* London-based private equity firm EMEA Capital LLP made a major investment of an undisclosed sum in Moneybaba, a financial technology company with focus on Latin American and African emerging markets, together with Hong Kong-based Duet Group Ltd.
* Islamic lenders in Africa will continue to perform well and sukuk issuance in the continent will keep expanding steadily over the next 12 to 18 months to fund sovereigns and financial institutions, on the back of global investors' growing comfort with Islamic instruments, Moody's said in a report.
GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL
* Saudi Arabia raised some 8.83 billion riyals in a local currency-denominated Islamic bond issuance this month. The issuances were divided into three tranches of different amounts and maturities. The transaction comes as the government continues to seek funding domestically to bolster its finances and diversify its funding base, The National noted.
* Primary insurers in Saudi Arabia reported weaker profitability in the first half amid intense competition and mounting pressure for consolidation in the industry, Moody's said in a report.
* Saudi Arabia's cabinet has amended the rules for the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul)
* UBS Group AG named Ghassan Soufi the new desk head of its Saudi Arabian unit in Riyadh, according to a press release carried by Thomson Reuters' Zawya. Soufi joined the Swiss lender from Samba Financial Group's private bank.
* Samba Financial Group has mandated First Abu Dhabi Bank, Goldman Sachs International, HSBC, Samba Capital & Investment Management Co. and Standard Chartered Bank as joint lead managers for its planned offering of notes under the group's proposed $5 billion euro medium-term note program. The U.S. dollar-denominated notes would be issued through a special purpose vehicle, which the bank itself would guarantee, and investor meetings will be held beginning Sept. 17.
* Qatar-based Ahli Bank QSC is poised to raise $500 million through the issuance of five-year bonds, which have received orders of more than $1.7 billion, a document seen by Reuters showed.
* The extraordinary general meeting of Qatar First Bank LLC (Public) approved the lender's capital reduction by 65% to 700 million riyals, subject to regulatory approval.
* The interest margins of banks in the United Arab Emirates could be pressured if the U.S. Federal Reserve cuts rates today, since most Gulf states that have their currencies pegged to the U.S. follow suit, Gulf News reported. The Federal Reserve is expected to lower rates by 25 basis points. Despite the expected margin compression in the second half, banks would still maintain their profitability supported by a gradual pick up in credit growth and lower impairments.
* The UAE's Securities and Commodities Authority amended the regulation related to settlement and clearance, ownership transfer, custodian and clearance settlement of tradings in local stock markets, Al Bayan reported.
* National Bank of Fujairah PJSC mandated HSBC as structuring agent and Emirates NBD Capital, First Abu Dhabi Bank, HSBC, J.P. Morgan and Standard Chartered Bank as joint lead managers and book runners to set up fixed-income investor meetings beginning Sept. 18 for the issuance of a perpetual, non-callable, benchmark U.S. dollar-denominated Additional Tier 1 capital securities, subject to market conditions.
* Warba Bank KSCP intends to issue a five-year, U.S. dollar-denominated Islamic bond, or sukuk, of benchmark size, according to a document seen by Reuters. The planned debt issue could reportedly have an initial guidance of 165 basis points above the mid-swap.
* KAMCO Investment Company K.S.C.P. said its general assembly approved the company's merger with Global Investment House KSC (Closed), through acquiring Global.
*
REST OF MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
* Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and its allies failed to secure an outright majority in the country's second general election this year as exit polls suggested a tight contest, media reports said. The right-wing Likud party is projected to win 31 to 33 seats in Israel's 120-member legislative body, the Knesset. Preliminary results are expected to be released today.
* Iran plans to start an international stock exchange in the free trade zones, to be opened in Kish in February next year, the Financial Tribune reported, citing Morteza Bank, the head of the Supreme Council of Iran Free Trade Zones.
* Capital Intelligence Ratings affirmed the BBB-/A-3 long- and short-term foreign-currency ratings of Crédit du Maroc SA. CI Ratings also assigned the Moroccan lender "bb+" bank stand-alone and core financial strength ratings and an extraordinary support level of High. The long-term foreign-currency and bank stand-alone ratings carried a stable outlook.
EAST AND WEST AFRICA
* Nigeria's Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank Plc
* The Ugandan central bank has approved Egypt-based Banque du Caire SAE's proposed acquisition of a 40% stake in Uganda-based Cairo International Bank
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN AFRICA
*
* Old Mutual Ltd. Chairman Trevor Manuel has apologized for comments he made about the judge presiding over the South African insurer's legal dispute with Peter Moyo, its dismissed CEO, news outlets including Reuters and South Africa's Business Day reported. In a press conference last week, Trevor had said "difficulty" arises when the board's decision to dismiss Moyo could be overturned "by a single individual who happens to wear a robe."
* Banco de Fomento Angola SA signed a $50 million loan agreement with Egypt-based African Export-Import Bank as part of a trade program aimed at helping African banks offer services normally provided by foreign correspondent banks, the official Angop news agency reported. BFA will use the financing to confirm credit letters and issue guarantees, and it could be increased if demand is strong.
* Compagnie Financière de l'Ouest Africain, the parent company of Amsa Assurances, has taken a 22% stake in the capital of Gabonese insurer Omnium Gabonais d'Assurances, Confidentiel Afrique reported.
IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD
Asia-Pacific: ADB confirms president resignation; investors eye new Chinese bank
Europe: StanChart to review 8,000 accounts; UniCredit lines up chairman candidates
Latin America: Correction: SoftBank ups Banco Inter stake; Galicia creating new finance firm
North America: Tennessee banks in deal; CFTC approves Volcker 2.0; SEC fines 2 broker/dealers
Global Insurance: JLT exec departures; CopperPoint deal; Humberto could become major hurricane
Erin Tanchico, Henni Abdelghani, Sophie Davies and Helen Popper contributed to this report.
The Daily Dose Middle East and Africa has an editorial deadline of 5 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.
This S&P Global Market Intelligence news article may contain information about credit ratings issued by S&P Global Ratings. Descriptions in this news article were not prepared by S&P Global Ratings.
