Africa: Finance and Banking

The Octopus card is a Hong Kong-developed contactless stored-value smart card. Initially introduced for public transport, it has since evolved into a prepaid payment tool across a range of everyday transactions.

In meeting its policy commitments and addressing the regulatory amendments required to implement the Payments Ecosystem Modernisation (PEM) Programme, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) published two draft documents for public comment.

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has published Conduct Standard 2 of 2025 (the 2025 Standard), setting out reformed conditions for pension fund benefit administrators under section 13B(1) of the Pension Funds Act, 1956.

The EU Listing Act package introduces sweeping reforms to prospectus requirements, market abuse regulations, and investment research frameworks, with a critical implementation deadline of June 2026. How will these changes affect disclosure obligations for ESG bonds, delayed disclosure regimes, and issuer-sponsored research? As Member States finalize transposition and Level 2 measures remain outstanding, market participants face both opportunities for reduced administrative burdens and challenges in navigati

South Africa's Market Practitioners Group has formally endorsed the development of Term ZARONIA, a forward-looking reference rate designed to replace JIBAR before its year-end 2026 discontinuation.

The European Central Bank has articulated a comprehensive vision for the EU's digital finance architecture, positioning deeper financial integration as essential for Europe's economic future. This analysis examines the ECB's technical stance on the Market Integration and Supervision Package, which proposes to transfer significant supervisory powers to ESMA while addressing persistent gaps in cross-border capital allocation.

Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission has introduced new capital adequacy rules for fund managers and private capital participants, establishing tiered minimum capital requirements based on assets under management. The guidelines clarify what constitutes qualifying capital, outline compliance pathways including cash injection and securities transfer, and set a June 2027 deadline for full implementation.

On 25th August 2011, the respondent, a legal practitioner, through his law firm of Abang Ogar & Co., entered into a Consultancy Service Agreement...

East Africa continues to solidify its position as one of the world’s most dynamic investment frontiers, driven by rising foreign capital inflows, strategic infrastructure development...

South Africa has received sovereign credit rating upgrades from both Fitch and S&P Global in 2025-2026, marking the country's first upgrades in nearly 21 years.

The age of automated decision-making ("ADM") has arrived in Nigeria. Banks and fintech platforms deploy credit-scoring models to determine lending outcomes, and public institutions increasingly rely on data-driven systems in the exercise of statutory functions.

The European Commission has adopted new rules standardizing the format and content of prospectuses under the EU's Prospectus Regulation, introducing significant changes for debt capital markets including enhanced ESG disclosure requirements and reduced financial statement obligations. These amendments form part of the broader Listing Act package aimed at making EU public capital markets more attractive while streamlining compliance processes for smaller companies seeking to list.