TOP NEWS IN MIDDLE EASTERN AND AFRICAN FINANCIALS
* Saudi Arabia and allies United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt signed a declaration agreeing to reinstate full diplomatic relations with Qatar more than three years after imposing an embargo against it, multiple media outlets including CNN and Al Jazeera reported. Qatar's main stock index closed 1.4% higher yesterday, while Saudi Arabia's Tadawul All Share Index rose 0.2%, according to Bloomberg News.
* Nandan Mer was named group CEO of United Arab Emirates-based payments group Network International Holdings PLC, effective Feb. 1. Mer takes over from Simon Haslam, who will retire from the post at the end of January.
➤ Banks' patience with UK landlords faces test in 2021 as COVID-19 crisis bites
Lenders to the U.K. commercial property sector are likely to begin taking action against struggling landlords by the middle of this year as the long-term impact of the pandemic becomes clearer.
➤ Investors face data gaps as they adjust portfolios to EU taxonomy
Asset managers and owners will spend 2021 adjusting their investment portfolios to be in line with new EU rules on sustainable finance, which could be challenging.
BANKING
* United Arab Emirates-based Emirates NBD Bank PJSC tapped banks including Emirates NBD Capital, ICBC, ING, Mizuho Securities and Standard Chartered for a potential offering of five-year benchmark-sized, U.S. dollar-denominated bonds, according to Reuters.
* Perceived anomalies in Land & Agricultural Development Bank of South Africa's financial statements are becoming a cause for concern for the state-backed lender's creditors, which are already worried about the slow implementation of the bank's restructuring, according to Bloomberg News. The bank's full-year 2020 loss widened year over year.
* Oman-based Sohar International Bank SAOG said it has no direct exposure to embattled UAE-based construction company Drake & Scull International PJSC. However, the bank said as of Sept. 30, 2020, it had an exposure to Drake & Scull International LLC, an Omani joint venture, of roughly 6.50 million rials, which is fully provisioned.
* Tanzania-based Mkombozi Commercial Bank Plc plans to raise fresh capital of up to 15.4 billion shillings through a one-month rights issue, Daily News Tanzania reported, citing Chairperson Marcelina Chijoriga. The bank has already offered 20,615,272 new shares to existing shareholders through renounceable rights.
* The Ethiopian central bank approved the appointment of Ermias Andarge as president of Enat Bank S.C. beginning Dec. 31, 2020, Addis Fortune reported. Andarge, formerly a vice president at the bank, replaced Wondwossen Teshome, who resigned.
* Bahrain's Khaleeji Commercial Bank BSC received regulatory approval to buy up to 10% of the company's issued shares, valid for 90 days from Dec. 22, 2020.
* Adam Nuru, managing director of First City Monument Bank Ltd., has been put on leave as the Nigerian lender reviews allegations of unethical conduct against him, The Punch reported. Nuru faces accusations of infidelity with a former employee of the bank.
* The average return on fixed deposits of Kenyan banks fell to a five-year low of 6.31% in October 2020 in light of lower demand for savings amid the coronavirus crisis, Business Daily Africa reported, citing central bank data.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
* Gal Haber stepped down as managing director and from the board of Israel-based Plus500 Ltd. Haber, a co-founder and former CEO of the London-listed company, will continue to be a consultant. Plus500 expects revenues for full year 2020 to be roughly $872 million, ahead of the board's expectations.
* Mustafa Kheriba has resigned as deputy CEO and group head of asset management of UAE-based SHUAA Capital PSC.
* The Dubai Financial Market has granted BH Mubasher Financial Services P.S.C a license to provide short-term margin trading.
* Saudi Arabia's Capital Market Authority granted Sarwa a financial technology experimental permit to experiment with robo-advisory service, allowing clients to get advice on securities or investment schemes through direct access to an automated online platform or application.
POLICY AND REGULATION
* The Egyptian central bank issued a new circular to banks operating in the country, giving them new instructions over the management of operational risks, Daily News Egypt reported. The regulator continues to study how the Basel II and III accords can be applied so that banks can effectively manage risks.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* The World Bank projects that the global economy would grow by 4% in 2021 but recovery would likely be subdued. The lender expects economic moderate growth in the Middle East and North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa to be at 2.1% and 2.7%, respectively, this year.
* Health insurers in South Africa could work with business organizations and the government to form a program that would fund COVID-19 vaccines for uninsured citizens, Bloomberg reported, citing Stavros Nicolaou, head of the Health Workgroup for Business for South Africa. Such a program could reportedly procure vaccines for roughly 30% of the population.
* Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos filed a lawsuit against Portugal's central bank in an attempt to get back her voting rights in Portuguese bank EuroBic, formerly known as Banco BIC Português SA, which she lost after being embroiled in money laundering investigations and corruption charges, Expansão reported. The administrative process was filed in a Lisbon court.
* The European Investment Bank will concede a €50 million loan to Angola's health ministry to help combat COVID-19, Expansão wrote. An additional €5 million will be donated by the bank for technical support.
* President Faustin-Archange Touadéra was reelected as head of the Central African Republic, after receiving about 54% of the votes in the country's December 2020 election, Bloomberg reported. Touadéra got the majority of votes in the first round, making a second round runoff unnecessary, Reuters noted.
MARKETS
Click here for a summary of indexes on the MI platform.
Erin Tanchico, Abdelghani Henni, Sophie Davies and Mariana Aldano contributed to this report.
The Daily Dose Middle East and Africa is updated as of 4 a.m. London time. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.
