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IDC appoints Gert Gouws acting CFO

By: Donna Slater 3rd July 2020 The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has appointed Gert Gouws as its acting CFO for a period of three months while the process of appointing the permanent incumbent is being finalised. The IDC notes that the recruitment process is progressing well and is expected to be concluded soon. →

ProfitShare Partners secures R100m for SMEs

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 2nd July 2020 Fintech small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) capital provider ProfitShare Partners on July 2 announced that it had secured R100-million from the SA SME Fund, which would enable it to partner with more SME businesses to provide much-needed capital to catalyse growth. In the midst of the... →

CDC Group, Finnfund make $70m commitment to foster growth across Africa

By: Simone Liedtke 2nd July 2020 The CDC Group and Finnfund have made a $70-million commitment to AfricInvest Fund IV, a generalist Pan-African fund aiming to foster the growth of African enterprises across the continent. Fund IV will invest in mid-cap and growth-oriented companies in sectors including financial services,... →

2018/19 audit of local governments paints ‘undesirable picture’, says AG

By: Simone Liedtke 1st July 2020 Auditor-General (AG) Kimi Makwetu released the audit outcomes for local government for the 2018/19 financial year, wherein 257 municipalities and 21 municipal entities were audited. This report is Makwetu’s last as his fixed seven-year term as AG comes to an end on November 30. →

Revenue under severe strain, but no tariff increases for Ekurhuleni

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 26th June 2020 The City of Ekurhuleni will not be increasing municipal tariffs that are within the control of the city, despite a considerable strain on revenue collection exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, Finance and Economic Development MMC Nkosindiphile Xhakaza said on June 26 during a webinar discussing... →

Fund approves Covid-19 response grants for six SADC countries

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 26th June 2020 The African Development Bank's (AfDB's) African Development Fund has approved nearly $8.9-million in grant funding to bolster Covid-19-related control measures in six Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. Separately, it has also approved $683 000 in grants to São Tomé &... →

Standard Bank shareholders re-elect nonexecs despite Just Share concerns

By: Marleny Arnoldi 26th June 2020 Financial services provicer Standard Bank Group has welcomed the reappointment of all its nonexecutive directors, including those that were alleged to be climate change conflicted by activist organisation Just Share. Standard Bank earlier in June reiterated its commitment to a climate-related... →

Private equity association releases inaugural venture capital report

By: Simone Liedtke 24th June 2020 The African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (Avca) has released its inaugural report on venture capital (VC), titled 'Venture Capital in Africa: Mapping Africa’s Start-up Investment Landscape'. The report analyses the exponential growth of VC in Africa over the 2014 to 2019 period,... →

Visa launches new initiative to support small businesses in South Africa

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 19th June 2020 Digital payments service provider Visa has launched a new initiative that aims to champion and enable entrepreneurs in South Africa, while encouraging consumers to support small businesses. Having launched on June 17, Visa’s initiative is aimed at supporting small businesses through the Visa... →

Absa arranges major bond issuance for Dangote in Nigeria

By: Marleny Arnoldi 18th June 2020 Absa Capital Markets Nigeria has successfully completed a debut bond offering for Nigerian multinational cement manufacturer Dangote Cement, as its joint lead issuing house. Absa has allocated 100-billion naira in five-year fixed rate senior unsecured bonds under its 300-billion naira issuance... →

Labour department starts auditing UIF payments to ensure compliance

By: Donna Slater 15th June 2020 Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi reports that, during the second week of June, the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) appointed auditors to investigate whether money paid to employers, to help bridge employees salary deficits during the Covid-19 pandemic, is being paid in full to... →

Futuregrowth makes venture capital investment in LifeCheq

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 12th June 2020 The South African economy needs the dynamism and growth potential that early-stage innovative companies have to offer and venture capital investments provide the funding that supports the growth of these entrepreneurial engines of economic growth, fixed-interest asset manager Futuregrowth Asset... →

Post Office rolls out cashless ATM as Sassa grant access point

By: Marleny Arnoldi 12th June 2020 State-owned postal service, the South African Post Office (SA Post Office) has rolled out a new cashless automated teller machine (ATM) at an informal store, in Ga Molepo, just outside of Polokwane. SA Post Office chairperson Colleen Makhubele says the cashless ATM helps decongest current... →

