By Andrei Skvarsky. Australian multi-asset financial brokerage Ingot Brokers has drastically speeded up its client identity verification procedure and made it more accurate via an automated solution acquired from London-headquartered identity verifier Sumsub. The solution, obtained by Ingot from Sumsub under a partnership agreement, cuts customer onboarding time “from 3 days to 3 minutes”, the… Continue Reading
Category Archives: News
Russian e-payment service Yandex.Checkout being renamed YooMoney for foreign markets
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russian online payment service Yandex.Checkout, which is owned by Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank, will rebrand itself as YooMoney for non-Russian markets. The rebranding will be completed by December 15, 2020, before which the payment company will use both names, Yandex.Checkout and YooMoney, the firm said in a statement. Sberbank became the sole… Continue Reading
Sberbank widens range of languages it uses to talk to foreign clients
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank, Russia’s largest lender, has enlarged the range of foreign languages it uses to communicate with non-Russian-speaking customers, adding Japanese, Chinese, Korean, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Finnish, Uzbek, and Tajik to English, which it has used before. Sberbank branches have presentations of key products and services such as cards, savings accounts, internet… Continue Reading
Minority owners to reject Kaz Minerals buyout price offer from Nova
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow-based investment adviser CFC Management has confirmed that its clients who together own a stake of about 3.6 per cent in copper producer Kaz Minerals intend to vote against the acquisition price offered for the London-listed copper miner by investment consortium Nova Resources. In following CFC advice, the owners of the 3.6… Continue Reading
Dubai-listed $600m Islamic bond issue oversubscribed 3 times over – ICD
By Andrei Skvarsky. A $600m issue of sukuk, or Islamic bonds, listed by Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), on Nasdaq Dubai on October 15 has been oversubscribed about three times over, ICD said. The capital to be raised by the five-year Sharia-compliant securities would be used to support private sector… Continue Reading
London financial broker Infinox expanding further into Africa
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based online financial broker Infinox Capital is expanding its business into Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Tanzania and Ghana after a recent launch in Nigeria and plans to set up a continental hub in South Africa in the coming months. Young people make up a large proportion of Africa’s population and have increasing access… Continue Reading
ENLARGED: Debex launches debut online delinquent debt auction in Spain
By Andrei Skvarsky. Debex, an international company running online auctions for delinquent debts, has launched trading in Spain with the debt portfolio of Spanish microlender Prestamer being its first sale. Debex credits its trading with quickness, efficiency and convenience for clients. A buyer can get acquainted with a debt portfolio before it is put on… Continue Reading
Sberbank to be sole owner of Russia’s Cetelem Bank via deal with BNP Paribas
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank is going to become the sole owner of Russia’s Cetelem Bank, the country’s number one car loan provider, by enlarging its capital in the firm to 100 per cent under an agreement with BNP Paribas that awaits regulatory approval in Russia and France. Under the terms of the… Continue Reading
Venio says its micro-loan app now usable throughout Philippines
By Andrei Skvarsky. A smartphone app for micro-borrowing developed by New York-headquartered company Venio primarily for unbanked individuals is now usable throughout the Philippines after an initial roll-out in its metropolitan areas in July. The app provides access to loans starting from $1, Venio, which is a global financial technology company, said in a statement.… Continue Reading
Sberbank renames itself Sber, changes logo, says it is ‘universe of services’
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank has changed its name to Sber and has had its logo redesigned. Sberbank is more than a bank these days but is a “universe of services for the individual and for business”, the lender said in a statement in explaining the rebranding, which was announced during a large-scale… Continue Reading
Sberbank, UAE’s Mubadala clinch cooperation deal
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank and Abu Dhabi state investment fund Mubadala have signed an agreement to collaborate in multiple fields, including investment, Islamic finance, venture capital and risk hedging. Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, natural science, telemedicine and education are among areas where the Russian bank and United Arab Emirates company are going to join… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: Sova Capital offers trading in Saudi forwards
Sova Capital, a London-headquartered emerging markets brokerage, has announced it is now offering trading in forward contracts linked to equities listed on the Tadawul, Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange. Sova already conducts global trading in securities from Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Central and Eastern Europe, Turkey and other emerging markets on behalf of institutional clients.… Continue Reading
Sberbank setting up Mideast subsidiary
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank is planning an addition to its global network by establishing an investment subsidiary for the Middle East, to practise both conventional and Islamic investment banking, and expects to open it by the end of 2020. Regulators in Russia and the United Arab Emirates have given the go-ahead to… Continue Reading
Sberbank to invest nearly $27m in Fort Ross Ventures’ new fund
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank, Russia’s biggest lender, has pledged to invest nearly $27m in a fund that venture capital firm Fort Ross Ventures is going to launch to provide early stage financing for up to 200 startups in Russia and other ex-Soviet countries. Fort Ross Seed Fund, to have a maximum capital of 8bn roubles… Continue Reading
Emirates NBD, FAB, bulge brackets among arrangers of $2bn loan for Egypt
