Author: The Editorial Staff

Business registrations of all types in Benin increased by 27.4% in March 2025 compared to the previous month, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Demography (INStaD) based in Cotonou. These registrations amounted to 2,554 compared to 2,004 in February 2025, representing an increase of 550 when adjusted for seasonal variations. The...

Egyptian Gulf Bank (EGBE) announced a consolidated net profit of 1.674 billion EGP (approximately 34.69 million USD) for the period from January 1 to June 30, 2025, compared to 1.297 billion EGP (approximately 26.88 million USD) a year earlier, representing a 28% increase. However, the standalone net profit stood at 938.85 million EGP (approximately 19.45...

Moody’s Ratings has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating (IFSR) of Zambia-based Klapton Reinsurance Limited (KlaptonRe) from Caa2 to Caa1, with a stable outlook. According to the agency, this improvement is due to the rapid growth of the insurer’s activities and assets outside the country, reducing its exposure to the local operating environment and risks associated...

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has renewed Mohamed Farid Saleh’s mandate as head of the Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA) for one year, starting from August 7, 2025. This is his fourth term in this key position for the Egyptian financial sector since his appointment in August 2022. Mohamed Farid holds several strategic positions: he is...

The pan-African banking group Ecobank expects to maintain a positive momentum in the second half of 2025, provided that no new global economic shock or increase in US tariffs hinders its progress, said its CEO Jeremy Awori in an interview with Reuters. In the first half of the year, the group based in Lomé (Togo)...

In the first semester of 2025, Madagascar saw a 10.8% decrease in its exports, according to a recent report from the country’s central bank. Vanilla, the main export product, was particularly affected with a 29.2% drop, due to a 29.4% decrease in volumes, as a result of an oversupply following an exceptional harvest in 2024....

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the central tax authority of Nigeria, which plays a crucial role in revenue mobilization, modernization of tax administration, and support for national economic policies, has deployed a national electronic invoicing system called Merchant-Buyer Solution (MBS). This launch, following a pilot phase started in November 2024, marks a major step...

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is now encouraging banks to reduce their effective statutory reserves to 15%, in order to ease liquidity and stimulate lending, even as the country faces a severe financial crisis. Currently, reserve requirements can reach 30%, forcing banks to hold onto a large portion of unused deposits and limiting their ability...

Of the 13.115 trillion CFA francs (22.7 billion USD) of direct debt of the central government, corresponding to 40% of Cameroon’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the first half of 2025, 64.9%, or 8.512 trillion CFA francs (approximately 14.8 billion USD), comes from external loans. This announcement was made by the Autonomous Amortization Fund (CAA)...

The Moroccan government presented, on Friday, August 8, the framework of the draft budget law (PLF) for 2026, setting an ambitious course: to increase growth to 4.5%, contain the budget deficit to 3% of GDP, and stabilize public debt at 65.8%, while reducing social and territorial inequalities. This budget, which the executive wants to be...

Thousands of opponents took to the streets of Abidjan to say “No to a fourth term!” for President Alassane Ouattara, less than three months before the presidential election scheduled for October 25. While the demonstration, organized by the Democratic Party of Ivory Coast (PDCI) and the African Peoples Party-Ivory Coast (PPA-CI), took place peacefully, it...

President Bola Tinubu has signed the 2025 Insurance Sector Reform Act in Nigeria (NIIRA), ushering in a new phase of modernization after over twenty years of implementing the 2003 law. The reforms have been praised by various stakeholders, who see it as an opportunity to boost an industry that has a weak market penetration. Following...

Former Chadian Prime Minister and opposition leader Succès Masra was sentenced on August 9, 2025, to 20 years in prison and to pay one billion CFA francs in damages to the State. The court found him guilty of “spreading messages with racist and xenophobic content”, “criminal association” related to the intercommunal conflict in Mandakao, as...

Following a 48-hour visit to Niamey for friendship and work, Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno and his Nigerien counterpart Abdourahamane Tiani announced, in a joint statement published on Thursday, August 7, their intention to strengthen their cooperation in the areas of security, economy, and commerce. On the security front, the two heads of state...

Suez Canal Bank recorded a strong increase in net profit after taxes of 70.56%, reaching approximately $102.8 million (3.083 billion EGP) in the first half of 2025, compared to $60.2 million (1.807 billion EGP) in the same period in 2024. This information was contained in financial statements published by the bank. Meanwhile, net interest income...

The African Reinsurance Corporation (Africa Re) has launched a new index-based livestock insurance (IBLI) product in Nigeria in partnership with the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES). This coverage aims to protect livestock farmers against losses related to drought and pasture degradation. Based on a parametric approach, the product uses satellite data to monitor...

Infinity Power has won a contract to build two photovoltaic solar power plants in Côte d’Ivoire, aimed at providing clean and affordable electricity to over 400,000 households, schools, hospitals, and businesses, especially in remote areas. According to a joint statement released on Thursday, August 8, the joint venture formed by Infinity (Egypt) and Masdar (United...

Starting from Thursday, August 7, 2025, South African products exported to the United States will be subject to a 30% customs duty, the highest rate applied to an African country. Pretoria denounces a “punitive” action related to its pro-Brics geopolitical positioning. This measure concerns sectors such as automotive, textile, agriculture, among others, which were previously...

