By Emma Rumney



JOHANNESBURG, Jan 7 (Reuters) &#8211; Russian bank VTB is suing a Mozambique state-owned company over $535 million it extended as part a series of loans now at the centre of a $2 billion debt scandal.



An online court filing dated Dec. 23 shows VTB has lodged a lawsuit in Britain&#8217;s High court against the Mozambique state and Mozambique Asset Management, which borrowed the money from VTB as part of a costly project that U.S. authorities say was an elaborate front for a bribery and kickback scheme.



VTB had been in talks with the southeast African country over restructuring the loan, which the deputy head of VTB Capital&#8217;s legal department said in October represented a &#8220;significant exposure&#8221; for the bank.



&#8220;An agreed restructuring remains our preferred outcome but after 3 years of discussions with no tangible progress VTB must now consider all options available to it for a resolution,&#8221; VTB said in an emailed statement.



Mozambique&#8217;s Attorney General&#8217;s Office said it was waiting for formal notification of the lawsuit.



The court filing said the case relates to &#8220;general commercial contracts and arrangements&#8221; but no further information was available, other than that VTB Capital, the investment banking arm of VTB, is being represented by law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.



The debt scandal has already sparked a series of court cases spanning London, New York and South Africa, ensnaring global investment bank Credit Suisse, three of its former bankers, Mozambique&#8217;s former finance minister and a past president&#8217;s son.



However this is the first time any of the cases have involved VTB, which is more than 60% owned by the state. It comes despite an increasingly close relationship between Russia and Mozambique, with President Filipe Nyusi visiting Russia twice last year and a series of agreements between Maputo and Moscow.



Credit Suisse and VTB provided or arranged a total of around $2 billion for the project, encompassing tuna fishing, maritime security and shipyard development. Hundreds of millions of dollars went missing, while the benefits never materialised.



Mozambique did not disclose some of the loans, which were guaranteed by the state. The International Monetary Fund and other donors cut off support when they came to light in 2016, triggering a currency collapse and sovereign debt default.



It remains on the hook for the money, the largest chunk of which now sits in a restructured eurobond. The country is trying to challenge the guarantee related to a $622 million loan from Credit Suisse, also in a London court.



The Jubilee Debt Campaign, which calls for the cancellation of unjust or unpayable debts of the poorest countries, said Mozambique should not have to pay a cent towards the loans, which were guaranteed without the approval of Mozambique&#8217;s parliament.



&#8220;The loan guarantee was in clear breach of Mozambican law, and the lenders, companies and politicians involved should all be held to account for their role in the deal,&#8221; Sarah-Jane Clifton, the campaign&#8217;s director, said.



(Additional reporting by Tatiana Voronova in Moscow; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, Kirsten Donovan)

This African country is being sued by Russia’s VTB over loan in $2 billion debt scandal

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) &#8211; The World Bank has approved a $450 million loan to Tanzania, the bank said on Friday, signalling the release of the first tranche of funds to the East African nation that were frozen last year because of concern over government policies. 



Those concerns included passing a law that made it illegal to question official statistics and expelling pregnant girls from public schools.



The government amended the statistics law in June to remove the threat of jail. But has yet to announce changes to the rules on teenage pregnancy.



    The financing comes from the bank’s International Development Assistance (IDA), which gives grants or low-interest loans to the world’s poorest countries. It covers a poverty- reduction programme that will help around five million Tanzanians, the bank said in a statement.



“The World Bank has been engaging with the government of Tanzania on a range of policy issues that led to a hold-up of financing since 2018”, the World Bank said in a statement.&nbsp;



&nbsp; &nbsp; “Approval of this project acknowledges efforts by the government of Tanzania to address the policy issues by amending the statistics law (2018) in line with international practice, as well as the government’s commitment to facilitate all girls to complete their education.”



&nbsp; &nbsp;The government has been working to unlock $1.7&nbsp;billion in funding from the bank that was frozen last year. In July, Tanzania’s statistics agency said it may review its economic growth figure for 2018 after the World Bank came up with a significantly lower one. It has not released updated figures.



