Breaking News Today – Thursday 27 August 2026

• Nigeria-based venture capital firm Ventures Platform has raised $84 million for its over-subscribed second fund, indicating increasing appetite from investors into the African startup landscape. Ventures Platform’s first institutional fund closed at $46 million in 2022 plans to invest in early-stage businesses operating in sectors including fintech, healthcare, software and other technology-enabled services addressing major economic and infrastructure needs. The firm has already begun deploying capital from the new fund, backing five companies in Kenya, South Africa and Egypt. Individual investments are up to $3 million per qualifying applicant, with Ventures Platform expecting to deploy the fund over a three to four year period.
  

Business News Today 

South African Business Liquidations Continue to Slow

Business Liquidations in South Africa have continued to see lower numbers with the latest data from Statistics South Africa indication a year-to-date decrease of 4,9%, from 1 684 to 1 601 companies, recorded in the first seven months of 2026. In The month of July 2026, the total number of liquidations decreased by 23,2% from 311 to 239, compared with July 2025. Of the 239 liquidations in July, 208 were voluntary while 31 were compulsory, which is a barometer of business stress. Liquidations of companies decreased by 44 cases and liquidations of close corporations decreased by 28 cases. the hardest-hit industries in July were Financing, insurance, real estate, and business services, which recorded 41 liquidations. 

Dangote Oil Cites Major Local Crude Oil Shortage

While Dangote Refinery has boosted fuel exports for the country, it is also faced with a growing need to import crude oil to meet production. In Q2 2026, seaborne product shipments from Nigeria (refined fuel exports) averaged around 561,000 barrels per day, of which about 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) were true exports, versus an average of around 46,000 bpd exported in 2023. This sevenfold rise, was driven by the Dangote refinery after start-up in 2024 and the February 2026 expansion of daily production of refined fuel to about 700,000 bpd.

Separately, July 2026 petrol supply inside Nigeria was about 45.5 million litres per day. Domestic refineries (almost all Dangote) supplied about 25.8 million litres (roughly 57%). Imports of refined fuels were about 19.7 million litres (about 43%), up from a much smaller share in May. Over January–July 2026 as a whole, domestic plants still supplied about three-quarters of local fuel supply. with July a rebound in imports, not a full reversal of the multi-year shift. Dangote’s management has said imported crude required for the refinery, is still about 30–40% of the refinery’s intake. Regulator data for January–July 2026 put local crude at a higher share of all domestic refinery feedstock (around 80% in one NMDPRA summary), but the gap Dangote cites is real in some months and is the part that matters for its economics.

Durban Port Delays Disrupting Import / Export Operations

The South African Freight and Logistics Association (Safla) and Road Freight Association (RFA)is calling for urgent action to be taken to reduce wait times at South Africa’s largest terminal. The organisations have indicated that disruptions at the Durban Gateway Terminal (DGT) is increasing across all port operations resulting in delays and increased costs for importers and major exporters, resulting in price increases and lowering competitiveness. This comes despite a a 25-year partnership deal concluded by Transnet, with Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services Inc (ICTSI) – which assumed operational responsibility for the DGT, on 1 January 2026. Pier 2 is the largest container terminal in South Africa and handles more than 40% of the country’s container traffic.

According to Safla, wait times for seaborne vessels combined with berth wait times for of-loading cargo, had increased from around a combined wait time of 186 hours to around 282 hours, an increase of 151% in August from July 2026. Independent monitoring cited by Safla and the RFA shows that the average Durban port call – including time spent waiting and at berth – increased from less than five days in late June to more than 12 days by late August.

Breaking Business and Market News Shorts:  

• Nvidia has agreed to acquire Hugging Face, the open-source AI models company, for $12.9 billion, as reported by The Information yesterday, citing a person with knowledge of the deal. This would be one of Nvidia’s largest acquisitions to date and raising interest in how the Jensen Huang-led company at the centre of the AI boom ​is betting that demand for the technology is expanding rather than ​peaking.
• Meta and a coalition of state attorneys general have settled a major federal trialcentred on allegations that the social media giant misrepresented the extent of child-related mental health harms caused by apps like Facebook and Instagram. Meta have agreed to pay $16.7 billion to settle. The state of California could receive receive$1.5 billion to $2.1 billion if the court officially approves the settlement
• The United States has opened a $1.55 billion rare-earth financing package in Brazil, days after committing $62.8 million to projects across four African countries, as Washington accelerates efforts to challenge China’s dominance of the strategic minerals supply chain.
• Kenya Airways are to disclose details of potential new investors within weeks,according to its Chairman Kiprono Kittony. The loss-making carrier is seeking new capital to ease debt pressure, restore grounded aircraft and fund its turnaround plan. “We have received interests from local and international investors who will inject both capital and other resources into KQ,” Kittony told reporters.
• Wheat futures climbed toward $7.40 per bushel in late August, hitting its highest level since June 2023, as the escalating Russia-Ukraine war fuelled concerns over further disruptions to supplies from one of the world’s key grain-producing regions. 

Markets by Numbers 

Currency markets indicate the US dollar mostly flat today. The Greenback is trading against the Euro at 1.16559 while trading against the Pound at 1.35894 The Yen is currently trading at 159.32 to the dollar. The rand (ZAR), is currently trading around the 15.95 mark against the US dollar this morning.

Commodities:  

• Gold futures are 0.25% higher this morning, and currently trading at around $4605.65 per ounce.  
• Copper prices are flat this morning , with prices currently around $6.6006 per pound
• Silver futures are up around 0.8% today, and currently trading at around $68.602 per ounce.
• Platinum futures are up around 0.27% this morning, and currently trading at $1848.50 while Palladium is down -0.12% today, and currently trading around $1325.00 per ounce.
• Lithium prices are down -0.16% today, and currently at CNY152 500
• Brent crude oil prices are trending -0.7% lower today, and currently trading around $87.20 with WTI trading lower at $81.61 currently
• Cocoa futures are up marginally today, and currently trading at $5831 per ton. 
• Coffee futures are down almost -4% today, and currently trading at around $3.2215 per pound

Crypto Currencies: 

• Bitcoin prices are up around -0.26% today, currently trading at around $78 773 per coin.
• Ether prices are trending -0.5% lower this morning, and currently trading around $2493.99

(All prices as quoted at approximately 07H50 Central African Time) 

African General News Briefs:

• As geopolitical tensions increase across the Middle East, Egyptian President El-Sisi has declared that Egypt’s military is fully prepared to counter any external threats. El-Sisi made this statement during a ceremony at the Strategic Command headquarters yesterday. He emphasised his close monitoring of the armed forces’ readiness and capabilities. He further highlighted that the state remains highly alert to potential challenges, pointing to “the vigilance of the Egyptian state and all its agencies regarding everything related to our national security”.
• The Ghanaian government has reportedly, declined a $1.8 million donation offered by MTN Ghana to support Ghanaian citizens affected by xenophobic attacks in South Africa.The Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the government has already made sufficient financial provisions for evacuation and reintegration of affected Ghanaians. The decision was not a rejection of MTN’s support but is rather a reflection of the government’s current arrangements and readiness to handle the humanitarian response independently.