SA Post Office's cashless ATM

Rail needs innovative risk-sharing structures

By: Darren Parker 12th June 2020 African railway owners and operators should consider linking freight and passenger rail services as a way of diversifying the risks and rewards that have become evident in these systems on the back of the Covid-19 crisis, says Development Bank of Southern Africa transport, logistics and bulk... →

Photo by Creamer Media
SHOULDERING THE LOAD While passenger rail suffered losses, freight rail enjoyed increased demand throughout the Covid-19 lockdown

Time has come for all stakeholders to uplift South Africa’s youth, says PwC

By: Donna Slater 10th June 2020 South Africa’s lockdown restrictions are easing in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, but its impact on the economy will be long-lasting and challenging, and it remains an important time for business, government, educators, nongovernment organisations and other stakeholders to uplift the... →

Investment summit to go virtual

By: Donna Slater 10th June 2020 In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and the forced cancelation of mass gatherings, the South African Innovation Summit (SAIS) will be presented in a new and virtual way this year, with the first ever digital SA Innovation Summit due to be held from September 30 to October 1. The SAIS is a major... →

Investment managers bolster renewable energy project

By: Donna Slater 10th June 2020 Mergence Investment Managers and Third Way Investment Partners have invested R225-million each to refinance a major renewable energy plant in a remote area of South Africa, which cannot be named owing to confidentiality reasons. The renewable energy and infrastructure funds of both Mergence and... →

South Africa must rapidly implement measures to attract FDI − Leon

By: Simone Liedtke 10th June 2020 The South African economy finds itself on the edge of a fiscal cliff, especially as the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a “massive and rapid shock”, says law firm Herbert Smith Freehills partner and Africa co-chair Peter Leon. While the effects of the pandemic were initially localised to Asia,... →

Herbert Smith Freehills partner and Africa co-chair Peter Leon discusses the fiscal cliff edge that the South African economy finds itself on, and highlights some potential measures that can attract FDI into the country. Video: Creamer Media's Kutlwano Matlala. Editing: Creamer Media's Nicholas Boyd.

AfDB launches programmes to bolster Africa's food security

By: Donna Slater 9th June 2020 The African Development Bank (AfDB) has unveiled a strategic roadmap of projects and programmes to assist African countries in tackling the nutrition and food security aspects of the Covid-19 crisis. The Feed Africa Response to Covid-19 (Farec) paves the way for a comprehensive intervention to... →

AfDB debars contractor after uncovering sanctionable practices

By: Donna Slater 8th June 2020 Pursuant to a settlement agreement, the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group on June 8 debarred Scandinavian contractor Burmeister & Wain for a period of 21 months, for engaging in sanctionable practices in a power generation project financed by the AfDB in Mauritius. The bank stated that an... →

Solidarity Fund flies in essential PPE for frontline healthcare workers

By: Donna Slater 8th June 2020 The Solidarity Fund has taken delivery of a consignment of personal protective equipment (PPE) as part of its health and humanitarian intervention to provide much-needed PPE for frontline healthworkers. The consignment, received on June 6, includes gowns and N95 respirator masks, and takes the... →

Ascendis Health concludes agreements to refinance debt

By: Donna Slater 8th June 2020 Following health and wellness company Ascendis Health’s decision to further extend an interim stability agreement and find a more permanent structure for its existing debt facilities through its lender consortium, the company has, as of June 8, concluded agreements with its lender consortium to... →

SA banks ready to assist distressed businesses amid Covid-19 pandemic

By: Sane Dhlamini 3rd June 2020 Global law firm DLA Piper, which has advised the Banking Association South Africa and South Africa’s biggest banks on the country’s loan guarantee scheme, has announced that the banks are ready to receive loan applications from businesses impacted by the coronavirus. The loan scheme, which was... →

Bidvest warns of lower earnings amid Covid-19

By: Donna Slater 1st June 2020 Services, trading and distribution group, the Bidvest Group, expects its headline earnings a share and earnings a share for the financial year to June 30 to be more than 20% lower year-on-year, as a result of the impact of Covid-19 on some of its businesses. While trading profit has been... →

