term deposit ratings and its Caa3 baseline credit assessment, it said….

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Foreigners Are Back to Gobble Up Egypt’s Local-Currency Debt

Foreigners Are Back to Gobble Up Egypt’s Local-Currency Debt

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) – It appears foreign investors can no longer resist the allure of some of the juiciest yields in emerging markets. In debt auctions held this week, they bought 30 percent of Egyptian local-currency Treasury bills and more than half of longer-dated bonds, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement on Tuesday. They acquired all of the five-year securities sold a day earlier, in what the ministry labeled a clear sign of…

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Absa CEO Ramos to Retire After Steering Split From Barclays

Absa CEO Ramos to Retire After Steering Split From Barclays

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa)) – Absa Group Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Maria Ramos will step down after overseeing the split from Barclays Plc, an alliance blamed for the loss of retail market share at South Africa’s third-largest bank. The stock rallied the most among its Johannesburg-based peers on Tuesday in the wake of Ramos’s pending exit. Absa, once the nation’s largest mortgage lender, fell behind after Britain’s Barclays acquired control in 2005. Now that the U.K. bank has sold…

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New Nemesis Threatens South Africa’s Ruling ANC Before Vote

New Nemesis Threatens South Africa’s Ruling ANC Before Vote

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Just when South Africa’s ruling party thought it was on the way to rebuilding its image before this year’s election, along came Angelo Agrizzi. A former executive at services company Bosasa, Agrizzi has captivated the nation with televised testimony at a judicial panel probing graft during Jacob Zuma’s presidency about how the firm won state contracts worth billions of rand by bribing top African National Congress officials. He also said the…

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