&nbsp; &nbsp; The World Bank is Tanzania’s biggest external lender. Foreign loans and grants are a key source of foreign exchange for East Africa’s third-largest economy.



&nbsp; &nbsp; “This new support will be critical to improve the lives of many more people in need and overall raise the country’s human capital index, which is still very low at 0.40,” said Bella Bird, the World Bank’s country director for Tanzania.



&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;“We will continue to work with the government and engage with citizens and other stakeholders on the complex set of development issues facing the country and its people.”



Reporting by Fumbuka Ng&#8217;wanakilala; editing by Maggie Fick, Larry King

World Bank approves $450 million loan for Tanzania, what you need to know

WASHINGTON (Reuters) &#8211; The U.S. Export-Import Bank said on Thursday its board intends to vote on a $5 billion direct loan for the development of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Mozambique, the bank’s biggest export financing deal in years.



The government export lender said it has notified the U.S. Congress of the transaction, which will be ready for a final board vote in 35 days.



If approved, the transaction would support U.S. exports of goods and services for the engineering, procurement and construction of the onshore LNG plant and related facilities on the Afungi Peninsula in northern Mozambique.



EXIM said over the five-year construction period the financing could support 16,400 American jobs among suppliers in Texas, Pennsylvania, Georgia, New York, Tennessee, Florida and the District of Columbia.



It estimated interest and fee income from the transaction of more than $600 million from a consortium led by Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s recently acquired Anadarko Petroleum Co.



U.S. exports to supply the project, however, face competition from financing offered by foreign export credit agencies.



The project would be the single biggest financing deal since EXIM’s full lending powers were restored in May with the confirmation of three new board members. That ended a drought of nearly four years in which the bank could not approve loans and guarantees of more than $10 million due to a protracted fight in Congress over its future.



The bank, seen by some conservatives as providing taxpayer-backed “corporate welfare” and “crony capitalism,” was unable to finance major infrastructure projects like the Mozambique LNG plant and commercial aircraft built by Boeing Co. It needs Congress to renew its charter before Sept. 30 to keep operating.



U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration views the bank as a tool to boost U.S. exports in an increasingly competitive trade environment.



“This critical project is not only a win for American companies and workers, supporting over 10,000 jobs in the United States, but also for the people of Mozambique as well,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement.



EXIM said the Mozambique LNG project would begin to develop the Rovuma Basin, one of he world’s most extensive untapped reserves of natural gas, with a major impact on Mozambique’s economy.



Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Dan Grebler

What you need to know about U.S. EXIM Bank seeking vote on $5 billion loan to LNG project in this African country

NAIROBI (Reuters) &#8211; Kenya has sent out invitations to international commercial banks to subscribe to a syndicated loan worth up to 150 billion shillings ($1.45 billion), the Business Daily reported on Wednesday.



The finance ministry set a budget deficit of 5.6% of GDP in June for the 2019/20 (July-June) fiscal year, targeting to borrow 324 billion shillings or close to half of the shortfall, from external sources.



The loan, which will mature in six years, will come with an interest rate of 645 basis points above the Libor interest rate benchmark, the newspaper reported.



Treasury officials were not immediately available for comment.



A Nairobi-based banker with an international lender said he had not seen the term sheet of the proposed loan but the report was not surprising given the Treasury has pencilled in foreign borrowing of $3.2 billion this financial year.



Under President Uhuru Kenyatta, who took office in 2013 and was re-elected in 2017, total debt has rose to more than 50% of GDP, from 42% of GDP.



The government has defended the increased borrowing, saying the country must invest in its infrastructure, including roads and railways.



Public anger at the government’s higher appetite for debt has grown as the country’s top prosecutor has in the past year ordered the arrest of dozens of current and former government officials for involvement in graft in many government ministries and agencies.



The finance minister who set the borrowing targets for this financial year, Henry Rotich, was charged with corruption last month over the loss of billions of shillings in two dam construction tenders.



