Features

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria and Benin are embroiled in a trade dispute two months after signing an agreement to free up the movement of goods and services in Africa. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari ordered the partial closing of its boundary with Benin last month to curb the smuggling of rice and other commodities. The blockade has had a ripple effect across West Africa, with factories and traders struggling to import key raw materials…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has pledged that those responsible for plundering taxpayer funds during his predecessor Jacob Zuma’s rule will face prosecution. Investors and the public at large will still need convincing. More than 500 billion rand ($34 billion) may have been stolen during Zuma’s nine-year tenure, and “some people” say the figure could exceed 1 trillion rand, Ramaphosa told a conference hosted by the Financial Times in London on Monday….

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – The storied names of British industry and commerce haven’t had it easy in the past few years, and they aren’t going to be helped by the divorce from the EU. Once upon a time, Brand Britannia was the poshest of soft powers. Many of the names in its pantheon continue to glow with prestige if not profit, including Rolls-Royce, British Airways, and Burberry. But others have faltered or fallen. Thomas Cook…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Private equity firm Thoma Bravo agreed to buy Sophos Group Plc for $3.8 billion, taking the British cybersecurity firm private in the biggest takeover of a U.K. technology firm this year. Thoma Bravo will pay $7.40 a share in cash, or 583 pence per share, representing a premium of 37.1% to its last closing price, the buyout firm said in a statement Monday. Shares jumped as much as 38% in London on Monday…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Boris Johnson’s attempt to secure a Brexit deal ran into trouble after the European Union warned the talks were still a long way from a breakthrough and the British prime minister’s political allies distanced themselves from his plans. The pound fell. After a weekend of intensive negotiations in Brussels, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, told a meeting of envoys on Sunday that the U.K.’s proposals for breaking the deadlock over…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Businesses are trying to persuade the opposition Labour Party to soften its plans to crimp profits, empower workers and take privately-held assets under state control as the U.K. approaches an unpredictable general election. After a string of nationalization pledges, party leader Jeremy Corbyn added another last month when he said a Labour government would set up a publicly-owned company to manufacture generic versions of patented medicines, cutting the profitability of pharmaceutical…