Breaking News Today – Monday 3 August 2026

African Start-up News Headlines:

• In a smart online payment solution move, South African payment performance partner NjiaPay has launched a new one-click payments for merchants product that will provide consumers with a fast and convenient way to pay without re-entering card details or taking additional payment steps like 3-D Secure verification. In March 2026, NinjaPay raised over $2 million in seed funding. This has been used to roll out one-click payments for South African online merchants. Unlike one-click solutions tied to a particular payment service provider, NjiaPay, enables merchants to offer the same experience across multiple payment providers. As a PCI DSS Level 1 compliant business, NjiaPay meets the highest level of payment card security requirements and can securely encrypt and store customers’ card details.

Business News Today 

Emirates NBD Egypt to ​Acquire HSBC Egypt’s Retail Bank

Emirates NBD announced yesterday, that its fully-owned subsidiary in ​Egypt had entered into a definitive ‌agreement to acquire the retail banking business of HSBC Egypt. Under the acquisition agreement , Emirates NBD Egypt will ​acquire HSBC Egypt’s retail banking portfolio ​along with its full associated branch and ATM network, ⁠the customer base and “relevant” staffing. While the agreement has been finalised, this remains ​subject to regulatory approvals and closing conditions. The ​value of the transaction was not disclosed by Emirates NBD, but HSBC Group(HSBA.L) said in a separate ​statement on Sunday that the sale is ​expected to generate pre-tax gain of around $300 million for ‌the ⁠group. The transaction is expected to be finalised in the second half of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, according to HSBC.

Cocoa Estimates for Ghana Projecting Major Contraction of Crops

Ghana has warned of a potential shortfall in cocoa production next season, with farm output expected to fall by at least 16%. The country’s cocoa regulator says a combination of erratic weather, crop disease and the cocoa tree’s natural low-yield cycle is behind the decline. Heavy rains, the threat of El Niño, and swollen shoot disease have all taken a toll on farms, particularly in the Western and Western North regions, which produce more than half of Ghana’s cocoa. The country’s cocoa regulator, COCOBOD, says a combination of erratic weather, crop disease and the cocoa tree’s natural low-yield cycle is behind the decline. This in addition to massive illegal gold mining operations infringing on crop growing land is expected to see major reduction in Crop yields. CoCoa futures prices have jumped by over 5.5% on Friday.

Guinea Opts Out of ECOWAS Single Currency (the eco) Option.

Guinea has become the first ECOWAS member state to formally indicate it will not join the regional eco adoption, when the currency is expected to launch in a phased manner from July 2027. Guinea will retain the Guinean franc instead. According to reports published over the weekend, the main reason cited is fear that joining a monetary union before Guinea has built sufficient domestic production capacity could constrain rather than support its economy. Roughly 80% of Guinea’s exports go to Asia rather than to other West African countries, and tying the currency to regional partners was seen as reducing policy flexibility without clear offsetting benefits for the country.

The decision is a symbolic setback and the first clear national opt-out from the current roadmap, but it does not critically weaken the project’s overall prospects on economic grounds. Guinea is a relatively small economy within ECOWAS. Guinea’s nominal GDP is approximately $28–30 billion (2025–2026 estimates). ECOWAS as a whole is dominated by Nigeria (historically over 60% of regional GDP). Guinea’s share is modest and typically in the low single digits, roughly 3–5% at most of current ECOWAS GDP.

Breaking Business and Market News Shorts:  

• Gold climbed above $4,050 an ounce this morning, recovering losses from the previous session after US President Trump said peace talks with Iran will resume today, sending oil prices lower and easing concerns over inflation and the interest rate outlook. Trump said key Middle Eastern allies, including Saudi Arabia, urged him to suspend planned strikes and pursue a diplomatic agreement instead
• US stock futures moved higher overnight, as investors prepared for another wave of corporate earnings that could provide fresh clues on the strength of the US economy. Major companies set to report this week include Berkshire Hathaway, Eli Lilly, Caterpillar, McDonald’s, and Walt Disney, among others. Technology firms such as Palantir, Advanced Micro Devices, and SpaceX are also due to release quarterly results.
• China’s 10 Year Government Bond Yield decreased to 1.70%, the lowest since August 2025. Over the past 4 weeks. The China 10Y Bond Yield lost 3.40 basis points, and in the last 12 months, it decreased 0.10 basis points.
• Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dropped -2% toward 63,000, while the broader Topix Index declined -2.5% to 3,902 today, reversing the previous session’s gains as the yen extended its rally after Japan confirmed it had conducted coordinated yen-buying operations with the US Treasury. The Finance Ministry also warned it stands ready to carry out additional coordinated interventions if necessary
• Brent dropped more than -4.5% to below $84 per barrel this morning, after surging over 20% in July, as President Donald Trump announced that peace talks with Iran will resume today after he canceled a planned military strike against the Islamic Republic. 

Markets by Numbers 

Currency markets indicate the US dollar weakening marginally today. The Greenback is trading against the Euro at 1.15310 while trading against the Pound at 1.34736 The Yen is currently trading at 156.46 to the dollar. The rand (ZAR), is currently trading around the 16.47 mark against the US dollar this morning.

Commodities:  

• Gold futures are trading around 0.36% higher this morning, and currently trading at around $4058.53 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are around 1.12% higher this morning, with prices currently around $6.5082 per pound
• Silver futures are up by 0.9% today, and currently trading at around $58.140 per ounce.
• Platinum futures are up around 0.18% this morning, and currently trading at $1662.30, while Palladium is up around 1.25% today, and currently trading around $1297.50 per ounce.
• Lithium prices have dropped by over -2% today and trading at CNY143 000
• Brent crude oil prices are trending over -4.7% lower today, and currently trading around $83.75 with WTI trading at $80.20 currently
• Cocoa futures are trading around 5.5% higher today, and currently trading at $5397 per ton. 
• Coffee futures have lifted by around 2.8% today, and currently trading at around $3.3210 per pound

Crypto Currencies: 

• Bitcoin prices are down by around -0.7% today, currently trading at around $63 094 per coin.
• Ether prices are trending lower by -1% this morning, and currently trading around $1862.54

(All prices as quoted at approximately 04H25 Central African Time) 

African General News Briefs:

• In an interesting geopolitical and international fuel supply-chain move, Russia has reportedly imported 30,000 metric tonnes of gasoline from Morocco to compensate for refinery disruptions caused by Ukrainian attacks. This marks Morocco as the first African country publicly known to supply seaborne gasoline to Russia during its current fuel crisis. Morocco’s move positions it as a key regional energy and logistics hub, while other African refiners like Nigeria, Algeria, and Angola are being considered as future suppliers.
• Moroccan King Mohammed VI marked 27 years on Morocco’s throne this week, presiding over a country that has become one of Africa’s leading centres for manufacturing, trade and investment, even as thousands of its citizens continued to risk dangerous crossings in search of opportunities in Europe. This past weekend saw tens of thousands of Moroccans illegally entering Spain. An estimated 60,000 illegal migrants entered Ceuta over just a few days from neighbouring Morocco, the enclave’s regional president Juan Jesus Vivas told reporters. To cross into Ceuta, many swam around a small border barrier that juts out into the Mediterranean. At least 67 people died in the attempt, said Grande-Marlaska providing updated figures Saturday.