He denied the charges and was granted bail by the court, before Kenyatta replaced him with Labour Minister Ukur Yatani as acting finance minister.



Reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Maggie Fick

Kenya seeks 150 billion shilling syndicated loan, what you need to know about

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Fitch Ratings says the requirement for Nigerian banks to have a loan-to-deposit ratio of at least 60 per cent at the end of September is credit-negative for Nigeria&#8217;s banking sector. Muyiwa Oni, Regional Head; Equity Research at Standard Bank Group joins CNBC Africa for more.

CBN’s loan to deposit ratio requirement credit negative for Nigerian banks – Fitch

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) &#8211; The New Development Bank, set up by the BRICS group of emerging economies, has approved loans of $300 million for energy projects in South Africa and $300 million for a transportation project in China.
South Africa, which will host a BRICS summit later this week in Johannesburg, is trying to diversify its energy mix to reduce its reliance on heavily polluting coal-fired power plants.
It has launched several bidding rounds for billions of dollars of renewable energy deals in recent years, with the latest expected to open later this year.
The BRICS development bank said in a statement that its $300 million loan to South Africa would be channelled via the Development Bank of Southern Africa and would focus on projects which reduce carbon dioxide emissions and boost energy efficiency.
Its $300 million loan to China is for a new metro line in the city of Luoyang. With the two projects, the bank’s portfolio of loans stands at more than $5.7 billion.
The BRICS grouping comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Russia said this month that it was in talks with the New Development Bank about borrowing more than $1 billion for infrastructure projects.
Reporting by Alexander Winning; Editing by Alison Williams

Why BRICS bank is loaning South Africa and China $300 million each

WINDHOEK (Reuters) &#8211; Namibia secured a $218 million loan from the African Development Bank, the second tranche of a quarter billion dollar facility from the development lender to help the country finance its budget deficit, the finance ministry said on Thursday.
The southern African nation’s economy contracted in the final two quarters of 2017, and by 0.1 percent in the first quarter OF 2018. Its credit rating was cut to subinvestment late last year by Fitch over concerns of a deteriorating fiscal position.
Reporting by Nyasha Nyaungwa; Writing by Mfuneko Toyana; Editing by James Macharia

African Development Bank grants $218 million loan to Namibia, what you need to know

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) &#8211; The World Bank has approved a $455 million loan to Tanzania under its International Development Assistance (IDA) programme to support financing of power projects in the East African nation.
The financing from IDA, which gives grants or low-interest loans to the world’s poorest countries, will also fund construction of high voltage transmission infrastructure to connect Tanzania to regional power markets in southern and eastern Africa.
“The $455 million credit will finance construction of critical high voltage transmission infrastructure that will support the electrification of the southern and northwestern regions of Tanzania,” the World Bank said in a statement on Thursday.
The government said it plans to raise 2 trillion Tanzanian shillings ($880 million) in its budget for fiscal year 2018/19 (July-June) from concessional loans and grants to finance development projects.
Tanzania boasts reserves of over 57 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas, but faces periodic power shortages as it relies on hydro-power dams in a drought-prone region.
Last year President John Magufuli said the country needed to invest $46.2 billion over the next 20 years to revamp its ageing energy infrastructure and meet soaring electricity demand.
Investors have long complained that the lack of reliable power hurts business there.
Tanzania plans to boost power generation capacity from around 1,500 MW currently to 5,000 MW over the next three years by building new gas-fired and hydroelectric plants, according to the country’s energy ministry.
($1 = 2,271.0000 Tanzanian shillings)
Reporting by Fumbuka Ng&#8217;wanakilala; Editing by Omar Mohammed and Toby Chopra

What you need to know about the World Bank’s $455mil loan to Tanzania for its power projects

