—-strengthening global standards for fund valuation

June 2, 2026/IOSCO

The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) published today its Final Report on Valuing Collective Investment Schemes (CIS), which sets out a comprehensive and updated set of recommendations to further enhance the reliability, consistency and transparency of valuation practices across global investment funds.

The report updates and consolidates IOSCO’s earlier Principles on valuation for collective investment schemes and hedge funds respectively. It takes into consideration feedback from market participants and developments in financial markets such as the rise in funds investing in less liquid, harder-to-value assets, including private assets, and the increasing participation of retail investors in such funds.

Accurate valuation of fund assets is critical to investor protection and to maintaining confidence in financial markets. It underpins the calculation of net asset value (NAV), ensuring that investors subscribe and redeem units at fair prices and are treated equitably.

The report sets out a series of recommendations aimed at strengthening valuation practices across jurisdictions and market participants. These focus on:

• Robust governance and oversight arrangement, including under stressed market conditions;
• Management of conflicts of interest;
• Sound and consistently applied valuation methodologies;
• Appropriate use and oversight of third-party valuation providers; and
• Transparency, disclosure to investors and record-keeping.

The recommendations are designed to be proportionate and adaptable across different types of funds and jurisdictions, while promoting a more harmonized and a more globally consistent framework for fund valuations.

“Reliable valuation practices are fundamental to fair and efficient markets. IOSCO’s updated recommendations will further ensure that investors are treated fairly and that fund valuations remain robust, including in periods of market stress.”

– Jean-Paul Servais, IOSCO Board Chair

“This work reflects IOSCO’s continued focus on strengthening the resilience of the asset management sector. The recommendations provide comprehensive practical guidance to address potential valuation challenges arising from the growing investment in less liquid assets and growing use of more complex investment strategies. They also complement IOSCO’s broader commitment to fortifying the resilience of open-ended funds to support financial stability.”

– Jessica Reyes, Chair of IOSCO’s Committee on Investment Management, and Head of Asset Management Policy Division at the French Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF)

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June 1, 2026/Dangote Group

…….Reinforces dominance in industrial, social impact and development rankings

Dangote Industries Limited has reinforced its position as Africa’s most influential corporate brands after emerging as the continent’s Most Admired African Brand for the eight consecutive years, while its Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, was named among Africa’s 100 Most Influential Chief Marketing Officers.

The recognition was announced at the 16th annual Brand Africa 100: Africa’s Best Brands rankings unveiled in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The survey, regarded as Africa’s most comprehensive consumer-led brand study, covered 30 countries representing more than 85 per cent of the continent’s population and economic output.

In the latest rankings, Dangote emerged as Africa’s Most Admired Brand in aided recall, ahead of South Africa’s MTN and Vodacom. In the spontaneous recall category, it ranked second among African brands, behind MTN and ahead of Trade Kings. The Group also retained its position as Africa’s Most Admired Industrial Brand and was ranked the No. 1 African Brand Contributing to a Better Africa, ahead of MTN, DStv, Shoprite/Checkers and Trade Kings, reflecting its significant contribution to industrialisation, job creation, economic development and sustainable growth across the continent.

The rankings show Dangote’s growing influence as one of Africa’s most recognisable corporate brands, built on investments spanning cement, fertiliser, petrochemicals, energy, sugar, salt, packaging and logistics. Brand Africa noted that despite a modest rebound in African brand recognition, homegrown brands still account for only 15 per cent of Africa’s 100 most admired brands, highlighting the continued dominance of foreign brands across the continent.

Brand Africa Founder and Chairman, Thebe Ikalafeng, described the promotion and support of African brands as a critical economic imperative for the continent.

“Converting goodwill towards African contribution into admiration for African brands is the most urgent commercial opportunity for the continent. It is not enough for Africans to believe in Africa, they must buy Made-in-Africa,” he said.

The survey also ranked Dangote among Africa’s leading brands in sustainability and social impact, placing second in the category of brands recognised for doing good for society, people and the environment.

Despite the dominance of global brands across Africa, Dangote has cemented its position as one of the continent’s leading corporate brands, alongside MTN and Ethiopian Airlines. The three emerged as the highest ranked African brands in the 2026 Brand Africa rankings, standing out on a list dominated by global names such as Nike, Adidas, Samsung, Apple and Coca-Cola. The achievement is notable given that African brands accounted for just 15 per cent of the Top 100 rankings, compared with 38 per cent for European brands, 28 per cent for North American brands and 19 per cent for Asian brands.

