Economy
African Corridor Management Alliance to Strengthen Economic Corridors
By Dipo Olowookere
The Economic Commission for Africa, through the African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) is holding a meeting in collaboration with the Walvis Bay Corridor Group and other Corridor management Institutions (CMIs) to establish the African Corridor Management Alliance.
The Alliance is expected to coordinate the sharing of best practices and other strategies in support of the development and management of economic corridors on the Continent.
Held against the backdrop of promoting corridors as vehicles for economic transformation and boosting intra-African trade, the inaugural meeting in Walvis Bay, Namibia will also map out a strategy for the new organization.
In his welcoming address, Willem Goeiemann, Permanent Secretary of Works and Transport of Namibia said, “The process of establishing ACMA is a major milestone in defining Corridor Management Institutions’ performance and prospects in the integrated management of economic corridors through enhanced investment in infrastructure.
“With effective management, economic corridors will improve physical connectivity between the Corridor States, thereby enhancing access to markets, while expanding economies of scale for value chain.”
Stephen Karingi, Director of the Capacity Development Division of ECA, in his opening statement highlighted the potential for ACMA to contribute to regional integration and intra-African trade particularly in the area of trade facilitation. He stressed that the establishment of ACMA is timely in view of the 2017 deadline for the conclusion of negotiations to establish the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA).
David Luke, Coordinator of the African Trade Policy Centre (ATPC) drew attention to ECA’s historic role in helping to create specialized institutions to enhance economic integration on the Continent.
“The African Regional Standards Organization and the African Alliance for Electronic Commerce are examples of ECA’s contribution to institution building in this regard,” he said. He expressed the hope that the establishment of ACMA as an umbrella organization can become a channel through which ECA’s engagement with the CMIs can be further strengthened.
For his part, Johny Smith, Chief Executive Officer of the Walvis Bay Corridor Group and interim chairperson of ACMA noted that through ACMA, CMIs would identify the necessary conditions that should be realized for corridor development initiatives to play a catalytic role in bringing together trade, infrastructure, spatial initiatives, industrial development and other economic activities to foster market integration in the Continent.
The meeting, which is hosted by the Walvis Corridor Group brought together Heads of several CMIs, representatives from the ECA, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Union Commission (AUC), the NEPAD Agency, the African-Export-Import bank (Afrexim Bank) and various other economic integration stakeholders. Among the most prominent CMIs on the continent are the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor, the Northern Corridor that links Mombasa to Kigali and Kampala, the Walvis Bay Corridor with routes to seven southern African countries and the Maputo Corridor connecting Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
On January 31, 2025, the stablecoin of Tether, USDT, will be delisted from one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Crypto.com
Business Post gathered that eight other tokens would also be yanked off the platform by Friday, with deposits for the affected digital coins disabled after the delisting.
The other tokens are Crypto.com Staked ETH, Crypto.com Staked SOL, PayPal USD, Wrapped Bitcoin, PAX Gold, PAX Dollar, XSGD, and DAI.
The decision to remove these coins from its trading platform is to comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulations (MiCA).
On January 17, 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) asked exchanges to drop non-compliant tokens, stressing the need for crypto asset service providers (CASPs) to align their services in compliance with the MiCA regulations.
However, holders of these affected coins will have until March 31 to convert their assets to MiCA-compliant alternatives.
If this is not done, the crypto exchange will automatically convert assets to MiCA-approved stablecoins or assets.
Tether’s USDT is one of the most popular stablecoins in the world but in recent times, it has started to lose its market share because of the regulatory uncertainty in Europe, particularly due to MiCA, going from about $150 billion to $139 billion.
The new regulations in the EU require 60 per cent of stablecoin reserves in the region to be in Euros, which Tether’s chief executive, Mr Paolo Ardoino, said threatens the future of stablecoins.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
To boost market surveillance and combat financial crimes in Nigeria’s increasingly digitalized capital market, the NGX Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have called for enhanced partnership.
This call was made during a meeting between the two organisations at the EFCC’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, January 28, 2025.
The chief executive of NGX RegCo, the independent regulation subsidiary of NGX Group Plc, Mr Olufemi Shobanjo, informed the head of the EFCC, Mr Ola Olukoyede, that, “The digitalization of our markets has brought new challenges, necessitating a more robust collaborative approach.”
“While our 2013 MoU established initial cooperation parameters, the substantial market growth in 2024 demands an enhanced partnership framework.
“As a frontline regulator, we recognize the EFCC’s crucial role in providing enforcement support and specialized expertise to combat market abuse and protect investor interests,” he added.
Mr Shobanjo emphasized NGX RegCo’s dedication to maintaining market integrity and expressed confidence that reinforced collaboration with the EFCC would strengthen investor protection mechanisms.
Responding, Mr Olukoyede commended the desire to strengthen the existing relationship between the two agencies and assured that the commission was ready and willing to collaborate.
“I know you are also concerned with regulatory compliance because the issue of compliance is a key issue. It is part of our mandate to enforce compliance.
“Under my administration, we have strengthened our bond with different regulatory bodies. Let’s see how we can have a desk where we can work better and attend to you. I have a special interest in the capital market in respect of the abuse of assets and trades.
“We will try to review the MoU, make our observations in line with the relevant laws and regulations, and communicate our views to you. We pledge our commitment to this,” he said.
The strategic dialogue highlighted both organizations’ shared commitment to fostering a secure, transparent, and globally competitive Nigerian capital market that instils investor confidence and promotes sustainable economic growth.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Risevest, a digital investment platform, has once again reaffirmed its committment to regulatory transparency and compliance as the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) raised another red flag about the activities of the firm.
The SEC in another statement on Tuesday notified the public that Risevest Technologies Limited is not registered by it to operate in any capacity in the Nigerian capital market.
“Accordingly, the public is advised to refrain from engaging with Risevest Technologies Limited or any of its representatives in respect of any business pertaining or relating to the Nigerian capital market,” the regulator shared on its X platform.
This follows an earlier caution on Sunday, warning Nigerians against engaging in investment transactions with two unregistered platforms—Risevest Cooperative Multipurpose Society Limited and Stecs Multipurpose Cooperative Society, commonly referred to as Stecs.
SEC warned that engaging with unregistered and unregulated entities in the capital market exposes investors to significant risks, including fraud and the potential loss of funds.
Risevest following the initial warning said it was engaging with the regulator to straighten out the issue.
Now, Risevest in its latest communication, admitted that some of the regulatory frameworks it adopted, particularly for its cooperative subsidiary, needed to evolve to meet the expectations of the commission.
“As we’ve grown, we’ve realized that some of the regulatory frameworks we initially adopted, particularly for our Risevest Cooperative subsidiary, need to evolve to meet the expectations of the SEC. This is a natural part of our journey as we scale, and we are taking additional action steps to close any remaining compliance gaps across all our subsidiaries,” the company said.
The firm reiterated its commitment to supporting the SEC in its efforts to protect investors and ensure innovation aligns with robust investor safeguards.
“We want to reassure you that our investments and operations remain secure and unaffected by this process, as they are delivered through regulated third parties. Your trust is of utmost importance to us, and we see this as an opportunity to raise the bar even higher for compliance and operational excellence,” it added.
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