Ghana: Opportunities and Challenges

Ghana is considered to be one of the leading countries in Africa, even though it is small both in terms of area and a population of approximately 31 million. Located in the Gulf of Guinea, West Africa, Ghana was the first country in sub-Saharan Africa where Europeans arrived to trade – first in gold, and […]
Guinea: A huge wealth of untapped resources!

Guinea Conakry is a West African country known for its rich mineral resources, including bauxite, iron ore, and large deposits of gold, uranium, and diamonds. The country has a population of about 13 million people, its capital city is Conakry, and it is bordered by Senegal, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, and Mali. […]
Light at the end of the Covid tunnel for African Foreign Direct Investment

EYโs Africa Attractiveness Report predicts a return to the growth trajectory of foreign direct investment (FDI) to the continent. While Africa’s FDI fell sharply by 50% in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making it the hardest-hit region globally, the core factors behind its investment appeal remain intact. This is the overarching view of EYโs […]
A new horizon for debtors and credit providers in Lesotho

Article by: Pamela Bubb, Partner and Head of the Commercial Practice, and Brendan Miller, consultant, Webber Newdigate. According to the Central Bank of Lesothoโs (the โCBLโ), list of licensed financial institutions for the 2nd quarter of 2021, there were roughly one hundred (100) financial institutions (commercial banks and micro-finance institutions) licensed to provide various credit […]
Mali: The Regional Stock Exchange: A financing opportunity for SMEs

Article by Dr. Boubou Keita of Satis Partners โ Mali Financing the growth of SMEs is a major concern for the economies of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU), dominated by these actors who are at the origin of the creation of many jobs. Financing difficulties in general and the cost of bank […]
Opportunities for private equity in business rescue
By Elliott Wood and Bafana Ntuli of Werksmans Attorneys On 23 February 2021, the first ever virtual Ansarada DealMakers Annual Awards was broadcast, and two transactions in which Werksmans Inc. (โWerksmansโ) advised on were announced as winners, one in the private equity category and the other in the business rescue category. The winner of the […]
The New Law on Credit Institutions and Financial Companies
Article by Cรฉlia Francisco of CGA Associados The new law on credit institutions and financial companies was published on 31 December 2020, and the law enters into force 90 (ninety) days after its publication, on 31 March 2021. We highlight the following aspects in relation to the new law: The licensing of credit institutions and […]
Crypto assets โ a new financial product?
Written by Natalie Scott and Kyra South of Werksmans Attorneys On 20 November 2020, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (โFSCAโ) published a draft Declaration (โDraft Declarationโ) and a statement in support thereof which sets out its proposal to bring crypto assets within the ambit of the definition of โfinancial productโ in Section 1 of the Financial Advisory and […]
Ugandan member secures first money remittance license in Africa
Katende, Ssempebwa & Co Advocates [โKATSโ] has successfully advised BT Payment Services, a Fintech- digital- money remittance services provider on the licensing of its operations in Uganda by the Bank of Uganda. BT Payments Services Limited, a Ugandan financial technology company with roots in Kenya provides a secure web-based money remittance option that allows the […]
Guinea emerging from the shadows
Recent reports from three respected international organisations sketch a relatively upbeat picture of economic prospects in the west African state of Guinea. This might be surprising to an uninformed outsider as Guinea has been a notorious case-study in governance and economic failure for more than half a century. The country โ sometimes known as Guinea-Conakry […]