Blockchain, cybersecurity, the role of artificial intelligence in financial inclusion, support for African agriculture by banks, fintechs and insurtechs, and coronavirus-caused problems are among subjects to be raised during the Africa Bank 4.0 Summit, a virtual conference on August 26-27. The forum, organised by event company BII World, will take place from 1:30pm to 5:30pm… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Reuters Events webinar to address changes in agricultural commodity trade
Reuters Events are hosting a webinar on July 29 on the present and future of agricultural commodity trade. The webinar, “How Is Agricultural Commodity Trade Transforming?”, starts at 1pm BST (1200 GMT or 8am EST). You may sign up here to tune in live or get recordings. By registering you gain free access to the… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Reuters Events to host online ESG investment forums for NorthAm, Europe
Reuters Events is going to host two free virtual conferences this autumn on investment based on environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria – the ESG Investment North America Virtual Summit on October 13-14 and the ESG Investment Europe Virtual Summit on November 2-3. You may register for free for the North America conference here and… 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
BCS GM hires oil and gas analyst Ronald Smith from Citi
By Andrei Skvarsky. BCS Global Markets (BCS GM), the investment banking arm of Russia’s BCS Financial Group, has hired Ronald Smith from Citibank as senior oil and gas analyst. Smith will be based in Moscow, BCS GM said in a statement. He will report to the investment bank’s head of research, Kirill Chuyko. At Citibank,… Continue Reading
EVENTS: marcus evans moves Elite Summit private wealth management forum to Nov 23-25
Event organisation company marcus evans has rescheduled the Elite Summit, a European private wealth management conference initially planned for June, to November 23-25. The choice of location remains unchanged at Montreux, Switzerland. The planned forum, an invitation-only event that aims to bring together private wealth managers with solution providers, will focus on points such as… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: BCS Global Markets banker: retail investment likely to boost Russia’s stock market
A senior figure at investment bank BCS Global Markets argues that Russian retail investment is likely to produce an upsurge in Russia’s stock market because of the total volume of retail deposits in Russian banks, recent interest rate cuts, low taxation, and competent advice from banks and companies. Russia’s stock market is already experiencing an… 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
EVENTS: ESG standards the theme of Reuters Events webinar on July 9
Standardisation is a key aspect of investing based on environmental, governance and social (ESG) principles, and is the theme of a planned free Reuters Events webinar on July 9. The one-hour interactive webinar, “ESG Standards: the best path forward”, starts at 9:30 EST/14:30 BST/13:30 GMT. You can register here. The four experts the event will… 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
Banker explains Lombard Odier’s resilience vs Covid-caused meltdowns
By Andrei Skvarsky. Swiss private banking group Lombard Odier has mainly owed its ability to stay afloat amid market meltdowns caused by the Covid-19 pandemic to not being listed on any stock exchange, to the focused nature of its business and to its level of capitalisation, according to one of its senior managers. Independence –… Continue Reading
RenCap expects less dramatic Russian GDP decrease than generally foreseen
By Andrei Skvarsky. Investment bank Renaissance Capital has reaffirmed its forecast that Russia’s gross domestic product for 2020 will be 2.5 per cent down on 2019, which defies the consensus forecast of a decrease of more than 4 per cent. In reiterating RenCap’s prediction, senior economist Sofya Donets made the reservation that the overall situation… Continue Reading
Energy transition means vast markets, ‘stellar’ opportunities – senior figure at Reuters Events
Energy transition, the replacement of fossil fuels by environmentally friendly renewable energy, is creating a vast global market with extensive opportunities for investment, according to an article by Owen Rolt, head of energy transition at Reuters Events. The article, “Five Predictions as We Enter the Age of the Energy Transition”, precedes Reuters Events’ planned Energy… Continue Reading
EVENTS: marcus evans-organised Private Wealth Management APAC Summit rescheduled to Oct 19-21
Event organisation company marcus evans has rescheduled its 2020 Private Wealth Management Asia Pacific Summit to October 19-21. The invitation-only conference will take place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Issues to be raised include how to stay afloat amid the onsetting recession caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, how to maintain stable business amid geopolitical, social or… 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