LILONGWE (Reuters) &#8211; Malawi&#8217;s finance minister hopes the International Monetary Fund&#8217;s approval of a $26.9 million loan could lead to more global lenders unlocking budget support that was suspended three years ago over graft allegations.
The IMF said on Wednesday Malwai’s economy was on the right track after the fund completed its ninth and final review of the country&#8217;s economic performance under a program supported by an extended credit facility (ECF), allowing the global lender to make the loan.
<blockquote>&#8220;This is a very positive development because it signals that we are on the right track with our economic agenda and will help push for the much needed return of budget support,&#8221; Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe told Reuters on Thursday.</blockquote>
The loan brings total disbursements under the ECF arrangement, signed in 2012, to about $191.4 million.
&#8220;Strengthening public financial management, including through strong commitment controls, routine bank reconciliations, and regular fiscal reporting, remains critical to preventing the misappropriation of public funds and rebuilding trust and confidence in the budget process,&#8221; the IMF said in a statement.
Foreign aid has historically accounted for about 40 percent of the national budget.
Western donors led by former colonial ruler Britain froze budget support over a corruption scandal in which public servants siphoned millions of dollars from the public purse.
The World Bank resumed its budget aid to Malawi last month.
(Reporting by Mabvuto Banda; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo, Larry King)

Malawi sees IMF loan approval as signal of donor confidence

Etisalat has been instructed to transfer its 45 percent stake in Etisalat Nigeria to a loan trustee after debt restructuring talks with lenders failed, the Abu Dhabi telecoms company said on Tuesday.
Etisalat Nigeria had been in talks with Nigerian banks to restructure a $1.2 billion loan after missing repayments but those discussions failed to produce an agreement on restructuring the debt, Etisalat said in a statement.
Nigeria&#8217;s financial system, hobbled by lower oil prices and economic recession, has suffered shortages in dollars, making it difficult for companies to make the loan repayments.
Etisalat said its had been notified to transfer its stake by June 23. It said the stake had a carrying value of zero on its books.
An Etisalat Nigeria spokesman said the company was still in discussions with lenders to find a &#8220;non-disruptive&#8221; solution.
Etisalat said its financial exposure to Etisalat Nigeria was related to operational services worth 191 million UAE dirhams ($52 million) and that discussions were ongoing with lenders regarding the use of the Etisalat brand.
($1 = 3.6729 UAE dirham)
(Reporting by Stanley Carvalho and Chijioke Ohuocha; editing by Jason Neely)

Etisalat Nigeria loan restructuring talks fail as lenders step in

Tarek Amara | dTUNIS
The World Bank has approved a $500 million credit for Tunisia to help the North African country with budget support, a government official said on Tuesday.
The new loan came just after the International Monetary Fund released a $320-million delayed tranche of Tunisia&#8217;s IMF loan after the government agreed to speed up economic reforms.
Praised as a model of democratic transition following its 2011 uprising to oust autocrat leader Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, Tunisia has so far mostly failed to deliver on planned economic reforms to help create jobs and cut public deficits.
(Reporting by Tarek Amara; writing by Patrick Markey)
&nbsp;

World Bank approves $500 mln credit for Tunisia: gov’t official

Camillus Eboh | ABUJA
Nigeria&#8217;s government is seeking approval from lawmakers to borrow $1.3 billion from international lenders to fund the newly licensed Development Bank of Nigeria, a spokesman for the lower chamber of parliament said on Wednesday.
The bank aims to support small businesses with loans of varying lengths at lower interest rates than are currently available as Africa&#8217;s largest economy contends with its first recession in 25 years.
The loan money is made up of $500 million from the World Bank, $450 million from the African Development Bank, $200 million from German state bank KfW and $130 million from France&#8217;s state development agency.
The cabinet last month approved the loans for the bank, but the loan facility is still subject to approval by the National Assembly.
A letter seen by Reuters stated that the loan facility was &#8220;inadvertently omitted&#8221; from an external borrowing plan that requires approval by lawmakers.
&#8220;It has been referred to the relevant committee on foreign loans. This is an addendum to the earlier requests by the president for loan approval,&#8221; said Abdulrazaq Namdas, a spokesman for the House of Representatives.
&#8220;It&#8217;s an addendum to be accommodated in the 2016 to 2018 borrowings that are awaiting the approval of the National Assembly,&#8221; he said.
The finance ministry has previously said that 50 percent of the gross domestic product in Nigeria&#8217;s economy is made up of small companies.
The central bank approved the development bank&#8217;s licence in March.
(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Writing by Alexis Akwagyiram; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

