Expert market analysis: Liberty, Abil and the impact of Ebola in West Africa

A tumultuous week for South African business news is coming to a close. Looking at the biggest stories is Brigid Taylor, Director at Dreadnought Capital. She lends her expert insights to the situation around Abil’s share price plummet after a dismal earning’s announcement expecting  full year losses to total $600 million. The share price has … Read more

Abil to seek $800m cash call as CEO quits

By David Dolan and Tiisetso Motsoeneng JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – African Bank Investments warned on Wednesday it needed to raise around $800 million after it flagged a full-year loss and its chief executive quit, prompting a shareholder to liken the South African mass-market lender to a “bottomless pit”. The news wiped out more than half of … Read more

SA state pension fund: Abil “almost like a bottomless pit”

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South Africa’s state pension fund said on Wednesday that struggling African Bank Investments was “almost like a bottomless pit” after the unsecured lender warned of a $600 million full-year loss and said it would launch its second big capital raising in about a year. “We have really been spending a lot of money … Read more

Elias Masilela Head of South Africa’s influential $154 billion pension fund resigns

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – The chief executive of South Africa’s government pension fund has resigned, the fund said on Friday, after three years at the helm of the continent’s largest and most influential asset manager. Elias Masilela will formally resign on June 30, but will take his outstanding leave with immediate effect, the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) said in a statement. … Read more

Activists stepping up to defend Cape Times editor Alide Dasnois after her firing by new CEO Iqbal Surve’

Journalism is an interesting business. It is simultaneously a profit-making enterprise and a crucial support structure for democratic governance. Journalists seek to please audiences, but their salaries are paid by advertisers and they answer to owners who are sometimes subjects of the stories they write. All in all, it’s an awkward business, as the recent … Read more