Despite the ongoing health and economic impact of Covid-19 worldwide, PwC’s annual Africa Capital Markets Watch report shows that African markets have continued with a modest recovery through 2021, reflected in higher values of non-local corporate, sovereign and supranational debt raised during the year. Average issuances were larger than the prior year, with 94 issuances valued at $47.5bn (2020: 81 issuances worth $28.5bn).
Africa Finance Corporation and Allianz Global Investors have deployed a loan structure that is drawing institutional investors to fund critical infrastructure in Africa, write Wola Asase, Head of Syndications and Mostafa Abdel Motaal, Associate Vice President in the Syndications team at Africa Finance Corporation.
Forex trading has long been an immensely popular means for traders and investors around the world to grow their wealth by taking advantage of currency fluctuations and market volatility.
Once the COVID-19 pandemic is under control, the resumption of economic activity in Africa could result in a compelling story for investors. According to the IMF, GDP growth in both West Africa and East Africa will start outstripping growth in developed countries from next year, and from 2023 the continent overtake developed countries.
Rob Bergman explores the opportunities Series B and C funding on the continent. Rob is a Corporate Finance Principal at investment banking firm Bravura, which has won the Best Independent Advisory Firm AGF award for the third consecutive year (one overall and two for South Africa.)
The financial technology (fintech) ecosystem in Africa is entering into a new, exciting and challenging phase with more capital, more competition from incumbents from different quarters and more consolidation (M&A). As key segments grow, the rewards and risks grow for challengers and incumbents.
Mr. Market has spoken, and inflation is on the way. From Bank of America, this found its way into this contributor’s inbox recently: “US 5-year, 5-year forward inflation swaps [i.e., the price rises investors expect from 2026 to 2031] are pricing inflation consistent with the highest we have seen the past five years. This is not about base effects given last year's weakness, not about anything temporary”.
The Cape to Cairo Road was an idea, birthed in the 1890s by British imperialists, for a pan-African highway, stretching from Cape Town in South Africa to Cairo in Egypt. The N1 in South Africa forms the first section of this now famous project and runs from Cape Town to Beit Bridge at the border of South Africa and Zimbabwe. In his February 2020 State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Cyril Ramaphosa acknowledged the role of infrastructure investment, including the rehabilitation of the N1, N2 and N3 highways, in helping dig the country out of its economic malaise. And he is right!
I penned an article for Africa Global Funds magazine in 2016, which addressed some interesting observations from the foreign exchange (FX) challenges that presented themselves in the African capital markets over the period from 2015 to 2017. At the time, I was employed as a capital allocator and the experience gave me pause-for-thought that perhaps the dealing terms of most funds with Africa ex-SA listed equity strategies need to be reviewed. Specifically, I argued that redemption terms focus on the risk of a decline in underlying market liquidity in times of stress but still fail to adequately address FX liquidity risk, which, when challenges arise, often last much longer than the 3-months redemption notice period that is typically applied.
The stress on financial research and market data strategies have never been higher. Market data strategies in organisations have been a common topic in recent years with most businesses trying to find ways to reduce their data spend. This topic has swiftly moved up the priority list with the impact of COVID-19 fundamentally changing the way we do business and increasing the cost pressures being exerted on firms.
2020 has seen the wholesale acceptance of high-tech solutions and it is now a given that everything is touchless, paperless, remote and in the cloud. The world is on Zoom, using cryptocurrencies to buy groceries at the tap of a smartphone, everything can be ordered online, and we’re all going on holiday inside our VR headsets.
