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SSA news through March 8

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SSA news through March 8

EAST AFRICA

* KCB Group Plc CEO Joshua Oigara said the Kenyan lender plans to spend $9 million to create its own mobile payment platform in 2018 to boost the number of mobile transactions it can handle, Reuters reported. The bank reported full-year 2017 group profit after tax, exceptional items and minority interest of 19.71 billion Kenyan shillings, compared to 19.72 billion shillings in 2016.

* Separately, KCB Group CFO Lawrence Kimathi said the banking group remains optimistic that Kenya's rate cap law will be reviewed by year-end, Bloomberg News reported. Kimathi said the group wants the cap to be raised from the current limit of 400 basis points above official rates, an easier approach than pushing for the law's repeal.

* National Bank of Kenya Ltd. CEO Wilfred Musau said the lender could shut down some of its 85 branches to cut costs after the rate cap hit local banks' ability to provide loans and clients turn to digital banking, Bloomberg News reported. Musau said the lender will decide in the second quarter on the number of branches it will shutter.

* Kenya's National Treasury cabinet secretary, Henry Rotich, published new rules that give the Insurance Regulatory Authority powers to supervise banks offering insurance services, The East African reported.

* Standard Bank Group Ltd. unit Stanbic Bank Uganda Ltd. applied to the Bank of Uganda to become a bank holding company that will house the bank as well as nonbank subsidiaries, according to CEO Patrick Mweheire.

* Kenyan authorities have asked the IMF to extend by a further six months a $1.5 billion standby credit facility that is set to expire March 13. Kenya's access to the standby facility has been suspended since June 2017, Reuters reported.

* Stella Kilonzo, former CEO of Kenya's Capital Markets Authority, was named head of the African Development Bank's Africa Investment Forum, according to Business Daily Africa.

* Moody's assigned first-time local- and foreign-currency issuer ratings of B1 to Tanzania, with a negative outlook, citing constraints to the east African country's economic, institutional and fiscal health.

WEST AFRICA

* Ghana's Agricultural Development Bank Ltd. denied that UniBank (Ghana) Ltd. is poised to take over the lender, Bloomberg News reported. ADB said it had received letters from some of its shareholders pledging their shares to UniBank. Collectively, the shareholders own 53% of ADB, which noted that the pledge "does not have the effect of the transfer of ownership" and does not make UniBank a shareholder or constitute a takeover.

* Sierra Leone held presidential elections in which an unprecedented number of candidates are vying to replace outgoing President Ernest Bai Koroma, who has served his maximum two terms, Reuters and Bloomberg News wrote.

* Nigerian mortgage bank Resort Savings & Loans Plc secured a $250 million investment from U.S. private equity firm Milost Global Inc.

* Nigerian lawmakers passed a law that will make the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit an independent body in a bid to help authorities in investigating money-laundering and terrorism-funding cases, Reuters reported.

* Banque Internationale pour le Mali, majority-owned by Morocco-based Attijariwafa Bank SA, replaced its director general, Hassan Oustani, with Mohamed Ghazi, formerly director general of Crédit du Sénégal, according to Financial Afrik.

SOUTHERN AFRICA

* South Africa's ruling African National Congress said it intends to "press on" with a draft legislation for the proposed nationalization of the South African Reserve Bank, after postponing a parliamentary debate on the matter scheduled to take place March 6, Reuters reported.

* Standard Bank Group reported full-year 2017 profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of 26.24 billion South African rand, up from 22.21 billion rand in 2016.

* Peter Schlebusch stepped down as CEO of Standard Bank Group's personal and business bank. He will be replaced by Zweli Manyathi, who previously served as CEO of personal and business bank for the Africa region.

* Nedbank Group Ltd. reported full-year 2017 preliminary audited profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of 11.62 billion South African rand, up from 10.13 billion rand a year ago.

* FirstRand Ltd. reported profit attributable to ordinary equity holders of 12.75 billion South African rand for its fiscal first half ended Dec. 31, 2017, up from 11.89 billion rand in the year-ago period.

* MMI Holdings Ltd. plans to buy back 2 billion South African rand worth of shares over the next 12 months, in lieu of paying a dividend.

* South Africa-based Sanlam Ltd. and Santam Ltd. said Sanlam Emerging Markets Ireland Ltd will acquire the remaining 53.37% of Morocco-based Saham Finances SA that it does not own from Saham SA for $1.05 billion. The transaction is expected to take effect in the second half.

* Liberty Holdings Ltd. CEO David Munro said the company, which has abandoned plans to acquire a 75% stake in a Nigerian long-term insurer, will not be making any acquisitions until it has restored its health, Moneyweb noted.

* Rand Merchant Investment Holdings Ltd. said Chairman Gerrit Thomas Ferreira will step down from the role, effective March 31. He will be replaced by Deputy Chairman Jannie Durand.

* African Phoenix Investments Ltd. said John Evans stepped down as financial director and a board member Feb. 28.

* Angola's central bank raised the minimum capital requirement for local commercial banks to 7.5 billion Angolan kwanzas from 2.5 billion kwanzas, Macauhub reported. The central bank said lenders who fail to meet the threshold by Dec. 31 must "consider alternatives, including mergers" with peers.

* Mozambique's parliament approved reforms aimed at bolstering money-laundering controls by giving more power to the country's Financial Information Office, Macauhub reported.

* Mauritius' cabinet agreed to launch an impeachment process to remove President Ameenah Gurib-Fakim from her post after being involved in an expenses scandal, l'express reported. Gurib-Fakim refuses to step down.

CENTRAL AFRICA

* Louis Paul Motaze will head Cameroon's finance ministry as part of changes made by President Paul Biya to his cabinet, Bloomberg News wrote.

* Democratic Republic of the Congo Prime Minister Bruno Tshibala told Reuters that an election to replace President Joseph Kabila remains on course for Dec. 23.

Pádraig Belton and Helen Popper contributed to this report.