EVENTS: Connected Claims Europe Virtual to bring together over 1,000 claims execs
More than 20 speakers will address an anticipated online audience of over 1,000 claims executives during Connected Claims Europe Virtual, a free online conference on August 18-19 organised by Insurance Nexus, a division of Reuters Events. Register for free. The conference will pay a lot of attention to the role of technology in the claims… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Digital lifelines to threatened private financial assets theme of Reuters Events webinar on June 24
Extended lockdowns have made private assets one of the most insecure areas of the financial world, and the use of digital technology in dealing with the problem is the theme of a free webinar on June 24 hosted by Reuters Events. The webinar, “The Digital Economy: The Future of Private Assets, Data & Pricing”, starts… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Mercuria CEO to speak on June 24 in first of Reuters Events’ webinars on commodity trading challenges
Marco Dunand, CEO of major global energy trader Mercuria Energy Group, will speak about unprecedented challenges facing commodity traders today in a webinar on June 24 to be hosted by Reuters Events. The “fireside chat” webinar, entitled “A View from the Top”, will be the first in a free webinar series on commodity trading to… Continue Reading
Standard Chartered appoints CFO for Africa and Mideast
Standard Chartered on June 8 announced the appointment of Subhradeep Mohanty, previously the bank’s chief financial officer (CFO) for India, as CFO for Africa and the Middle East (AME). Before joining Standard Chartered in 2014, Mohanty held Singapore- and Hong Kong-based CFO roles at J.P. Morgan, positions at American Express and a job at one… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Dozens to speak during Opal-hosted virtual Investment Trends Summit on June 16
Senior figures in about three dozen entities, mostly commercial companies such as advisories, asset managers and investment firms, will take the floor during the seven-hour virtual Investment Trends Summit on June 16 hosted by New York-based Opal Group. Speakers will examine the global macroeconomic and geopolitical situation, look into developments in equity and fixed income… Continue Reading
Russia’s Sberbank confirms Anna Loevskaya as head of Digital Corporate Bank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Anna Loevskaya has been confirmed as director of the Digital Corporate Bank division of Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank after being caretaker head of the unit since the end of 2019. Loevskaya replaces Yevgeny Kolbin, who was discharged as Digital Corporate Bank director late last year due to being appointed CEO of SberCloud,… Continue Reading
Drake Star Partners CEO to oversee company selection for investment portfolio of Da Vinci’s Emerging Technologies Fund III
Emerging markets fund manager Da Vinci Capital has hired Gregory Bedrosian, co-founder of four investment firms, to head the evaluation committee for companies being considered for inclusion in the portfolio of the firm’s Emerging Technologies Fund III. Da Vinci expects to launch the fund, a vehicle for investment in technology companies across Eurasia, late in 2020… 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
EVENTS: Webinar speakers to argue that flexibility key to avoiding IT-caused risks in insurance
Speakers at a planned webinar on June 3 to be hosted by the Insurtech Insights intelligence group and event organiser will argue that a flexible infrastructure can help avoid risks involved in the use of information technologies (ITs) in insurance. The free webinar, “De-Risking Digital Decisions”, is one in a weekly webinar series run by… Continue Reading
Sberbank hires Sofia Ivanova from Kalashnikov gunmaker as press service chief
Sberbank has hired Sofia Ivanova from Kalashnikov Group, maker of the famous assault rifle, as head of the largest Russian lender’s press service. Ivanova was head of marketing and public relations at Kalashnikov. During her three years’ work at the weapons firm, “the world-known and legendary product had its image changed radically” and a media… Continue Reading
EVENTS: Reuters Events-hosted webinar to discuss health-related aspects of investment
With the link between health and investment being unprecedentedly close because of Covid-19, a Reuters Events-hosted webinar on May 27 will focus on investment during the pandemic and on what post-Covid-19 recovery would look like for investors. The webinar, “Roundtable: An Investor’s Perspective on Global Health”, will take place at 16:00-17:00 GMT (15:00-16:00 BST or… Continue Reading