The Editorial Team |

Nigeria’s Access Bank Latest Lender Targeted in Anti-Graft Drive

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Access Bank Plc, a Nigerian lender, said Group Managing Director Herbert Wigwe was taken and questioned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission at its offices about a client bank transaction last week, the third bank to be caught up in an investigation by the nation’s anti-graft agency. Wigwe was released on May 6, the Lagos-based bank with offices in seven other countries, said in a statement posted on the Nigerian…

Finance | Swaziland secures US$63 million AfDB loan to finance smallholder irrigation project

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Mbabane, Swaziland, Capital Markets in Africa: Swaziland has secured a US $63 million (ZAR 2.01 billion) loan to finance the second phase of the Lower Usuthu Smallholder Irrigation Project (LUSIP II) in the south eastern part of the country. The LUSIP II, approved by the African Development Bank Board on Wednesday, May 5, 2016, is a follow-up project to the LUSIP-I which was completed in 2010. The project was a response to the Government’s recognition…

Kenya | Equity Group Pauses Africa Expansion Plans as Economies Slow

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Nairobi, Kenya, Capital Markets in Africa: Equity Group Holdings Ltd., Kenya’s biggest bank by market value, put plans to expand into five other African countries on hold after sliding prices for commodities from oil to copper caused currencies to tumble. The lender, which had prioritized entries into Nigeria, Angola, Ghana, Mozambique and Zambia, will instead focus on deepening its presence in markets in which it already operates by growing branch networks, Chief Executive Officer James Mwangi said. “We…

Nigeria |MasterCard Sees Growth in Nigerian Traders Without Bank Accounts

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa — MasterCard Inc. plans to introduce new payment systems in Nigeria that will target merchants who don’t have bank accounts and rely mostly on cash transactions. The company is working with the umbrella organizations of Nigerian traders and collaborating with banks and technology companies to start offering the services this year, Omokehinde Ojomuyide, MasterCard’s vice president and area business head for West Africa, said May 6 in an interview in Lagos,…

Is there Room for Exchange Traded Funds in the African Context?

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: In the third quarter of 2015, financial commentators were abuzz when industry research group ETFGI announced that the global Exchange Traded Fund (“ETF”) market has surpassed the Hedge Fund industry in terms of size for the first time ever. With assets under management of $2.971 trillion as at the end of Q2 2015, its quarterly growth of $45 billion during the same quarter made it surpass the Hedge Fund…

South Africa Rand Falls Most Among Emerging Markets After Jobless Rate Climbs

Posted on by The Editorial Team

Johannesburg, South Africa, Capital Markets in Africa — The rand fell to its weakest in a month after data showing theSouth African jobless rate at the highest in at least eight years added to concerns that economic growth may be slow to revive. The rand dropped as much as 2.1 percent against the dollar and traded at 15.1716 by 4:38 p.m. in Johannesburg, the weakest since April 7 on a closing basis and the biggest loser among 24…

Developing an Appropriate Benchmark Index for African Equity Fund

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS, Nigeria, Capital Markets in Africa: Although most investors have adopted a preferred benchmark or index to measure or track the performance of developed markets, agreeing on benchmarks for emerging and frontier markets still needs to be established. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) coined the terms emerging markets and frontier markets and was the pioneer in creating equity indices in these markets. S&P Dow Jones Indices (SPDJI) acquired Africa Indices from the IFC in 2000…

« 1 … 916 917 918 919 920 … 1,077 »