Investors update: Bitcoin heads for a weekly gain despite FTX debacle

Bitcoin heads for a weekly gain despite FTX debacle

Highlights

• Bitcoin prices edged up despite further drama around the collapse of FTX after its new chief executive described lax financial reporting, incomplete record-keeping, and questionable management practices at the cryptocurrency exchange. 
• The biggest cryptocurrency has held above $16,000 this week after collapsing from more than $21,000 to lows of near $15,500 reached in the immediate aftermath of FTX’s failure. 
• The token is up some 3% over the past week, topping global stocks, while a gauge of the leading 100 virtual coins has added about 1%.

Source: Bloomberg

Our Takeaway

As of 5:40 am ET Friday, Bitcoin had climbed 0.8% over the past 24 hours to more than $16,700. Despite the rebound, platforms in the crypto sector remain under pressure with outflows most severe from the likes of Gemini, OKX, and Crypto.com, per JP Morgan. This comes as the FTX crisis worsens; on Thursday, its new CEO said only $740 million of cryptocurrency had been secured in new wallets, while at least $372 million of unauthorized transfers took place on the day FTX and Alameda filed for bankruptcy last week.

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Dangote companies report $3.3bn in nine-month revenues

Highlights

• Three Dangote companies quoted on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) raked in combined revenue of N1.51 trillion (over $3.3 billion) in the first nine months of 2022.  
• This is contained in the unaudited Q3 2022 results, released by the companies on the exchange. The companies under consideration are Dangote Cement, Dangote Sugar, and Nascon Allied Industries.
• The combined revenue eclipsed the N1.2 trillion reported in the same period last year but higher operating costs reduced combined profits from N296 billion to about N240.8 billion this year.

Source: Nairametrics

Our Takeaway

Amid macroeconomic headwinds including inflationary pressure and scarcity of foreign exchange (forex) needed to import crucial inputs, the Dangote-owned companies have shown resilience and grown on the back of aggressive expansion. But like other local manufacturers, they’ve had to grapple with erratic fuel and epileptic power supply, both of which remain major challenges to producers in Africa’s largest economy. 

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Egypt-born CONIX.AI raises $1.3m in pre-seed round

Highlights

• UK-based and Egypt-born design tech CONIX.AI has raised $1.3 million led by BIM Ventures, announcing the commencement of its commercial activities in Saudi Arabia.
• Founded in 2020 by Yusuf Fahmy, CONIX.AI enables real estate developers and architects to generate designs and adaptive materials through its platform using its AI-based solution.
• With the new funding, the company is planning an expansion into Saudi Arabia and further product development.

Source: Wamda

Our Takeaway

Proptech is beginning to heat up in Africa. Unlike many other traditional industries, the real estate and property space has mostly stayed the same over the decades. But in recent times, the ongoing technology wave has seen a number of African startups emerge with a vision to give the sector a face-lift. Verticals within this fast-emerging sector span online portals, rent splitting, community management platforms for landlord-tenant relations, as well as AI, data, and analytics platforms for different purposes and a wide array of market stakeholders.