Nigeria seeks lawmakers’ approval for $1.3 bln loan for development bank

Chris Mfula | LUSAKA
The World Bank will lend Zambia $600 million under its International Development Assistance (IDA) programme over the next three years, the southern African nation&#8217;s presidency said on Friday.
Presidential spokesman Amos Chanda told journalists after World Bank vice-president for Africa Makhtar Diop paid a courtesy call on President Edgar Lungu that $150 million would come in direct support for the budget.
&#8220;The World Bank is very confident with the steps that Zambia is taking to stabilise the economy,&#8221; Chanda said.
Zambia is likely to receive $1.6 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) later this year, the presidency said on April 21, with a review meeting set for June to finalise the agreement.
(Reporting by Chris Mfula; editing by Ed Stoddard/Mark Heinrich)
&nbsp;

World Bank approves $600 million in loans for Zambia over 3 years

Chijioke Ohuocha | LAGOS
Talks between the Nigerian arm of Abu Dhabi&#8217;s Etisalat and its lenders to renegotiate the terms of a $1.2 billion loan have reached deadlock after the telecoms firm missed a payment, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Lenders, under pressure to avoid loan-loss provisions, are pushing to finalise the debt restructuring before next month&#8217;s half-yearly audit, a banking source said.
Etisalat met with the lenders in London on April 28 led by Guaranty Trust Bank but they could not agree a way forward, the sources said.
Etisalat could not be reached for comment.
The telecom firm signed the medium-term seven-year facility with 13 local banks in 2013 to refinance a $650 million loan and fund expansion of its network, but is now struggling to repay.
Etisalat Nigeria told Reuters that it was in talks with lenders to restructure the loan after it missed a payment.
&#8220;There is no conclusive view on the way forward,&#8221; one banker who declined to be named told Reuters after the meeting. &#8220;The most viable solution which the banks are pushing for is for the shareholders to inject equity into the business.&#8221;
A source at Etisalat, which owns 45 percent of the Nigerian company, said the company was not willing to invest more after converting some loans it made to the affiliate to equity and writing down its investment to $50 million.
Abu Dhabi&#8217;s state-owned fund Mubadala owns another 40 percent.
Etisalat is the biggest foreign-owned victim of the dollar shortages plaguing Nigeria&#8217;s financial system.
Nigerian regulators in March agreed with local banks to pursue a default deal rather than a receivership for Etisalat Nigeria so as not to deter investors and to avoid a wider debt crisis.
But lenders are keen to keep a lid on rising non-performing loans (NPLs) to preserve their capital as Africa&#8217;s biggest economy battles a recession and currency crisis. NPLs hit 14 percent in 2016 from 5.3 percent a year earlier.
Etisalat has 20 million subscribers, making it Nigeria&#8217;s number four mobile operator with 14 percent market share. South Africa&#8217;s MTN has 47 percent, Globacom 20 percent and Airtel &#8211; a subsidiary of India&#8217;s Bharti Airtel &#8211; 19 percent.
(Additional reporting by Stanley Carvalho in Dubai; Editing by Louise Heavens)

