The Editorial Team |

Congo Targets Airtime Touts as Central Bank Props Franc

Kinshasa, DR. Congo, Capital Markets in Africa: Mobile-phone airtime touts on the streets of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital have become the latest target in the government’s attempt to stop the slide of the Congolese franc. The traders who peddle mobile credit to pedestrians in Kinshasa must stop speculating on the exchange rate and sell $1 airtime cards for no more than 1,000 Congolese francs ($1.05), according to a statement issued May 11 by the office…

We Were Sleeping, Says Kenya Central Banker After Lenders Fail

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NAIROBI, Kenya, Capital Markets in Africa: Kenya’s central bank said that it should have stepped in sooner to halt the collapse of three lenders in the past nine months and that a culture of leniency by the regulator contributed to a build-up of misconduct in the industry. “The watchdog should have barked sooner and louder,” Njoroge told lawmakers in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital. “We have been asleep at the switches in terms of us failing to…

Investment | The Carlyle Group invests in Mazarine Energy

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London, Capital Markets in Africa: The Carlyle Group announced an investment in Mazarine Energy B.V., an upstream oil and gas company with existing assets in Tunisia. Carlyle will also grant Mazarine Energy access to an equity line of up to $500 million to fund future bolt-on acquisitions, focusing on low risk, near-term, conventional exploration, development and production opportunities in Europe, Africa and the broader Mediterranean region. Capital for this investment and for the equity line…

SWIFT’s messaging traffic grows by 12.5 percent in Africa

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Mauritius, 17 May 2016 – Data from SWIFT shows that Africa’s traffic growth has outperformed the total growth of SWIFT globally. In the year to date, total message traffic volumes grew by 12.8% versus 5.4% growth for SWIFT worldwide, illustrating that Africa plays an increasingly important role in SWIFT’s global business. Levels of growth were also significantly higher than in EMEA at 3.2% and the Americas at 6.7%, and closely behind Asia Pacific at 15%….

Kenya Cuts Rates for First Time Since 2013 on Slow Inflation in May

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NAIROBI, Kenya, Capital Markets in Africa: Kenya’s central bank cut its key rate by 100 basis points to 10.5 percent, the first reduction in three years, as the rate of inflation decelerates to within the government’s target corridor. Only two of nine economists and analysts polled by Bloomberg expected the decision. Central bank Governor Patrick Njoroge said in an interview in Kigali, Rwanda, earlier this month falling consumer prices, which are now within the government’s 2.5 percent…

Naira Forwards Jump by Record as Traders See Nigeria Devaluation

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Naira forwards surged by the most on record as traders bet that the ability of Nigerian authorities to maintain their almost 15-month-long currency peg is waning. Three-month naira non-deliverable forwards rose by 14 percent, the most on a closing basis since the contracts began trading in March 2011, to a record 267 against the dollar at 4:06 p.m. in London. One-month forwards jumped 11 percent to 238, bringing their implied yield —…

Goldman Surprised by Sudden Oil-Market Turn as Glut Vanishes

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LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: The global oil market has flipped to a deficit sooner than Goldman Sachs Group Inc. had expected. A decline in production driven by unexpected supply disruptions, as well as sustained demand, have resulted in a “sudden halt” to the output surplus, Goldman analysts Damien Courvalin and Jeffrey Currie wrote in a report dated May 15. Other banks such as Morgan Stanley, Barclays Plc and Bank of America Corp. also noted that supply losses are leading markets to…

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