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JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Steinhoff International Holdings NV said two 2017 payments to former chairman and biggest shareholder Christo Wiese didn’t follow proper governance and disclosure processes, dragging the South African billionaire deeper into an accounting crisis. The deals were agreed to with entities related to Wiese in the weeks leading up to the emergence of financial irregularities that have wiped more than 90 percent off the value of the global retailer. Steinhoff has investigated the…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – South African Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe said he’s open to discussions with mining companies about a crucial black-ownership principle, but they might not be pleased with what he has to say. The Chamber of Mines lobby group, which represents most producers, last week won court backing for its argument that companies could count previous sales to black investors to reach the black-ownership requirements, even if those investors later sold their…

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou Nguesso traveled to Saudi Arabia to request funding for infrastructure projects, the central African nation’s government spokesman said. Sassou Nguesso was in Riyadh Sunday, where he was received by King Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, Thierry Moungalla said by phone from the Congolese capital, Brazzaville. The president was accompanied by officials including Finance Minister Calixte Ganongo and Maixent Ominga, the head of Congo’s state oil company….

KINSHASA (Capital Markets in Africa) – The Democratic Republic of Congo began testing voting machines as part of a new system that civil-society groups said will undermine the credibility of long-awaited elections that seek to end the central African nation’s political crisis. The new technology will be used in the vote scheduled Dec. 23 to pick a successor to President Joseph Kabila. His decision to remain in office beyond the end of his final term in…

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Former South African President Jacob Zuma’s corruption case was adjourned until June 8, signalling that a criminal trial may be delayed until at least the end of the year. Zuma, 75, is facing 16 charges brought by the National Prosecuting Authority that range from corruption to racketeering related to bribes he allegedly took in the 1990s from weapons dealers including French arms maker Thales SA, which is also a defendant….