Biz Hub Africa

Throwing sand into the gears of the financial doomsday machine “WE WILL not kick you when you are down, at least not for a couple of days”: that is the gist of a putative deal struck by 18 global banks this week, which agreed not to pull abruptly out of contracts with each other if one of them hits the buffers. As modest as that may sound, regulators see it as the foundation of a firewall to halt the spread of future financial crises. The agreement concerns derivatives, contracts whose value “derives” from the performance of an underlying asset such as a share, currency or bond. Banks use them to hedge themselves or speculate, to the chagrin of regulators who dislike how hard they are to value and how easily they can entangle financial institutions in a web of interdependency. If a bank will benefit from invoking its right to demand early settlement of such contracts when a counterparty runs into trouble, it tends to do so, naturally enough....

Economic growth is estimated at 4.9% in 2013 and is projected to accelerate to 5.7% in 2014.   Having witnessed drastic currency depreciation and rapid inflation in 2011, the economy experienced stability for both indicators in 2012 and 2013 with inflation dropping to a single digit. This stability is expected to continue in 2014. Kenya’s economy continued to recover in 2013 from the slowdown experienced in 2011. Real GDP growth in the year accelerated to 5.2%, 4.3% and 4.6% in the first three quarters of 2013 primarily driven by financial intermediation, tourism, construction and agriculture. Real GDP growth is estimated at 4.9% and 5.7% in 2013 and 2014 respectively. Similarly CPI inflation is expected to remain single digit over the same period. The economy’s short- to medium-term forecast is for sustained and rising growth based on: increased investor and business confidence in the wake of peaceful March 2013 elections; increased rainfall; a stable macroecon...

CHAPTER ONE Whoever said you don’t need a formal business plan to start or expand your business was certainly not addressing those who need funds from creditors and investors. Like many successful businesses have done, you can launch your business idea without the benefit of a formal business plan—but this applies only if you have all the funds you need or you are just testing the business waters to see how it turns out.   Why You Need a Business Plan for your Small Business Writing your business plan is not the end of your business planning process because business planning is a never ending process. However, it’s an important intermediate stage ( failing to plan can mean planning to fail ). If you are just starting a business, having a well-written business plan shows that you have really done your homework. And if you are planning to expand an already established business, it demonstrates that you have carefully considered the pros, cons and odds; and focu...

TABLE OF CONTENT The actual complete structure of your business plan will look like the following: Cover Letter Title Page Table of Contents Executive Summary Company Profile Industry Research Sales and Marketing Operations Financials Now, let’s go into real business… The cover letter, title page, table of contents, and executive summary make up the opening section of your business plan. This section is the last thing you will work on, but it is the first thing anyone looking at your business plan will see. And because it can make or mar your fund-raising quest, it is very important to use it to create a good first impression in the reader’s mind. Now, let’s discuss each component of the opening section in more detail, giving tips on how best to craft each.   The Business Plan Cover Letter     The cover letter serves the same purpose as it does when you submit one along with a resume as a job candidate; it introduces your business plan to the...

Business Skills A business review is a narrative account of a customer’s experience with a company’s products and services. It presents the customer’s assessment of the company’s offerings, so that potential customers can make an informed decision as to whether the company is a good match or their needs. According to research, more than 70 percent of customers base their decisions about doing business with company on the reviews that others have written about that company. In other words, more than half of potential customers decide what bank to switch to, what PR firm to hire, what smartphone to buy, or what hosting service to choose based on other people’s experiences with these products and services. The above statistic drives home the point that a business review could actually attract potential customers to business or repel them from it. As a customer, there are times when you are so much satisfied with a product or service that you want others to know about it ...

Business Skills No product will attract customers by osmosis. If your business is launching a new product, you need to tell your potential customers about it. Of course, they can only buy it when they know it exists. An easy and cheap way to tell your potential customers about your new product is to send them a business letter introducing the product. This will make them aware of not only the product’s launch, but also of the benefits they stand to gain from the product. Whether your potential customer will be interested in buying your product depends on how well you craft your letter of introduction. A compelling and professionally written letter of introduction will create a positive first impression that will instantly trigger the reader’s interest in your product. But a poorly written letter will make no impact on the reader, so your product won’t really interest them. So, every business owner, manager, and marketer needs to know how to write a good letter of int...

    Standard Bank, Africa’s largest lender by assets, and General Electric on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to Africa at a power financing roundtable held in Washington DC. The partnership sees both parties aiming to bridge the power financing gap in Africa and forms part of the US Africa Leaders’ Summit, the largest gathering of African heads of state and government as well as key stakeholders to visit Washington on any one occasion. The strategic partnership has already seen both companies commit to a $350 million financing agreement aimed at improving access to power infrastructure in Africa. Africa needs to add an extra 300 gigawatts (GW) of power generating capacity over the next 15 years in order to meet demand which is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 3 percent over the next two decades. According to the International Energy Agency, sub-Saharan Africa requires more than $300 billion in investment to achieve universal elect...