Traders call time on long hours following consultation January 30, 2020 Traders have today called for market trading hours to be reduced by 90 minutes to seven hours. The Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) and the Investment Association (IA) have responded to the London Stock Exchange’s consultation on the issue. They are campaigning for a reduction in hours to either 9am-4pm or 9.30am-4.30pm. AFME [...]
Davos 2020 live: Carrie Lam ‘disappointed’ by rating downgrade January 21, 2020 Please manually refresh this page for our latest Davos 2020 updates. The World Economic Forum at Davos is focusing on sustainability this year. US President Donald Trump is set to make a special address, despite his impeachment beginning in the Senate. Environmental activist Greta Thunberg hosts a panel session. Read more: What is Davos 2020? [...]
Botswana and Zimbabwe typify Africa’s diverse capital market challenges January 14, 2020 CFA Institute has examined Africa’s 10 largest capital markets in a major report compiled by Heidi Raubenheimer, CFA, our senior director for journal publications. Here we highlight key developments in Botswana and Zimbabwe. Botswana: mining-dominated exchange seeking to innovate Botswana is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. But the Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) has [...]
Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic spaceship passes construction milestone January 8, 2020 Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic has reached a major milestone in the construction of its next passenger spaceship, it said. All major structural elements have been assembled, and the rocket is standing on its landing gear at Mojave Air and Space Port in California. Read more: Sir Richard Branson set to launch Virgin Galactic IPO [...]
Softbank-backed Oneconnect slashes IPO and lowers valuation December 12, 2019 Chinese fintech Oneconnect has slashed its target valuation and downsized its planned initial public offering (IPO) in the US, in yet another blow for Softbank. The fintech, which is a subsidiary of Chinese insurance giant Ping An, downsized its planned stock market debut in New York by 28 per cent. Read more: Another dog for Softbank [...]
London Stock Exchange launches consultation on shorter trading hours December 10, 2019 The London Stock Exchange (LSE) has launched a consultation on shortening its trading hours following calls by industry bodies who said such a change would improve workplace culture and liquidity. The stock exchange has asked its members – mainly banks and brokers – for its views on a series of options for shortening the current [...]
What’s driving capital market developments in South Africa and Namibia? December 9, 2019 CFA Institute has examined Africa’s 10 largest capital markets in a major report compiled by Heidi Raubenheimer, CFA, our senior director for journal publications. Here we highlight key developments in different countries, starting with neighbours South Africa and Namibia. South Africa: Johannesburg Stock Exchange facing competition South Africa – the second-largest economy in Africa after Nigeria [...]
Google founders to step down as executives of parent firm Alphabet December 3, 2019 Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the two co-founders of Google, have announced their intention to step down as executives of parent firm Alphabet. The reins will be passed on to current Google chief Sundar Pichai, who will hold the role of chief executive at both Google and Alphabet going forward. “With Alphabet now well-established, and [...]
Alibaba IPO: E-commerce giant’s shares jump on blockbuster Hong Kong debut November 26, 2019 Alibaba, the Chinese online retail giant, has enjoyed a surge in its share price after floating on the Hong Kong stock exchange, in one of the year’s most hotly anticipated Initial Public Offerings. The firm, which is already listed in the US, raised around £8.8bn in its secondary listing, with chairman Daniel Zhang cheering on [...]
Alibaba to raise up to $12.9bn in landmark Hong Kong listing November 20, 2019 Alibaba is set to raise up to $12.9bn (£10bn) from its record-breaking second listing in Hong Kong, pricing its shares at a 2.8 per cent discount to their New York close. The Chinese e-commerce giant is set to officially announce the terms of the deal later on Wednesday, but investors have been told 176 Hong [...]