Foreign exchange market

The euro rose timidly against the dollar on Friday in a calm market. The European currency is benefiting from a renewed risk appetite in the markets as the information on the level of dangerousness of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 is reassuring. The pound sterling, also stimulated by the recent appetite for risk but also by the trajectory of the Bank of England (BoE), which raised its key rate by 0.1 point to 0.25% last week, limited its gains against the euro and the dollar. The Turkish Lira recedes around -5% against the main world currencies.

Cryptocurrencies

The cryptocurrency leader has recovered while remaining around the $50,000 mark. On the Bitstamp exchange, bitcoin was trading at around $49,000 around noon on Wednesday. The market capitalization of Ether, the second largest cryptocurrency, was up just 4% over the week.

Stock markets

The celebrations of this 25th anniversary of the Regional Stock Exchange (Brvm) and the Central Depository / Settlement Bank (Dc / Br), on December 18, 2021 in Cotonou were marked by two highlights, a scientific day and an evening of gala. The scientific day held on Saturday morning was an opportunity for discussion around two panels. The presidential panel on the theme: “The challenges of financing African economies. moderated by Abdoulaye Bio-Tchane, Minister of State, in charge of Development and Coordination of Government Action of Benin in his capacity as representative of the President of the Republic of Benin and the panel "Assessment of the evolution of the UEMOA's regional financial institution and expectations for better long-term financing of the economies of the Union" moderated by Paul Koffi Koffi, Commissioner in charge of the Department of Enterprise Development, Mines, Energy and Digital Economy of the WAEMU Commission; Serge Ekué, Chairman of Boad; Badanam Patoki, Chairman of Crepmf and Parfait Kouassi, Chairman of the Boards of Directors of Brvm and DC/Br.

With the exception of the stock market capitalization of the bond market, the beginning of the week was marked by the rise of the key indicators of the Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM). But the situation turned red at the end of the week. The trading session of the Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM) reveals a downward trend in the market capitalization of the bond market and that of shares. The BRVM 10 index fell by 0.30% to 149.550 points against 150.0 points the day before. For its part, the BRVM Composite index fell by 0.01% to 198.39 points against 198.40 points previously. The total value of transactions fell to 3.210 billion FCFA against 6.793 billion FCFA the day before.

Raw materials

The price of a barrel of Brent was down slightly on Friday, suffering profit taking after three consecutive sessions of increases, while the WTI market was closed on Christmas Eve. Investors are also starting to look towards the next summit of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their allies via the OPEC+ agreement, which will be held on January 4. The very volatile price of European gas continued to fall from its historic peak hit on Tuesday, at 187.785 euros per megawatt hour (MWh). The reference market, the Dutch TTF (Title Transfer Facility), dropped around 10:45 GMT by 17.44% to 109.45 euros.

During the “Cocoa of Excellence 2021” competition in Rome (Italy), three varieties of cocoa +Made in Togo+ were awarded. These three varieties won two gold medals and one bronze, thanks to the Coordinating Committee for the Coffee and Cocoa Sectors (CCFCC), which took part in this competition.

The regional direction of coffee - cocoa of the indenié - Djuablin and Gontougo intends to secure the sector. These include, among other things, the implementation of measures concerning classified forests, the non-use of children in cocoa coffee fields, the census of all producers for their traceability, the distribution of improved coffee seeds and cocoa.

The fifteen-member National Banking Pool, with Ecobank as leader, renews its commitment to support the cotton sector, one of the main drivers of the national economy. The pool signed a financing agreement for the 2021-2022 cotton campaign, up to 70 billion CFA francs. By initialling the documents, the members agree to make available to SOFITEX, within the framework of the 2021-2022 cotton campaign, a financial windfall in the amount of 70 billion CFA francs.

Companies

The Bolloré group has signed an exclusive agreement with MSC for the sale of its port concessions and its forwarding activity in Africa. The negotiations relate to an enterprise value of 5.7 billion euros. The group has granted exclusivity to MSC until March 31, 2022 with a view to a possible promise to purchase.

