TOP NEWS IN MIDDLE EASTERN AND AFRICAN FINANCIALS
* Dubai-based Mashreqbank PSC plans to relocate almost half of its workforce to cheaper locations such as India, Egypt or Pakistan and allow some employees to permanently work remotely under a sweeping reorganization, insiders told Bloomberg News. The plan, which will exclude the bank's staff in the United Arab Emirates, is expected to be completed in three phases by October.
* Moody's set a negative outlook for countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council for 2021, saying the coronavirus-related drop in oil revenues has led to the deterioration in the region's fiscal strength, constrained government spending and hampered economic recovery.
➤ As rules diverge, Scandinavian banks could pay dividends far higher than ECB cap
Large Swedish and Norwegian banks such as SEB, Handelsbanken, Swedbank and DNB could be permitted by national regulators to pay out dividends in 2021 that would be more than 5x higher than what the European Central Bank has recommended.
➤ Big tech rather than banks to drive fintech M&A in 2021 with payments key
Financial services companies will have less capital available for deals compared to technology companies that have thrived during the pandemic, which has also placed a greater emphasis on the importance of fintechs focused on payments.
➤ Nordic banks face higher loan losses in 2021, with some exposures vulnerable
The median cost of risk for the six largest Nordic banks was 37 basis points for the first nine months of 2020, lower than European peers. But this may not provide the full story of the pandemic's impact.
BANKING
* QNB Financial Services Research, a division of Qatar National Bank QPSC, expects Qatari banks to benefit from the peace accord between the country and its neighbors in the Gulf Cooperation Council, Reuters reported. Banks in Qatar hold significant stakes in lenders in the UAE and Egypt, the newswire noted, adding that QNB is looking to expand in Saudi Arabia.
* Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tarik issued a decree for the conversion of the country's stock market, Muscat Securities Market, into a joint-stock company under the name Muscat Stock Exchange, Oman news Agency reported. Reuters also covered this.
* HSBC Holdings PLC will continue its efforts to double its AUM in the UAE in the next three years, Abdul Fattah Sharaf, head of the British bank's operations in the Middle Eastern country, told Gulf News.
* First City Monument Bank Ltd. appointed Yemisi Edun acting managing director after Adam Nuru went on voluntary leave as the Nigerian lender investigates allegations of unethical conduct against him. Nuru faces allegations of having an affair with a married former employee.
* Access Bank Zambia Ltd., a unit of Nigeria-based Access Bank PLC, closed its acquisition of Cavmont Bank Ltd. The merger is expected to take effect at the end of the month.
* Okey Nwosu, former managing director of Nigeria's FinBank PLC, was convicted and sentenced to three years in jail in relation to a 10 billion naira fraud, Business Post reported. Former bank directors Dayo Famuroti, Agnes Ebubedike and Danjuma Ocholi were also sentenced.
* Kenyan lender Equity Group Holdings PLC has kicked off the rebranding of its units in Africa, including South Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania, The East African reported. The process began in Rwanda and is expected to be completed in the bank's subsidiaries in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
* Bank deposits in Tanzania amounted to 21.41 trillion shillings in the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2020, up roughly 10.1% year over year from 19.45 trillion shillings, Daily News Tanzania reported, citing central bank data. Loans, meanwhile, rose over the same period by 9.4% to 16.75 trillion shillings from 15.30 trillion shillings.
* Kuwait's Warba Bank KSCP said deputy Chief Risk Officer Dharar al-Dakhil has taken over the duties of Paul Quigley, who has stepped down as chief risk officer.
* Kuwait International Bank KSCP received regulatory nod to extend by six months the deadline of its plan to issue Islamic bonds amounting to up to $750 million.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
* Mobile payments group Zeepay Ghana Ltd. intends to raise up to $10 million of fresh equity to fund its ambition of forming new mobile-money hubs in East and Southern Africa, The Africa Report wrote. Managing Director Andrew Takyi-Appiah said the hubs would likely be in Rwanda and South Africa.
* Swiss financial technology company Leonteq AG is opening an office in Dubai, dubbed Leonteq (Middle East) Ltd., to tap the GCC market.
POLICY AND REGULATION
* The Egyptian central bank mandated banks to ramp up the process of local-currency fund transfers as part of efforts to boost the country's payment systems infrastructure, Amwal Al Ghad wrote. Under the directive, intra-bank transfers should be completed within two hours, while interbank transactions should be carried out within three hours, Daily News Egypt added.
INDUSTRY NEWS
* Leaders from around the world have condemned the storming of the U.S. Capitol by rioting supporters of President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, which led to at least one death and delayed the formal certification of President-elect Joe Biden's victory, news agencies including The Wall Street Journal and CNN reported. The Senate reconvened to resume the tally of Electoral College votes at about 8 p.m. ET, followed by the House of Representatives about an hour later.
* Sudan officially signed a U.S.-brokered deal aimed at normalizing ties with Israel, following similar moves by the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco, Bloomberg News wrote. Reuters also covered this.
* A plan to tighten new coronavirus lockdown measures in Israel is estimated to cost the economy up to 4.0 billion shekels a week, Reuters reported, adding that the government is set to intensify an existing lockdown that took effect Dec. 27, 2020.
* Although the Ugandan shilling depreciated by 0.38% last year compared with a 0.6% appreciation in 2019, central bank Governor Adam Mugume told Daily Monitor that the currency was stable and is likely to remain so this year. Mugume noted the expected post-pandemic rebound in global economic growth, adding that the shilling could benefit from an expected depreciation of the U.S. dollar against other reserve currencies.
MARKETS
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Deza Mones, Abdelghani Henni, Sophie Davies and Mariana Aldano contributed to this report.
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