By Andrei Skvarsky. Investors have pledged $2bn for Egypt in a planned loan arranged by a syndicate of nearly 20 banks that was led by Emirates NBD and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) and included global bulge brackets. The consortium, most of whose members were Gulf-based banks, included Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking… Continue Reading
Sberbank to set up company to develop driverless cars
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank, Russia’s biggest lender, is planning to convert one of its divisions into a subsidiary with the name Sber Automotive Technologies (SberAutoTech) to develop self-driving cars and digital automotive services. SberAutoTech’s first few driverless vehicles are planned to roll off the production line late in 2020 or early in 2021, Sberbank said… Continue Reading
U.S.-based fintech Venio launches developing world-focused smartphone app to make nano loans
By Andrei Skvarsky. New York-based financial technology company Venio has developed a smartphone app for making nano loans, primarily for people in developing countries who do not use banks, and has launched the device in the Philippines. The app is expected to promote financial inclusion by giving unbanked people access to financial services that are… Continue Reading
Unicorn PE firm to find strategic investor for Russian drug company
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow-based private equity firm Unicorn has announced it has been hired by a Russian pharmaceutical company to find a strategic investor for it. Unicorn’s client in the project is Mosfarm, a company headquartered in the Moscow region and one of Russia’s largest manufacturers of infusion solutions. Unicorn, whose business is focused on Russian… Continue Reading
Moorgate Capital acts as exclusive financial adviser in UK firm’s buyout of food wholesaler
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based Moorgate Capital has acted as the exclusive financial adviser to British firm Lioncroft Holdings in acquiring 200m-euro ($225m) food and beverage wholesaler Lioncroft Wholesale (trading as East End Wholesale Stores) in a deal completed on June 30. Lioncroft Holdings bought Lioncroft Wholesale from East End Foods, one of Britain’s largest Asian spice,… Continue Reading
Unicorn private equity firm chosen as strategy adviser by major Russian poultry producer
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russian private equity firm Unicorn has announced it has been chosen by Prioskolie, one of Russia’s largest poultry meat producers, as its exclusive adviser on strategy, the attraction of investments and business expansion. Prioskolie, which has its headquarters, production facilities and sales services in the southern Russian region of Belgorod, made a… Continue Reading
African Development Bank debars two Chinese firms for alleged fraud
By Andrei Skvarsky. The African Development Bank (AfDB) has temporarily closed any projects funded by it to China-based electrical equipment manufacturer Sieyuan Electric and one of its subsidiaries, accusing the two companies of fraud in seeking a contract in Rwanda. Sieyuan presented false credentials in tendering for a contract under an AfDB-financed electricity access project… Continue Reading
African Development Bank debars power plant developer BWSC over alleged scam
By Andrei Skvarsky. The African Development Bank (AfDB) has temporarily barred Danish power plant developer Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC) from all its projects after accusing it of a fraudulent attempt to win a contract in Mauritius. The AfDB said in a statement there was evidence that BWSC had bribed Mauritian officials to obtain… Continue Reading
Islamic Development Bank pledges $100m in aid to Yemen
By Andrei Skvarsky. The Islamic Development Bank Group (IDB) has pledged $100m as part of a global relief effort for Yemen to help it deal with a crisis caused by a five-year civil war and thwart the spread of Covid-19, which spells disaster for a country where half the population has no access to clean… Continue Reading
Islamic financial body ITFC tries to help Senegal ride out Covid crisis
By Andrei Skvarsky. The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) has provided a murabaha (Sharia-compliant) loan of 8m euros ($9m) to the Islamic Bank of Senegal to support operations within the African country’s private sector, traumatised by the Covid-19 pandemic. The money is planned to advance trade between Senegal, which is a predominantly Muslim country,… Continue Reading
African capital markets make poor showing, and not only due to Covid – study
By Andrei Skvarsky. According to a study by economists and financial experts, African equity capital markets have generally seen a serious activity decline over the past three years because of debts built up by key African economies and slow growth shown by them. Last year African capital markets showed some of their meagrest total annual… Continue Reading
Law firm Centurion launches service to help investors navigate in post-Covid Africa
By Andrei Skvarsky. Pan-African law and advisory conglomerate Centurion said it has launched a full-suite tax and investment advisory service to help investors find their way around Africa’s private sector during its recovery from woes inflicted on it by Covid-19. The service, to be managed by the Johannesburg-headquartered firm’s Centurion Plus unit, will enable businesses… Continue Reading
African Development Bank lending to Kenya, Mauritius to deal with Covid-19 havoc
By Andrei Skvarsky. The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved loans for the governments of Kenya and Mauritius, with each country to receive 188m euros ($205m), to combat Covid-19 and mitigate the economic and social impacts of the pandemic. The loan for Kenya, approved by the AfDB’s board of directors on May 22, is, among… Continue Reading
Permira Debt Managers prices new CLO at $225.5m
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based debt investors Permira Debt Managers (PDM) has set the price for the Providus IV collateralised loan obligation, the fourth CLO in its Providus series, at 207.6m euros ($225.5m). Just as the previous Providus CLOs, Providus IV has environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards among its eligibility criteria, which puts restrictions on… Continue Reading
Covid-19 rules send Emirates NBD’s online corporate banking onboarding sharply upwards
By Andrei Skvarsky. Emirates NBD, Dubai’s biggest lender, has said its corporate banking division has recorded a month-on-month increase of 60 per cent in digital onboarding as businesses have been responding to lockdowns imposed in the United Arab Emirates in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic. The division today processes 96 per cent of its payment volumes… Continue Reading