Finance

LONDON(Capital Markets in Africa) — JPMorgan Chase & Co. is bankrolling the biggest upheaval of European soccer since the 1950s in a 4 billion-euro ($4.8 billion) bet that has already drawn heavy criticism from fans, domestic leagues and politicians. The U.S. investment bank agreed to underwrite an initial 3.5-billion-euro investment to help a group of the world’s richest soccer clubs set up a top-tier Super League, a figure that will total 4 billion euros after…

CAIRO (Capital Markets in Africa) — Egypt seized the giant container vessel that blocked the Suez Canal last month as part of an effort to get more than $900 million in compensation. A court in the city of Ismailia granted a seizure request regarding the Ever Given vessel at the behest of the Suez Canal Authority. Egypt’s move underscores the legal complications following the container vessel’s grounding on March 23, which closed the canal for six…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – If Deliveroo Holdings Plc’s listing was meant to hang an ‘Open For Business’ sign over the City of London, the opening day crash in the shares jarred somewhat with the message the U.K. had intended to send about post-Brexit Britain. Personally welcomed by Chancellor Rishi Sunak, the food delivery company’s initial public offering should have been a beacon to lure tech firms against competition from New York and Hong Kong, which…

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) — The warnings were stark. A vote to leave the European Union, the British government said, would trigger an immediate recession, a painful fall in house prices, and a steep drop in exports. It’s almost 100 days since Britain completed its split from the EU — almost five years after the referendum vote –- and a clearer picture of the consequences of the decision to leave is starting to emerge. The divorce…

ADDIS ABABA (Capital Markets in Africa) — Ethiopia’s government wants to find a “market friendly” solution for a planned debt restructuring to ensure it has access to the markets for more capital in coming years, State Minister for Finance Eyob Tekalign Tolina said. Eyob set out the state’s intentions on a call with investors on Thursday to discuss the proposed reorganization of Ethiopia’s loans under a Group-of-20 initiative. “We want this liability exercise to not…