Banking | - Part 103

Barclays Agrees to Sell Egyptian Unit to Attijariwafa Bank

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Barclays Plc agreed to sell its Egyptian business to Morocco’s Attijariwafa Bank as the British firm shrinks its global operations and speeds up the sale of unwanted assets. The deal will probably be completed by the end of this year, the London-based lender said in a statement Tuesday. The disposal will boost the bank’s common equity Tier 1 ratio by 0.1 percentage point, reducing risk-weighted assets by about 2 billion pounds…

Nigeria’s Bad Loans Soar as Banks Battle Slumping Economy

Posted on by The Editorial Team

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bad loans in Nigeria’s banking system soared to more than double the limit set by the regulator as the industry struggles with an economic downturn. The ratio of non-performing loans to total credit rose to 11.7 percent at the end of June from 5.3 percent at the end of 2015, the Abuja-based Central Bank of Nigeria, which requires banks to keep the measure below 5 percent, said in a report…

Nigeria Banks Find Raising Cash ‘Tough’ in Shrinking Economy

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigerian banks are finding it difficult to raise capital as a shrinking economy cuts revenue and deters investors, the industry’s regulator said. “It’s been tough,” Umaru Ibrahim, managing director of the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corp., said in an interview in the southwestern city of Abeokuta on Tuesday. Banks require “adequate capital that would help them cushion any adverse effect of loan defaults or losses,” he said. Ibrahim’s comments come as Access…

Congo Raises Key Rate to 7% to Check Inflation, Defend Franc

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KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Democratic Republic of Congo raised its key interest rate by 5 percentage points to 7 percent because of accelerating inflation and “tensions” in the foreign-exchange market. The increase marks the first change in the base rate in almost three years and comes after the government’s foreign-exchange reserves dropped below $1 billion for the first time since 2008. Reserves have fallen by a third since the start of the year as a sustained…

Moroccan and Rwandan Central bank keep rate unchanged in Sept

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CASABLACA/KIGALI, Capital Markets in Africa: – Morocco’s central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.25 percent on Tuesday, saying the inflation forecast was consistent with its price stability objective. The bank, known as Bank al-Maghrib, said it expected inflation to remain around 1.6 percent in 2016 and fall to 1.2 percent in 2017. Expecting agricultural output to rebound in 2017 from the worst drought in decades to hit North Africa, the bank said…

‘Super Rate Hike’ Still Seen in Egypt as Devaluation Looms

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CAIRO, Capital Markets in Africa: Egypt’s central bank, which unexpectedly left borrowing costs unchanged last week, is keeping its powder dry for what one economist called a “super” rate increase. Five out of 8 economists in a Bloomberg survey had expected the Monetary Policy Committee to raise its key rate on Thursday to curb accelerating inflation and lay the ground for a widely anticipated devaluation. The meeting was likely the last before Egypt secures a…

Algeria plans bank privatisations as oil money dries up

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ALGIERS, Capital Markets in Africa: Algeria plans to allow its dominant state banks to list on the local stock exchange to help develop its financial markets and diversify sources of funding after the oil price slide, a senior financial official said. The plan will open the door for foreign investors to acquire controlling stakes in banks, reversing a rule requiring Algerian firms to keep a majority shareholding in any partnership with foreigners, the official told…

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