High-risk sovereign rides trend improvement on the back of stabilizing political and security situation, boosting economic prospects.

Euromoney’s recent coverage of trends in the region, including an exclusive interview with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the finance minister of Nigeria, the rise of agribusinesses - Africa’s new consumer boom – and an in-depth study into second-tier sovereign wealth funds in the Gulf. We also explore Saudi banking, the rise of bank M&A and transaction banking in the Gulf and interview Riad Salamé, the longstanding governor of Banque du Liban, the Lebanese monetary authority.

The Federal Reserve’s surprise decision not to taper its asset purchases has boosted EM currencies, but the knock to the central bank’s credibility might imply that a more violent market reaction has been stored up for the eventual normalization of US monetary policy.

Amid all the debate on regulation, innovation, partnerships and big data at the Sibos conference this week, transaction services bankers are also engaging in something their investment banking colleagues once monopolized – optimism.

In an exclusive interview, Riad Salamé, the longstanding governor of Banque du Liban, discusses Lebanon’s perpetual political and economic challenges, the resilience of its banks and the prospects for needed structural reform. He even ponders what he would do if he were president for a day.

A buoyant local economy means Saudi banks are riding high, but they remain over-exposed to their domestic market.

When did Burgan Bank decide to launch its international expansion strategy and why?

Beyond the shadowy world of the big-four Gulf sovereign wealth funds, which can be opaque, seemingly inactive or conservative, a second tier of sometimes equally elusive SWF-style entities has sprung up.

Bank M&A in the Middle East has accelerated over the past year. Although regional events and global markets are already throwing up tests, the motivation for deals is still stronger than ever.

From informal retailers to supermarket chains, Africa’s baby boomers are fuelling a consumer boom that is spilling over to agribusiness.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is convinced she can diversify the economy. But fears are growing that the end of the commodities super-cycle will imperil the growth model.

African Bank seeks rights issue; Impairments at record high

Frontier markets may not lend themselves to an easy acronym. But they deserve plenty of attention from the world’s emerging market investors.

Local lenders burgeoning; regulators accommodative.

Euromoney speaks to providers and users of transaction banking in the Gulf region about the market’s growing importance and the localization of expertise.

Kenya’s risks have eased since Q2 in response to the calm electoral process in March. However, the rise in Kenya’s ECR score cannot hide the fact the sovereign and its fellow emerging SSA issuers are considered to have high-risk profiles, according to ECR experts – a discrepancy that could soon be factored into the region’s borrowing costs.

Euromoney is the leading source for information about sovereign wealth funds. In April 2006 we were the first magazine to gain access to ADIA, and the facts and figures revealed in that story are used by many other information providers to this day.

It has been a horrible few months for emerging market (EM) currencies, with foreign exchange investors looking to exit a broad range of exposures from Brazil to Indonesia. However, a closer examination of the EM landscape reveals that among the detritus are currencies that look set to outperform.

Financial players fear Lamido Sanusi’s successor – likely to emerge from the banking industry – will lack his clout and appetite for reforms.

Some banks could be set to form global alliances, in the same way global airlines have split into oneworld and Star Alliance factions, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Paul Taylor. He suggests the next stage of global financial development could be called ‘Correspondent Banking 2.0’.

Rising US treasury yields could create a vicious spiral for emerging market FX as central banks deplete their reserves to defend their currencies.

Botswana has emerged as Africa’s safest economy as a result of South Africa’s deteriorating economic fundamentals and rising political risk, according to the latest results of Euromoney’s Country Risk survey.

The prospect of a great rotation from bonds into equities promises a regime shift in the FX market that throws up opportunities for currency investors.

Growing public debt and a low reserves buffer leave the sovereign exposed, according to the latest results of Euromoney’s Country Risk survey.

Financial crime, cyber security, implementation of new regulation, and innovation will all feature on the agenda of the 35th annual Sibos event between September 16 and 19.

EM FX reserves have grown to record levels in recent years, but a reversal of the accumulation trend threatens to further exacerbate weakness in local currencies that has been seen during the past few months.

Amid unabated political change, Middle East investment bankers are seeing a gradual return of deal flow after years of scarcity. Euromoney asks them where and why that might be happening, and how far it can go.

Gulf states plug national reserves; stock market remains in limbo.

Federal Republic prices $1 billion bond; Ghana returns; banks working on Kenya debut

US bank is showing signs of real momentum; Astute hires and capital strength key to growth