🎬Money Tussle

Good morning. The summer of sports began its final chapter yesterday in the city of love(or light, depending on your relationship status) with the opening ceremony of the Paralympic games. And here’s all you need to know.

• Eritrea will become one of 3 countries(The other two are Kosovo and Kiribati) to make their Paralympic debut.

• Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Morocco, and Nigeria will be fielding the highest number of female athletes at these games - 4.

• The Paralympics have historically been kinder to African countries than the Olympics; At Tokyo 2020, African delegations brought home 63 medals (including 21 gold), in Rio 2016, the total was 97 (36 gold).

This is the only gambling advice we’ll ever give: Don’t place any handicap bets.

— Edna Akanni, Geraldine Ndzomo

FINANCE

Africa’s newly minted richest man

In the latest installment of the Nigeria-South Africa skirmish, the title of Africa’s Richest Man has officially moved headquarters down to sunny Pretoria.

On Wednesday, official reports from Bloomberg Data saw South African billionaire, Johan Rupert overtake Nigerian industrialist Aliko Dangote as Africa’s richest person. Rupert is currently worth an estimated $14.3bn as opposed to Dangote whose net worth has plummeted in the past year to $13.4bn.

Why is this even important?

The downturn in Dangote’s fortunes underscores the challenging business environment in Nigeria where his conglomerate primarily operates. In the past year alone;

• Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu’s move to remove subsidies on petroleum products has led to sky-high inflation, above 30%.

• The Nigerian Naira has seen its value crash by over 70%, significantly affecting Mr. Dangote, whose wealth is largely tied to assets denominated in the local currency

•  His business empire, the Dangote Group, has faced production delays at its refinery and supply chain disruptions.

Still, the biggest reason for the changing tides might be the booming luxury watch market. Rupert owns Richemont, the company behind luxury watch brands like Jaeger Le Coultre, Cartier & Montblanc who in the past year have seen demand skyrocket amidst the shift away from digital to more traditional timepieces.

Zoom out: Despite his current slip, Dangote is very securely placed in pole position for the ‘richest black person’ title. His $13bn treasure chest puts him well ahead of the second richest black person, American investor, Robert Smith whose net worth evens out at $9.2bn. EA.

AFRICA

Headline Quickie

• Egypt fuels tensions in Somalia. Egypt has made a strategic move by delivering weapons to Somalia, intensifying tensions in the Horn of Africa. This action follows a recent military cooperation agreement between the two countries, aimed at bolstering Somalia's control over breakaway regions and countering Ethiopia’s recognition of Somaliland's sovereignty in exchange for strategic benefits. Since 2006, Somalia has relied on foreign troops to help fight militant Islamist groups trying to overthrow the government.

• Spain’s PM commences West Africa tour. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited the Gambia on Wednesday as part of a broader tour to address irregular migration. His visit marked the first time a Spanish leader had been to Gambia, where he discussed cooperation on security and legal migration opportunities. This trip is crucial for Spain, as the country seeks to curb the flow of migrants from West Africa to the Canary Islands, a route that has seen a significant increase in crossings in the past 5 years.

• Tinubu and Xi Jingping engage in diplomatic talks. President Bola Tinubu embarked on a crucial diplomatic mission to China, where he engaged in high-level talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping. These discussions focused on signing several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with major Chinese firms, including Huawei and the China Railway Construction Corporation. The agreements are set to accelerate key infrastructure projects, particularly the Ibadan-Abuja rail line, as part of a broader effort to enhance Nigeria's transportation network.