The Guinean Post and its strategic partners organized last Friday, a Gala Dinner for the launch of the platforms of digital products and services. These are: Poste Cash; Digital Banking which intervene in the Rapid Transfer, Micro/Nano credit, Direct Debit of Salary, VISA Card, Insurance, Savings Plan, Payment Voucher.

The Kouroussa Gold Mining Company and the managers of the Coris Bank International Group, through their subsidiary Coris Bank International Guinea, have signed a financing agreement. Worth 100 million dollars, this financial package aims to boost the Guinean mining industry.

MTN Nigeria announces the launch of RCS Business Messaging Services. The RBM solution uses the rich and interactive features of Rich Communication Services (RCS) to enable branded enterprise messaging. RCS messages are transmitted securely to native messaging apps such as Google Messages and Samsung Messages on Android phones. Available on 3G and 4G networks, RCS is the default messaging standard for 5G networks.

Banks and Insurance

The World Bank is providing financial support to the Electricity Network Interconnection Project (RIS/RIN) in Cameroon and between Cameroon and Chad (PIRECT). The project also benefits from the support of other development partners such as the African Development Bank (AfDB), which a few months ago released 148 billion FCFA, or 255 million dollars for its implementation. True to its mission, which is to finance projects and programs likely to stimulate the economic growth of countries, the Bank's International Development Association (IDA) also approved a financial envelope of 100 million dollars, or 57.9 billion CFA francs. This funding aims to strengthen the empowerment of women, access to electricity and budget management.

At its 343rd meeting held on December 18, 2021 in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), the Board of Directors of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) approved nearly $1.6 billion in financing for 24 new development projects. development. The new financing targets 19 IDB member countries in Africa, Asia and Europe. Approved projects cover a wide range of development sectors, including road construction and high-speed transport; clean and renewable energy; poultry, fishing, irrigation and agriculture; feeding children; university and technical education, as well as vocational training.

Following its last Board of Directors, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has made commitments in several areas. First, the modernization of the financial market operations of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) with the announcement of funding of $400,000, or 232.2 million CFA francs to digitize public calls for saving. It approved a loan of €117.62 million for the implementation of phase I of the Program to open up agricultural and mining areas (PDZAM-1) in the north of the country. The project will benefit the following regions and departments: Thiès, Tambacounda, Saint-Louis, Louga and Matam as well as Tivaouane, Dagana, Bakel, Kébémer, Kanel.

On the same occasion, Smart Africa Alliance benefited from one billion CFA francs to assess policy gaps in the digital trade and e-commerce ecosystems in the countries concerned. The project will study the political environment in 10 countries including Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Ghana, Liberia, Uganda, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, Republic of Congo, São Tomé and Príncipe and Democratic Republic of Congo.

The AfDB Group's Board of Directors also approved a joint investment of €10.5 million in a technology start-up fund to boost innovation in sub-Saharan Africa. It also approved a grant of US$420,000 for Niger. The grant from the Capital Markets Development Trust Fund (CMDTF), a multi-donor fund administered by the AfDB, is intended for the Caisse des dépôts et consignations du Niger, which will use them to develop a strategy for mobilizing institutional savings and mortgage refinancing of social housing.

The merit of UBA Burkina has just been recognized by Global Technology Partners (GTP). Three trophies to salute the efforts and vision of two people and a banking institution that have enabled great innovation in the banking sector in Africa. These trophies are a mark of recognition from GTP to these people for having promoted the creation and circulation of the VISA prepaid card in Africa.

The Banque de France has announced that it has "successfully" concluded its nine experiments relating to a central bank digital currency (MNBC) in the context of interbank exchanges. A second part will begin to test cross-border operations. The Banque de France will however continue its tests with a “second component (…) mainly centered on cross-border operations”.

