Africa

The risk that huge amounts of oil and gas assets will be stranded by moves to tackle the climate emergency may be more pertinent for sovereign credit than for private sector corporate debt, according to new research.

Resolute Mining, the Australian gold miner, has raised A$196m (£103m) via a transcontinental capital increase to repay a bridge loan used to fund its acquisition of Toro Gold in August last year.

The World Bank made its first visit to the Rwandan franc market last week, place what Dealogic indicates is the first deal in the currency since 2015.

Prosus, the international internet business spun off by South Africa-headquartered Naspers in September, has released initial pricing guidance for a 10 year dollar benchmark at a level two analysts called attractive, given the company’s 31% stake in Chinese tech giant Tencent.

Angolan national oil company Sonangol will soon launch syndication for a loan that could be as large as $1bn, according to bankers, though most expect the African pipeline in the early year to remain muted.

Danakali, an Australian potash company, has raised a $200m credit facility from African lenders. Proceeds of the syndicated facility will go towards funding the planned Colluli potash project in Eritrea.

Multiplex cinema chain Cineworld is betting on rapid expansion as it pours more billions into another North American acquisition. Cineworld, which is among the most shorted companies in the UK, plans to acquire Canadian competitor Cineplex in a $2.1bn deal financed by debt. This plan comes nine months after it made a $3.6bn acquisition in the US.

Investec has entered the loan market for the third time this year, taking a $450m two year term loan from a range of international lenders.

Renaissance Capital has added to its Nigerian investment banking team. The Russian bank continues to expand its offering on the African continent.

European finance ministers are not keen on setting up a new development bank from scratch. They will instead start technical work on how to better streamline the operations outside the EU of the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Brait, the troubled South African investment company, managed to issue a £150m five year convertible bond on Wednesday, an essential piece of its restructuring plan, which includes a new strategy, a recapitalisation, including a rights issue, to repay debt and the sale of two UK assets.

International lenders and the Loan Market Association (LMA) are worried about emerging markets’ nonchalance towards the end of Libor in 2021. Fears are mounting that local lenders, in particular, those in Africa, will be “hit by a juggernaut” when the benchmark rate is discontinued, writes Mariam Meskin.