U.K. Sends Navy Patrol Ships to Jersey After French Threats

U.K. Sends Navy Patrol Ships to Jersey After French Threats

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) — The U.K. has sent two military patrol vessels to the British isle of Jersey ahead of a potential blockade by French fishermen, as a row with France over post-Brexit fishing rights deepened. Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke with Jersey’s political leaders on Wednesday and said any blockade would be “unjustified,” according to a statement from the U.K. government. France responded by dispatching its own naval observation vessel, the Athos, to the area,…

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Fintech Bright Spot Africa Plays Catch-Up in Bumper Funding Year

Fintech Bright Spot Africa Plays Catch-Up in Bumper Funding Year

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Fintech companies in Africa raised more capital despite the Covid-19 pandemic, standing in contrast to their emerging-market peers such as Latin America that saw a decline. The continent saw fintech funding, including mergers and acquisitions, grow to $1.35 billion last year from $1 billion in 2019, according to a report by BFA Global’s Catalyst Fund and Briter Bridges published on Thursday. While Indian and Latin American fintech companies still raised more…

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Africa’s First Green Loan Augurs $588 Billion Investment for IFC

Africa’s First Green Loan Augurs $588 Billion Investment for IFC

JOHANNESBUR (Capital Markets in Africa) — The World Bank’s International Finance Corp. will provide $150 million to Absa Group Ltd. in what the lenders called Africa’s first certified green loan. Funds allocated to South Africa’s third-largest bank will be used to lend to the nation’s renewable energy sector and aid its recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a statement on Thursday. The IFC “estimates that there is a $588 billion investment opportunity in climate…

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Diamond’s Atlas Mara Is Said to Get Approaches for Africa Assets

Diamond’s Atlas Mara Is Said to Get Approaches for Africa Assets

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Atlas Mara Ltd., the pan-African banking group started by Bob Diamond, has drawn interest from Nigerian and Middle Eastern lenders for its remaining assets on the continent, according to people familiar with the matter. The London-listed group has received a number of approaches for its 49.97% holding in Lagos-based Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, the people said, asking not to be identified as the talks are private. Nigeria’s Zenith Bank Plc and Access…

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‘Worse Than Brexit’: Scottish Independence Weighs on U.K. Assets

‘Worse Than Brexit’: Scottish Independence Weighs on U.K. Assets

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) — A week that could set in motion the eventual collapse of the 314-year union between England and Scotland is concentrating City trading desks on market disasters ahead. As Scots enter a May 6 vote pitched on whether there should be a second independence referendum, fund managers and sell-side strategists see potential for massive chaos across the U.K.’s economic landscape in the years to come. Yet in an echo of…

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Judge Says Giant Ship That Blocked Suez Can’t Leave Canal Yet

Judge Says Giant Ship That Blocked Suez Can’t Leave Canal Yet

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) — An Egyptian court upheld a ruling preventing the giant container ship that blocked the Suez Canal from leaving the country, after authorities sought more than $900 million in compensation from the owners. The decision was announced Tuesday by a court in the canal-side city of Ismailia, following a legal appeal. The 400-meter-long Ever Given is owned by Japan’s Shoei Kisen Kaisha Ltd. and was being chartered by Taiwan’s Evergreen Line when…

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Nigeria’s Spending Structure Unsustainable, Budget Head Says

Nigeria’s Spending Structure Unsustainable, Budget Head Says

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Nigeria’s current trend of spending more money on running the government than on building new infrastructure is unsustainable, the country’s top budget oversight official said. Low revenue collection and high recurrent costs have resulted in actual capital expenditure below two trillion naira ($4.88 billion) a year for a decade, Ben Akabueze, director-general of the Budget Office, said Tuesday in a virtual presentation. “Hence, the investments required to bridge the infrastructure…

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