Access FX Expertise

Jessica Gounden, Head of Trade and Working Capital Operations (Pan Africa) at Absa CIB, examines how Absa’s digitisation strategy is transforming trade in Africa by embedding automation, control and AI-driven risk management into its operations, while placing the client at the heart of this transformation

Gerald Katsenga, Head of Global Markets Corporate Sales at Absa Regional Operations, offers a foreign exchange response to US tariffs and global trade wars.

Africa is leading a global digital payments revolution as the continent continues its transition from an historic dependency on cash-based transactions towards a future characterised by digital payments. This growth is being driven by the need for instant, real-time, seamless experiences like enhanced cross-border transactions, contactless payments and digital wallets.

Blockchain is no longer on the periphery, it’s powering real-world solutions and unlocking growth across Africa. From enabling inclusive access to capital for startups to strengthening the resilience of our energy infrastructure, blockchain technology is helping to reshape the continent’s economic future on its own terms.

The collaboration between us and Absolute Strategy Research (ASR) represents an exciting joint venture, combining Absa’s leadership in capital markets brokerage with ASR’s globally acclaimed expertise in macroeconomic analysis and investment strategy.

Read the first issue of Absa CIB's Focused on FX newsletter and get the latest insights and updates from our award-winning foreign exchange experts.

In 2023, a financing deal quietly redrew the boundaries of East Africa’s real estate playbook. Acorn Holdings Limited secured KES 6.7 billion from Absa Group and Absa Bank Kenya to develop ten purpose-built student accommodation sites across Nairobi.

How do macro and market themes shape emerging market currencies like the rand – and what does that mean for your business? Find out in this episode of our Coffee Break Commerce podcast.

Sudeera Harduth, Head: Supply Chain Finance Product Management, TxB Trade and Working Capital, Absa CIB, and Shanelle Maharaj, Manager: Operations, TxB Trade and Working Capital, Absa CIB, explain why cash flow remains king for business and unpack the value of bespoke supply chain financing solutions.

Just a few years ago, those driving between Pietermaritzburg and Durban would be confronted by kilometres of empty space between the two cities, an ever-widening highway, and field upon field of sugarcane.

Some may say this is an understatement, but we are experiencing a year of significant economic uncertainty. The less certainty, the greater the financial instability, and as the International Monetary Fund so succinctly explained last year, unknowns raise the risk of financial market volatility alongside a sharp decline in economic growth.

The SARB’s Market Practitioners Group has endorsed that the South African interest rate market adopts a Credit Adjustment Spread (CAS) estimation methodology, consistent with international practices and based on ISDA’s recommendation.