Etisalat Nigeria loan talks stall as banks try to avoid provisions

Amina Ismail | CAIRO
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) delegation will arrive in Cairo on Sunday to review Egypt&#8217;s progress on economic reforms before it disburses the second instalment of a $12-billion loan programme, the Finance Ministry said.
The IMF delegation will stay until May 11 and meet with officials from the ministry and the central bank, the ministry said in a statement.
Egypt agreed the three-year programme with the IMF in November, after floating its Egyptian pound currency in a dramatic move aimed at unlocking foreign inflows and boosting exports after a long-running dollar shortage threatened to paralyse the economy.
It promised a raft of tough reforms, including narrowing its budget deficit, in return for the $12-billion loan package from the IMF and a host of other bilateral backers with payments spread over three years and linked to progress on reforms.
The IMF released a first instalment of $2.75 billion in November, shortly after the deal was agreed.
Egypt has said it expects to receive the second instalment, worth $1.25 billion, in May or June, once the IMF review has been completed.
IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde told Reuters in February Egypt was making good progress on reforms.
As part of reform efforts, Egypt has introduced a Value Added Tax (VAT) and secured $4 billion in eurobonds from international markets in an oversubscribed issuance.
It is also part way through a programme to reform power and fuel subsidies and is preparing to privatise several state owned banks and energy companies.
(Reporting by Amina Ismail, editing by Lin Noueihed)

IMF team in Cairo to review second instalment of $12-billion loan

By Stanley Carvalho and Chijioke Ohuocha
The Nigerian arm of Abu Dhabi telecom group Etisalat is yet to agree a deal on restructuring a $1.2 billion loan with local banks after it missed a payment, a company source told Reuters.
Etisalat Nigeria told Reuters last month that it was in talks with lenders to restructure the loan.
The source, who is not authorised to speak to media, said that Etisalat and the group of 13 Nigerian lenders were yet to agree on a debt restructuring proposal.
The source was speaking on the sidelines of Etisalat&#8217;s annual general meeting in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, where Chief Executive Saleh Al Abdooli declined to comment on the debt talks when asked by Reuters.
Etisalat did not respond to a request for comment.
Nigerian regulators agreed with local banks in March to pursue a default deal rather than a receivership for Etisalat Nigeria so as not to deter investors and to avoid a wider debt crisis.
Sources have said that Etisalat would consider selling its stake in the Nigerian entity after the debt deal is agreed.
(Editing by Susan Fenton)

Etisalat Nigeria yet to agree debt deal with lenders: source

Nigeria wants to borrow at least $1 billion from the World Bank to help haul it out of recession and plans to present the required economic reform proposals to the lender this month, officials and diplomats told Reuters.
The oil producer, which has been hit hard by a sharp fall in crude prices since 2014, has been in talks with the Washington-based lender for a year to secure a loan to help plug a yawning budget deficit and fund badly needed infrastructure projects.
But the government has not specified how much money it was looking to borrow from the World Bank, saying only that it aimed to raise $5 billion abroad. It was previously also unclear when Nigeria planned to present its proposed reforms to the lender &#8211; which will not consider a loan before it reviews the plans to make the economy more resilient and attractive to investment.
The government now plans to present its economic reform proposals by the end of February, according to government officials and Western diplomats who declined to be named as they are not authorised to speak publicly.
One senior government official said Nigeria would seek a loan of $1 billion from the World Bank, while a second senior official said it could seek as much as $2 billion.
The Nigerian finance ministry declined to comment on the size of the loan being sought or the timing of the submission of the reform proposals.
The World Bank also declined to comment on those matters. A spokeswoman said Nigeria&#8217;s economic proposals would be the &#8220;basis of which the World Bank will determine with the government the most appropriate lending instrument to support the implementation of the reform plan&#8221;.
It was unclear what the government&#8217;s economic reform programme would contain.
 
NEW ROADS
Nigeria, which relies on oil revenue for most of its income, is struggling to drag itself out of its first recession in 25 years. It needs money to help plug a budget deficit of 2.2 trillion naira ($7 billion) for 2016 and help fund a record budget of 7.3 trillion naira for 2017 aimed at stimulating the economy.
It had planned to apply for a World Bank loan last year but the process had ground to a halt because it failed to submit its economic recovery plans by the end of December as initially promised, sources told Reuters last month. [nL5N1F81XP]
The African Development Bank (AfDB), meanwhile, is holding back the second, $400 million, tranche of a $1 billion loan because it is also awaiting the reform plans.
Nigeria will present its economic proposals to the AfDB at the same time as the World Bank, according to the government officials.
A spokeswoman for the Abidjan-based AfDB declined to comment.
It is unclear why the government has not previously submitted its reform plans to the two international lenders. A funding deadlock could throw into doubt badly needed projects planned for this year, including new roads and improvements to power infrastructure.
The government is selling $1 billion of Eurobonds this week but this falls short of the $5 billion Nigeria said a year ago it wanted to borrow abroad including the World Bank.
 