Further strengthening the Group’s standing, its Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, was selected for the inaugural Africa CMO 100 (ACMO100) list, which recognises the continent’s most impactful marketing, brand and reputation leaders.

The ACMO100 initiative, launched by Brand Africa in partnership with African Business magazine, MIPAD and the African Media Agency, honours marketing executives whose work is shaping Africa’s business narrative, strengthening brand equity and driving economic growth across the continent and the diaspora.

Chiejina was among only 20 executives selected from West Africa and one of 17 Nigerians recognised for their contribution to brand building, corporate reputation management and strategic communications.

According to Brand Africa, the selection process was based on independent research, industry impact, leadership influence and contribution to the growth of brands that shape consumer perceptions and economic outcomes across Africa.

The latest recognition adds to a growing list of honours for Dangote Industries, which was inducted into the Brand Africa Hall of Fame last year for consistently ranking among Africa’s most admired brands over more than a decade. Its President and Chief Executive, Aliko Dangote, was also honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award for championing industrialisation and building one of Africa’s most successful indigenous enterprises.

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The HRI Roadmap for Africa sets out a coordinated, country-led approach to mobilising commercial and catalytic capital in underserved frontier markets and transition states, regions where the investment gap is most acute

May 29, 2026/AfDB

The African Development Bank Group and the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Wednesday launched the Humanitarian and Resilience Investing (HRI) Roadmap for Africa to channel private investment into Africa’s most fragile economies.  

The HRI Roadmap for Africa sets out a coordinated, country-led approach to mobilising commercial and catalytic capital in underserved frontier markets and transition states, regions where the investment gap is most acute and the enabling conditions for private investment have historically been weakest.

The roadmap’s development responds to a structural paradox at the heart of Africa’s financing challenge: the continent faces an annual development financing gap of about $400 billion. Despite having 17 percent of the world’s population, Africa attracts only 3.5 percent of global foreign direct investment and less than 2 percent of global venture capital. Shifting geopolitical dynamics and contracting official development assistance environment have further intensified the urgency. Pilots are already underway in Liberia, Somalia, Mozambique, and Djibouti.

In keynote remarks, African Development Bank Group Senior Vice President Marie-Laure Akin-Olugbade, speaking on behalf of President Dr Sidi Ould Tah, underscored the urgency of the moment. “The time for a paradigm shift, from aid dependency to investment-led development, is now. The HRI Roadmap creates that foundation. It clarifies roles. It sequences interventions. It positions public and development finance where it belongs: as a catalyst, not a substitute.”

Ms. Sheba Crocker, Managing Director of the World Economic Forum; said: “The world’s most vulnerable communities deserve more than relief — they deserve investment in the businesses and economies that allow them to thrive on their own terms. Built on the global HRI initiative and backed by more than 100 partners, this Roadmap reflects our determination to move beyond fragmentation and toward the coordinated, investment-led approaches that Africa’s frontier markets urgently require.”

Acting Vice President for Regional Development, Integration and Business Delivery, Dr Abdul Kamara, moderated a panel discussion on Catalysing Investment in Africa’s Frontier Markets that followed the high-level remarks. The panellists were WEF MD Sheba Crocker; Bihi Iman Egeh, Minister of Finance of Somalia; Chris Bold, Director, International Financial Institutions Department at the U.K’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO); and Sara Mbago-Bhunu, Director, East and Southern Africa Division, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Minister Egeh argued that Somalia does not lack entrepreneurship but suffers from de-risking gaps and exclusion from correspondent banking. Mbago-Bhunu drew on examples from IFAD’s work with smallholder farmers– including a digital-voucher scheme with Kenyan commercial banks– to make the case that rural and peri-urban implementation will require integrated financial, digital and infrastructure tools, not isolated interventions. Bold explained that FCDO is steering its development finance institutions toward fragile states that rely on concessional capital. He pointed to Kenya’s M-Pesa mobile money system as proof that creating new markets depends as much on regulatory reform as on capital.

Mr. Bumi Camara, African Development Bank Chief Fragility and Resilience Economist, made a presentation on the roadmap.https://apo-opa.co/3PM4dKI

The Roadmap, which embeds climate resilience and gender inclusion as core pillars, aligns with the African Development Bank’s Four Cardinal Points strategic compass as well as the New African Financial Architecture for Development (NAFAD), endorsed through the Abidjan Consensus in April 2026. It also aligns with the Bank’s Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA) — which to date has disbursed $1.33 billion to women-led businesses across 45 countries.

 Click to download a copy of the HRI Roadmap (https://apo-opa.co/4veVCz4)

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