Zambia: second exchange primed and ready for derivatives
Zambia’s second bourse is hoping to kick off trading “in weeks”, giving investors a chance to trade derivative products alongside the bonds and equities available on the main Lusaka Stock Exchange (LuSE).
Peter Sitamulaho, deputy chief executive of the Bonds and Derivatives Exchange Zambia, or BaDEx, said the bourse is just waiting on getting its first clearing member, which would guarantee trades: “When the first bank signs, we will be able to trade.” Continue reading »
By David Mitchell of BDO
Africa is experiencing rapid economic growth and infrastructure development. In addition to the huge investment programmes, there is a strong pipeline of M&A activity and an increasingly sophisticated and growing financial and professional services industry.
With a strong demand for more British and international lawyers to go and work in Africa to help facilitate this, the opportunity for lawyers and accountants at any stage in their careers, whether newly qualified or senior partners, has never been better. Continue reading »
By Dambisa Moyo
In my book Dead Aid I suggested that African governments could and should access the international capital markets to finance their development objectives such as infrastructure, healthcare and education. I argued that the relatively transparent global bond markets would help impose discipline on governments that were otherwise viewed by investors as reckless and, in many cases, corrupt. Critics argued that my suggestion was naive, and that African policy makers were ill-equipped to venture into the international debt markets.
Four years later, and African governments are proving the naysayers wrong. Continue reading »
What use is a credit rating? For Africa, it means FDI
On the face of it, sovereign credit ratings and foreign direct investment might not appear to be that dependent on each other. When you’re setting up shop overseas, does it really matter if a country is rated or not?
For sub-Saharan Africa, apparently, it does – and rating agency Fitch has done the homework to prove it. Continue reading »
Last year Africa comfortably outperformed other emerging markets for the first time since the financial crisis. Stephen Bailey-Smith, head of Africa research at Standard Bank, discusses with emerging markets assistant editor Rob Minto what’s behind this strong performance, and whether it’s sustainable.
Kenya: a gem of a market move
The clang of a bell announced the launch of Kenya’s new small and midcap market segment on Tuesday, but its founders are determined that will be the only old-fashioned thing about it.
The Growth Enterprise Market Segment (GEMS) could be the solution to several constraints on the growth of Kenya’s economy, which relies on small business for 40 per cent of the country’s $36bn GDP, and may provide the route for Kenyans to invest in the country’s nascent natural resource sector. Continue reading »
Kenya: enter the index
It’s been a good week for African fixed income, which is receiving a profile boost courtesy of a handful of indices.
First, sub-Saharan Africa’s two biggest economies, Nigeria and South Africa, joined leading global government bond indices. Now Kenya’s securities exchange has followed by launching the country’s first government bond index, which it hopes will deepen capital markets. Continue reading »
As the global economy muddles through, African markets are giving investors something to smile about, with equity, FX, local bonds and eurobonds all outperforming, according to a report this week by Standard Bank.
Africa’s “teflon-coated” eurobonds – or foreign-denominated debt sold to international investors – have been star performers. Standard Bank’s African Sovereign Eurobond index is up over 23 per cent year-to-date, compared to JP Morgan’s benchmark EMBI Global index, which has returned just over 14 per cent. Continue reading »
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Stefan Wagstyl
Rob Minto
Pan Kwan Yuk
Jonathan Wheatley
Heba Saleh