&#8216;CRITICAL REFORMS&#8217;
Nigeria&#8217;s government has butted heads with investors over the best course for the economy.
A reluctance by Nigerian authorities to apply a more flexible foreign exchange rate policy and other macroeconomic reforms to stimulate foreign investment has hampered talks to secure loans abroad.
The AfDB has criticised Nigeria&#8217;s central bank&#8217;s decision to curb access to hard currency, which has forced the closures of manufacturing plants unable to import raw materials.
The World Bank says it supports &#8220;critical reforms for restoring macroeconomic resilience&#8221;. Western diplomats say the bank wants to see how Nigeria plans to lower its dependence on oil revenues and boost investment, which has been hit by a high official exchange rate for the naira currency.
Nigeria&#8217;s central bank, backed by President Muhammadu Buhari, has kept the naira rate to the dollar at 40 percent above the unofficial &#8211; or parallel &#8211; market rate, which has dried up dollar supplies on official channels.
The policy has also made investors reluctant to commit new projects as they expect the central bank will have to devalue the naira eventually.
($1 = 315.0000 naira)﻿

loan

This African country is being sued by Russia’s VTB over loan in $2 billion debt scandal

World Bank approves $450 million loan for Tanzania, what you need to know

What you need to know about U.S. EXIM Bank seeking vote on $5 billion loan to LNG project in this African country

Kenya seeks 150 billion shilling syndicated loan, what you need to know about

CBN’s loan to deposit ratio requirement credit negative for Nigerian banks – Fitch

Why BRICS bank is loaning South Africa and China $300 million each

African Development Bank grants $218 million loan to Namibia, what you need to know

What you need to know about the World Bank’s $455mil loan to Tanzania for its power projects

Malawi sees IMF loan approval as signal of donor confidence

Etisalat Nigeria loan restructuring talks fail as lenders step in

World Bank approves $500 mln credit for Tunisia: gov’t official

Nigeria seeks lawmakers’ approval for $1.3 bln loan for development bank

World Bank approves $600 million in loans for Zambia over 3 years

Etisalat Nigeria loan talks stall as banks try to avoid provisions

IMF team in Cairo to review second instalment of $12-billion loan

Etisalat Nigeria yet to agree debt deal with lenders: source

Nigeria aims to present reform plan for $1 bln World Bank loan

News Tips

Advertise With Us

loan

This African country is being sued by Russia’s VTB over loan in $2 billion debt scandal

World Bank approves $450 million loan for Tanzania, what you need to know

What you need to know about U.S. EXIM Bank seeking vote on $5 billion loan to LNG project in this African country

Kenya seeks 150 billion shilling syndicated loan, what you need to know about

CBN’s loan to deposit ratio requirement credit negative for Nigerian banks – Fitch

Why BRICS bank is loaning South Africa and China $300 million each

African Development Bank grants $218 million loan to Namibia, what you need to know

What you need to know about the World Bank’s $455mil loan to Tanzania for its power projects

Malawi sees IMF loan approval as signal of donor confidence

Etisalat Nigeria loan restructuring talks fail as lenders step in

World Bank approves $500 mln credit for Tunisia: gov’t official

Nigeria seeks lawmakers’ approval for $1.3 bln loan for development bank

World Bank approves $600 million in loans for Zambia over 3 years

Etisalat Nigeria loan talks stall as banks try to avoid provisions

IMF team in Cairo to review second instalment of $12-billion loan

Etisalat Nigeria yet to agree debt deal with lenders: source

Nigeria aims to present reform plan for $1 bln World Bank loan

News Tips

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