The Middle East’s financial centres are keen to collaborate on fintech, in an effort to catch up with US, UK and Asian markets. But with rich pickings on offer, there is also stiff competition to establish fintech dominance.

South Africa’s reputation for insalubrious dealings under Zuma makes it fertile ground for maverick short-sellers.

Blue finance is set to take off this year, buoyed by growing appetite for investments in sustainable fisheries, conservation and alternative plastics. It’s further evidence of the influence of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

A former social worker from middle England has suddenly become the biggest influencer in South Africa’s stock market. He called Steinhoff’s collapse correctly. In making banking sector star performer Capitec his next target, has Viceroy Research’s Fraser Perring got it right again? Or, as the bank’s leadership insist, is he a one-hit wonder?

Some of Africa’s largest banks, as well as its budding fintech firms, are building up their remittance offerings. It is an area largely deserted by global banks wary of regulatory risk, but one that is crucial to the region’s economic future.

The pace of change at Imperial FX during the past 10 months highlights the scale of the task of transitioning from high-street remittance to an online platform.

In the most difficult circumstances, QNB's international strategy has paid dividends

FAB can become more than the sum of its parts, but there's a lot of work to do

Financial providers are pushing to identify new higher-margin services, while remaining relevant to corporate partners and boosting profitability in a disruptive digital age. Meanwhile, across the Middle East economies, governments want to diversify away from oil and gas, creating opportunities for multinationals, regional banks and export credit agencies.

The former head of Saudi Arabia’s CMA was a far-sighted internationalist whose commitment to transparency, technocratic leadership, governance, empowerment of women and young people foreshadowed the far-reaching reforms now energising the country.

Arnold Ekpe, a mainstay of African banking for the past three decades, has been appointed chair of financial inclusion firm Microcred’s supervisory board.

An investment company linked to one of Iran’s largest investment banks failed to publicly disclose its focus on Iran when it listed on NEX Exchange, though it always intended to invest primarily in that country.

Euromoney's recent coverage of macroeconomic, FX, fixed income and equity market trends in Brazil, Russia, India and China.

As Xi Jinping heralded the dawn of a new era of Chinese politics and power at the Communist party congress in Beijing in October, a forgotten but important anniversary was about to be passed.

In the 10 years since ICBC’s $5.5 billion acquisition of a 20% stake in South Africa’s Standard Bank Group, there has still been no bigger single China-Africa investment. Looking back now, the deal was remarkable for the speed and relative ease with which it came together. But has it worked?

Central bank governor Patrick Njoroge talks to Euromoney about the challenges of a turbulent year in Kenya and about his strategy to tackle them.

Arunma Oteh has helped develop new financial tools to address the world’s most pressing issues – in an exclusive interview, she talks about the difference the capital markets can make and her previous career fighting corruption in Nigeria.

On the cover | Editor's letter | Also in this issue

It is almost 50 years since Euromoney was born with the wholesale international capital markets, to chronicle their evolution and that of the institutions that serve them. Today, the growth of banking and finance is now arguably at its most exciting, most important – and least exposed – in Africa.

State Bank of Mauritius aims to start a pan-African bank from scratch, as its home country turns its economy towards the continent. Little has been achieved to date, but SBM’s chairman is focused and confident.

It’s goodbye cash, hello mobile wallets and digital payments, as Egypt uses financial technology to streamline payroll, keep money in the financial system and improve tax collection.

In a sweeping interview with Euromoney Africa, Ecobank’s CEO makes the case for pan-African banking and says technological innovation will finally make that business model thrive.

As Denny Kalyalya’s first term as Zambia’s central bank governor draws to a close, he reflects on the need for IMF support, the currency and debt crisis that engulfed the country two years ago and his efforts to deliver a recovery for the long term.

Following Mozambique's default, is it time to reassess which other African Eurobond issuers might follow suit – and what options are open to issuers – given deteriorating finances and rising global interest rates?

Rwanda is one of the most competitive economies in Africa, thanks to reforms and an open-door approach to foreign investment. Its banking landscape has been transformed and bankers are keen to turn Kigali into a financial centre serving the region, though they admit it has a long way to go.

After a characteristically bold attempt last year to acquire Barclays Africa, a firm which he was instrumental in developing, Bob Diamond is even more determined to build his own pan-African bank at Atlas Mara. The London-listed African banking platform he co-founded four years ago has had its setbacks, but thanks to new funding and a bigger stake in its flagship Nigerian investment, another former Barclays asset, Diamond sees plenty of opportunities ahead.

Barclays’ exit from the continent shows how banks based in developed countries are either unable or unwilling to support growth in emerging markets. But for institutions with a focus on Africa, the departure of such international rivals makes banking in the region look even more attractive.

Barclays’ ownership has hobbled some of its biggest businesses in Africa. Now Maria Ramos, chief executive of the Johannesburg-listed successor company that makes up the bulk of Barclays Africa, tells Euromoney Africa about the challenges she faces in extricating Absa and the rest of the network from the London-based group.

Currency devaluations and swings in commodity prices have taken their toll on many a private equity investment in Africa in recent years, particularly for those who invested at the height of the Africa bull market between 2005 and 2013. These days, sponsors are picking their targets carefully, with a focus on domestic consumers and non-commodity exporters.

African economists and bankers expect more advantageous trade terms, possibly with both the UK and the European Union, after last year’s shock decision to leave.