Carte Blanche with Perry

Ritesh Anand The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange recently anounced that plans are already underway to re-introduce a bond market/fixed income securities market after it collapse in 2001. This can be seen as a positive development to further deepen Zimbabwe`s financial markets. However, there are certain risks that  such a move may bring and I sought the insights of renowned market analyst, Ritesh Anand to better understand the implications of the bond market revival. Ritesh Anand is the founder and Managing Director of Invictus Capital, a boutique investment banking platform providing securities trading, corporate advisory, and asset management services in Zimbabwe. He has over 18 years experience in fund management, entrepreneurship, emerging markets, and private equity. I asked Ritesh a couple of questions, and below are his responses.   What will be the role of the bond market in Zimbabwe’s financial market if re-introduced? Zimbabwe is a bank based economy – capital m

For more than a decade now, Zimbabwe has dominated the news headlines for all the wrong reasons. Massive unemployment, hyper-inflation and political violence to some extent. Be that as it may, Zimbabwe is still a beautiful land with an engrossing history.Sure, things may be bad in the Southern African country, but our team dug up the annals of history and found some interesting facts about Zimbabwe that may very well change your perception of the country. 1.   Zimbabwe hosted Africa`s first ever sponsored horse race, The Castle Tankard in 1960. This was two years ahead of Rothmans sponsoring South Africa`s famous Durban July. Aesthetically, Zimbabwe`s Borrowdale race course is considered to be one of the best looking tracks in the world.  2.   Zimbabwe`s “Great Zimbabwe” is referenced by Vasco da Gama`s squire Tomé Lopes as the location for the Biblical region of Ophir. King Solomon received cargo of gold, silver, pearls and sandalwood from Ophir, every three years. 3.   The third o

Zimbabwe`s fixed-income market is poised for a rebirth, following a protracted absence in the southern-African country`s financial markets. The last bond trading activity was in 2001, coinciding with the start of economic turmoil in the country,spanning over a decade – a period now known as the “lost decade.” During this time, together with other economic sectors, Zimbabwe`s debt market was one of the many casualties, eventually capitulating around 2001. Before that, Zimbabwe had a robust fixed-income market with significant bond issuances by government and local authorities in the 1990s. In recent times,Zimbabwean companies have had to resort to short-term and often expensive funding like bank loans. However, an acute liquidity crunch and the lack of cheap loans in the economy, has made this into a near herculean task for most Zimbabwean companies facing working capital shortages. These companies are also in dire need of capital for retooling. Even with the adoption of t

Which hand has Africa been dealt this year you may be wondering? Well take slumping commodity prices, entire reliance on one export destination – China - added onto the effects of this Chinese economy slowing down appreciably in the last 18 months, and what you get is Africa increasingly bearing the brunt of the turmoil in Beijing. This is a classic case of China sneezing, and the whole of Africa catching a cold. Little wonder, especially considering that Chinese investment into Africa significantly outstrips that of all other countries, accounting for as much as $3 to each $1 from the United States for instance. For Africa, the weak pace of growth in the Chinese economy has meant lower demand for its commodities, leading to Sino-Africa trade almost dropping by half from its peak during the 2013-2014 periods. China which is Africa`s largest trading partner is now battling the effects of debt fueled expenditure which created overcapacity in its economy, misallocated expendit