According to the monthly economic outlook on Cameroon’s public debt released on July 31, 2025 by the Autonomous Amortization Fund (CAA), as of the end of June 2025, the outstanding public debt of the country stands at 14.105 trillion CFA francs (24.5 billion USD). This represents 43% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The body...

Stanbic Bank, the Kenyan subsidiary of South African group Standard Bank, has increased its interim dividend to 3.80 KSh (about 0.029 USD) per share for the six months ending in June 2025, doubling the payout compared to the same period last year. The bank stated that the increase aims to use unused capital productively and...

President Umaro Sissoco Embaló dismissed Prime Minister Rui Duarte de Barros on Thursday, who had been in office since December 2023, according to a presidential decree made public in the evening. He is replaced by Braima Camará, an influential figure in the ruling party Madem G15. This change comes in a tense context, just four...

On the African continent, the week of August 4-10 reaffirmed power dynamics. The ruthless hierarchies describe financial markets often lacking liquidity and … courageous reforms. In this stagnation, Johannesburg (JSE), a giant with over USD 1.23 trillion, remains the stock market Amazon: 8 to 10 billion USD exchanged each week, volumes that most exchanges do not see in a quarter. Casablanca, with 70 billion USD, third behind Egypt, continues to attract institutional investors and alpha hunters facing the limits of a market still too national. Nigeria (USD 60 billion) remains essential, but focused on a few big players – for…

In the discreet but ruthless world of collective management in Central Africa, the year 2024 confirmed what insiders already knew: the heavyweights dictate the game and the competition often settles for playing second fiddle. As of December 31, 2024, the snapshot of the Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) market in the CEMAC region consecrates, unsurprisingly, Harvest Asset Management as the absolute master of the game, with a total asset under management flirting with 346 billion CFA francs (approximately 574 million dollars), representing 36.08% of market share. Behind, Elite Capital Asset Management SA honors its position with 181.78 billion CFA francs in…

The State of Senegal successfully raised an amount of 40 billion CFA francs (72 million dollars) on the West African Monetary Union (UMOA) financial market on Friday, August 8, 2025, after a simultaneous auction of Treasury Bills (BAT) with a maturity of 364 days and Treasury Bonds (OAT) with maturities of 3 and 5 years....

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (Nigerian Exchange – NGX) closed the week on a positive note, with the All-Share index rising by 3.18% to 145,754.91 points, while the market capitalization reached $57.63 billion (92.215 trillion NGN). According to data released by the NGX, investors traded 8.736 billion shares for a total value of $84.11 million (134.577 billion NGN) in 180,290 transactions during the past week. In comparison, the previous week had recorded 4.847 billion shares for $93.60 million (149.755 billion NGN) in 174,267 transactions, representing an 11.3% decrease in the value of exchanges on a weekly basis. Most active sectors: The…

After flirting with the skies, crossing the mythical threshold of 12,000 billion CFA francs in market capitalization, the Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM) is experiencing a backlash. In the week of August 4 to 10, there is a brutal drop towards the 10,000 billion mark. The correction is orchestrated by a targeted defiance towards financial heavyweights and utilities. The flagship indices are eroding: BRVM Composite (-0.44% at 311.72 points), BRVM 30 (-0.48%) and BRVM Prestige (-1.05%). Investors are arbitrating without mercy, letting go of financial stocks and accumulating industrial ones. The low liquidity testifies to the wait-and-see attitude. Only 4.16 million…

By Professor Amath Ndiaye, FASEG-UCAD. For decades, a part of the African public opinion has been led to believe that the operations account held at the French Treasury represented a kind of money “confiscated” by France. This perception does not stand up to recent facts. In 2023, the BEAC – central bank of the CEMAC – received 196.7 billion CFA francs in interest on its reserves placed at the French Treasury, an increase of 358% compared to 2022. These returns are directly related to the rise in the ECB’s key rates, applied according to modalities set by monetary agreements (minimum…

WASHINGTON, December 3, 2024 – According to the latest edition of the World Bank’s International Debt Report, developing countries spent an unprecedented $1.4 trillion on servicing their external debt in 2023, with interest payments reaching their highest level in twenty years. Interest payments increased by nearly a third, totaling $406 billion, putting strain on budgets that could be allocated to critical areas such as health, education, and the environment. The data reveals that financial pressure was most intense in the poorest and most vulnerable countries, those eligible for loans from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA). In 2023, these…

In a political context marked by calls for national unity and persistent internal tensions, President Félix Tshisekedi presented, by presidential decree read on RTNC on August 7 by his spokesperson Tina Salama, the new government team, named Suminwa II. This composition, aimed at being broader and more inclusive, marks the entry of several political figures from different backgrounds, including former Prime Minister Adolphe Muzito. However, the absence of opposition leader Martin Fayulu and any representative from his party already raises questions and analysis. Some key figures from the previous government have been retained in their positions, including Jacquemain Shabani, Jean-Pierre…

By Ali Al-Shammari, CEO of Global South Utilities, a subsidiary of Resources Investment in Abu Dhabi. Today, the real question is no longer “Why invest in countries of the global South?” but rather “How to redesign the map of global investment to fully include them?” According to some international studies, countries classified as belonging to the global South will represent approximately 54.5% of the global GDP in 2025. Yet, they continue to be perceived, in many analyses, as areas marked by development gaps, rather than future poles. For decades, major investments have headed north, where markets are stable, infrastructure is…