Production capacity rises in May but to remain subdued until demand grows

By: Donna Slater 1st June 2020 Having plunged to an all-time low of 5.1 index points in April, financial services provider Absa’s Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) survey rose sharply to 43.2 index points in May, propelled by many factories returning to production in May when South Africa went into Alert Level 4, the bank... →

Ramaphosa tables support for 2yr debt standstill for African countries

By: Donna Slater 29th May 2020 Addressing members of the African Union (AU) on development financing for developing countries in the era of Covid-19, chairperson and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Africa was encouraged by the collaboration of the Group of 20 economies, the Bretton Woods institutions and the... →

BBC, Treasury discuss how to enhance impact of R200bn loan guarantee scheme

By: Donna Slater 29th May 2020 Black professional, business associations and chambers confederation, the Black Business Council (BBC), led by its president Sandile Zungu, and the National Treasury, led by the Deputy Finance Minister Dr David Masondo, met recently to consider ways to enhance the R200-billion loan guarantee... →

Sithole appointed PIC chief

By: Marleny Arnoldi 27th May 2020 The Ministry of Finance on May 27 announced that Cabinet had approved its recommendation of appointing Abel Moffat Sithole as CEO and nonexecutive director of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), for a period of five years. Sithole is currently the principal executive officer of the... →

UIF apologises for delay in capturing May claims

By: Simone Liedtke 27th May 2020 The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has apologised for the break in its network which has affected plans to capture the May Covid-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (TERS) online applications. The system, which has been undergoing test runs since last week, was scheduled to go live on... →

First window of SMME debt relief financing scheme closing

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 22nd May 2020 The first window of the Department of Small Business Development's (DSBD's) Small, Medium-sized and Microenterprise (SMME) Debt Relief Financing Scheme will close soon. The scheme was initially allocated an amount of R200-million, which was later increased to R500-million, when the department... →

CFOs in Africa take steps to provide safe working environments for their employees

By: Donna Slater 21st May 2020 As governments in Africa ease lockdown restrictions and reopen local economies, CFOs are focusing on plans to provide a safe working environment for their employees and ensure that this safety can be sustained throughout the Covid-19 crisis and recovery. This deduction comes from the latest 'the... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
PwC Africa CEO Dion Shango

IDC CFO Dlamini resigns

By: Donna Slater 18th May 2020 Nonkululeko Dlamini has resigned as CFO of the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). She will serve out her notice period until July. →

FNB pays out R100m worth of credit insurance claims by June

By: Marleny Arnoldi 18th May 2020 First National Bank (FNB) expects to pay out about R100-million worth of credit life insurance claims by June, for customers whose finances have been negatively impacted by Covid-19. The insurance provider division of FNB, FNB Life, previously announced relief measures for customers including... →

Kibo shareholders to vote on reorganisation of share capital as Covid-19 disrupts operations

By: Donna Slater 15th May 2020 Owing to the adverse impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on international business and the uncertainty surrounding the global economic outlook, Africa-focused energy company Kibo Energy is re-evaluating its business plans, partly involving the potential reorganisation of its share capital. The share... →

Prosperity Fund’s cities programme responds to Covid-19 crisis in South Africa

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 13th May 2020 In response to the Covid-19 outbreak, the British High Commission, through the Future Cities programme, will be delivering additional support to its partner municipalities. The Global Future Cities Programme launched in South Africa earlier this year to the value of up to R180-million, as part of... →

Absa invests in A2X

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 13th May 2020 Financial services provider Absa has become the first major South African bank to invest in start-up stock exchange A2X Markets, which began trading in October 2017. Absa, a diversified financial services group with a presence in 12 countries in Africa, participated in the capital raise launched... →

Govt avails more than R5bn in support to municipalities

By: Simone Liedtke 12th May 2020 National government has made more than R5-billion available in support to municipalities to assist them in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic in the 2019/20 municipal financial year. The support is assisting municipalities to provide additional access to basic services for vulnerable communities... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni

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