Billionaire Agarwal Says His Anglo American Approach Made Sense

Billionaire Agarwal Says His Anglo American Approach Made Sense

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Anil Agarwal, the Indian billionaire owner of Vedanta Resources Plc, said a proposed tie up between his Hindustan Zinc Ltd. unit and rival miner Anglo American Plc would have been a good match. Anglo rebuffed informal approaches from Agarwal in the first half of last year when he contacted it to discuss potential ideas including a combination with the Indian zinc miner he controls through Vedanta, people familiar with the…

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Africa’s Biggest Company Seeks Partnerships With Phone Companies

Africa’s Biggest Company Seeks Partnerships With Phone Companies

JOHANNESBURG (Capital Markets in Africa) – Naspers Ltd., Africa’s biggest company by market value, is seeking partnerships with mobile-phone operators on the continent to boost its video-on-demand business and help compete with U.S. giant Netflix Inc. The owner of Africa’s biggest pay-TV provider is planning to build on a joint venture agreed to last year with Kenya’s largest company, Safaricom Ltd., to roll out online service Showmax at more affordable data prices. Safaricom is 40 percent…

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Diamond Said to Mull Atlas Options Including Taking Private

Diamond Said to Mull Atlas Options Including Taking Private

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Bob Diamond, co-founder of Atlas Mara Ltd., is weighing options including taking the sub-Saharan African bank acquirer private, people with knowledge of the plan said. One option being considered is to find an investor or private-equity vehicle to back such a move, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are private. A merger with another financial institution with a presence in Africa is also being weighed,…

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Nigeria Plan to Link Mines to Steel Mill Seen as Buhari Test

Nigeria Plan to Link Mines to Steel Mill Seen as Buhari Test

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Nigeria’s plan to build a railway to supply iron ore to its idle Ajaokuta steel plant could be the biggest sign yet that President Muhammadu Buhari is implementing his policy to diversify away from oil. The project began in 1979 with what the World Bank in 2002 called obsoleteSoviet technology, and has never been finished. Authorities want to revive it as part of Buhari’s efforts to lessen the economy’s dependence on crude, which accounts for…

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Citigroup, Top Africa Loan Arranger, Sees M&A Boosting Lending

Citigroup, Top Africa Loan Arranger, Sees M&A Boosting Lending

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Citigroup Inc., sub-Saharan Africa’s top loan arranger in 2016, expects increased sovereign demand and mergers and acquisitions to drive lending in the region this year as low valuations spur deals. “Lots of financing activity is expected in 2017,” Aziz Rahman, the bank’s head of corporate finance in the region said in an interview on Monday. Loans to sovereigns and corporates will increase as M&A deals rise and infrastructure spending picks…

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Microlender Plans West African Expansion After Ghana Acquisition

Microlender Plans West African Expansion After Ghana Acquisition

ACCRA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Letshego Holdings Ltd., the Botswana microlender that has made acquisitions in Nigeria and Ghana during the past year, plans to enter Ivory Coast to boost access to West Africa’s francophone market. The lender, which has operations in 11 African countries, is also weighing up an expansion into Zambia and Zimbabwe, Chief Executive Officer Christopher Low said in an interview in Botswana’s capital, Gaborone. Letshego, which had a loan book of $620 million…

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GAIA Infrastructure acquires 25.2% stake in Dorper Wind Farm, South Africa

GAIA Infrastructure acquires 25.2% stake in Dorper Wind Farm, South Africa

JOHANNESBURGH (Capital Markets in Africa) – Gaia Infrastructure Capital Limited (“GAIA” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that the Company’s listing has transferred from a SPAC (“Special Purpose Acquisition Company”) to the Investment Services sector of the JSE Limited (“JSE”). The move was facilitated by the completion of the acquisition of an effective see-through economic interest of 25.2% in Dorper Wind Farm (Proprietary) Limited (“Dorper” or “the Acquisition”) for R501 million (“Viable Asset Transaction”)….

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