The BGFIBank Group is committed to helping the Financière africaine de micro-projets (Finam) to become the “African reference”. Thus, the two structures formalized their partnership on December 18 in Libreville. This partnership results in the sub-region's banking group taking a stake in the capital of the country's first 2 ^nd category microfinance institution, to help it become the African reference in its sector of activity.

Financial crimes

In 2021 in Gabon, 441 billion CFA francs were transferred to tax havens according to the African economic information agency Ecofin in its ''Infographic on profits illegitimately transferred out of Africa by companies (2021) in millions of dollars''.

Br de Kaolack has registered a series of complaints for a fraud case via Orange Money and Wave. Following intense investigations, Major Nunez's men managed to locate one of them at a village in Kahone. Without delay, the gendarmes carried out a muscular raid there before neutralizing the leader of the Nazirou Bèye gang and his lieutenants ML Diop, K. Bèye, AF Diop, D. Thiam and S. Thiam. All six barons were taken to the brigade for investigation.

The Director of Computing and Technological Traces (DITT) at the Ministry of Interior and Security, Colonel Moussa Guelpetchin Ouattara revealed that the platform for the fight against cybercrime (PLCC) handles an average of 4,500 to 5,000 complaints. in 2021 compared to 150 in 2011. Similarly, the PLCC organizes meetings with civil society, in particular with community and religious leaders.

After the financial scandals of Lonase and the Post Office, another strikes public finances. Indeed, two agents of the public treasury are arrested because accused of embezzlement of nearly 5 billion FCFA, reports the daily Liberation. They would have illicitly procured these funds from the coffers of this institute.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced in a statement that NatWest "pleaded guilty today to various fraud schemes in the U.S. Treasury securities and futures markets." She will have to pay 35 million dollars, a week after being very heavily sanctioned for money laundering in Great Britain.

After La Poste, a serious scandal was reported to Crédit Mutuel du Sénégal (CMS). The workers of Crédit Mutuel du Sénégal have become angry and are demanding the departure of their managing director whom they accuse of bad management. Cheikh Ndior, in charge of claims, indicated that after several denunciations, the Director General was singled out by a report from the banking commission. A general strike is announced by the workers of the CMS with as a first measure the closure of all the funds of the mutual credit network of Senegal by December 30, if the situation does not change.

The General Prosecutor's Office at the Court of Cassation arrested Saturday, December 18 in Kinshasa, the former governor of Kongo-central, Atou Matubuana. According to judicial sources, he is currently in the Gombe dungeon. The last judicial decision of the Council of State had rehabilitated the former governor in his functions. But he never resumed said functions, coming up against the refusal of execution of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior.

After being removed from the gray list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) on October 21, Mauritius is preparing to leave the blacklist of the European Union. This should take place by early February 2022. Mahen Seeruttun, Minister of Financial Services explains that the new European Union blacklist (without Mauritius) has been amended by the European Commission and will however have to be adopted by the Council and the European Parliament within one month.

Several accounts with 300 to 9,000 euros have been closed by N26, the German online neobank. According to N26, these accounts were closed because "they did not comply with banking regulations".

The Public Ministry of the Confederation in Kuwait suspects the Pictet & Cie bank of aggravated money laundering. The information relayed by the Gotham City site specifies that the bank did not take the reasonable and necessary measures to prevent acts of money laundering in a case of embezzlement in Kuwait, between 2003 and 2012.

Governance

The U.S. government, through its independent foreign aid agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), decided to sanction Benin because of "the general decline over several years of Benin's commitment to the MCC Eligibility Criteria, and Principles of Democratic Governance”. The news was made public on Wednesday, December 15, via a press release.

Regional growth

In Niamey, capital of Niger, the Federation of Professional Associations of Banks and Financial Institutions (FAPBEF) of Uemoa countries, organized a discussion forum on access to financing for SMEs/SMIs in the sub-region. The participants analyzed with objectivity and a sense of patriotism the difficulties faced by SMEs/SMIs in Uemoa in terms of financing.