In 2021, a law that regulates investment in infrastructure and jobs came into effect. This was an excellent opportunity for several companies to strengthen their position and increase revenues. Cleveland-Cliffs Steel Company, which has seen strong growth recently, was one of them. Its Relative Strength (RS) rating rose by 11 points to 76. This indicator shows that the producer’s shares are in first place. Moreover, it is only 4 points away from the leading benchmark.
According to the market analysis, the best growth is recorded by stocks with an RS rating above 80. After passing this point, the price starts to move actively. So far, experts are not in a hurry to predict the further growth of Cleveland-Cliffs’ share price. However, current trends suggest a good pace of recovery.
Cleveland-Cliffs’ share price started to rise after the release of its earnings report. The company’s results exceeded analysts’ expectations. This immediately impacted the share price, which was up 5.1%. The following day, the momentum slowed by 1.4% in a falling market.

Factors pointing to a strong business position

In addition to the RS, other features testify to the stability of the business:
1. The composite rating is at a high level, 91 out of 99.
2. The earnings per share rating fell in 2023 after revenue fell. However, it showed an increase and reached 84 in the Q4.
3. The company’s shares have an accumulation/distribution rating of A. This suggests that the key buyers of the securities are institutional investors.
Since March 2023, the movement of securities has formed the base “cup with a handle”. The buying point was at the level of 21.4. This position lasted until January when it fell to 20.05. Experts are not sure whether the current trend can exceed the breakout price.
One of the reasons for the fall in the share price in the last quarter of 2023 was seasonality. At that time, the value of the shares fell by 5 cents. Earnings per share rose by 83% to end the period at 53 cents. The rise in the share price was due to an increase in sales volumes, which had been declining for several quarters.
It is worth noting that the producer’s stock is the market leader among its peers. Nucor is in second place, followed by Steel Dynamics.
Cleveland-Cliffs operates in the steel sector. It is the largest supplier of flat-rolled steel products in North America. It is also active in the mining and processing of iron ore.
The company owns mines and integrated steelmaking facilities in several US states. Its mining operations are in Minnesota and Michigan.

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In January 2024, Africa Oil conducted a share buyback of 522 thousand shares. This operation is part of the company’s previous strategy of returning securities.
The Canadian oil and gas company had previously made an offer to its issuers. As a result, the company repurchased 192 thousand common shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). Scotia Capital Bank acted as an agent for the company. It is authorised to trade in various financial instruments of the oil and gas producer.
Reportedly, 330,000 shares were bought back by Pareto Securities on the trading floor of Nasdaq Stockholm. Africa Oil states that the repurchased shares will be in the cancellation process.
The share buyback programme lasts 1 year – from December 2023 to December 2024. During this period, the issuer has the right to repurchase approximately 38.7 million ordinary shares.

Overview of Africa Oil

Africa Oil Corp was founded in 1993 as Canmex Minerals. Following a rebranding exercise in 2007, the company adopted its current name. The company operates mining and resource development in Nigeria. It also has interests in Africa and Guyana’s southern and western regions.
Until 2023, Africa Oil was also active in Kenya at the South Lokichar oil project. It partnered with TotalEnergies and Tullow Oil to develop the project. In 2022, however, French producer TotalEnergies announced its intention to withdraw from the joint venture. This was due to a lack of support from the Kenyan government. Africa Oil also withdrew from the project. According to company officials, the reason for the decision was to focus on more promising business areas. The first of these is the development of oil reserves in Namibia.
In early 2024, it became known that Africa Oil intended to start work at a new site. This is the Orange Basin, located on the shelf in southern Africa. The block is close to the oil fields where TotalEnergies and Shell are producing.
The contract for the rights to develop Orange Basin was signed in the summer of 2023. At the time, the Canadian producer said it had acquired an additional 6.3% in the new block. The company wanted to increase its working interest. In total, three companies have the right to develop the area:
– Africa Oil, which owns about 26.3% of the company;
– Eco manages 20%;
– Ricocure is the largest resource developer with a 53.8% interest.
The partners are negotiating with several other companies to transfer stakes. At the same time, a drilling project will be under development. The producers focus on minimising the negative environmental impact of mining.

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European firm CoinShares has announced the acquisition of Valkyrie Funds. The news comes after US regulators approved the use of bitcoin ETFs. CoinShares completed the deal using options.
The acquisition of a spot ETF allows the buyer to expand its operations in the US. In January, the US government approved 11 ETFs, including the registered Valkyrie. The latter allows investors to track the price dynamics of Bitcoin, the main currency on the crypto market. The fund has already placed shares in the new product, which has attracted a large number of investors. Thanks to the deals, it has managed to attract USD 4.6 billion.
Under the terms of the deal, Valkyrie’s assets will be under the management of CoinShares upon completion. The total value of the assets is approximately USD 110 million, spread across several businesses:
– ETF Valkyrie Bitcoin;
– Ether Strategy;
– ETF Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners;
– Valkyrie Bitcoin Fund.
The parties will announce the completion of the acquisition following European and US regulatory approvals.

Information on CoinShares

CoinShares is a leader in the European digital currency sector. The company manages USD 4.5 billion in assets. Key to the portfolio are two ETNs that offer transactions in the most significant cryptocurrencies – Ethereum and Bitcoin. CoinShares is listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. In January 2024, its value fell by 3.4%.
Company analysts presented their forecast of the cryptocurrency market development for the current year. According to the experts, one of the leading news will be the release of a stablecoin based on the Bitcoin ecosystem. In addition, the cost of BTC is likely to rise to USD 60,000 per coin. The stimulus for growth is the approval of spot bitcoin ETFs.
The network of this cryptocurrency will continue to develop in the direction of stablecoins. An asset may appear on the market worthy of competing with other stablecoins. It will become a convenient tool for a large number of users. This will make digital assets even more accessible to many investors.
It is worth noting that new products have already appeared on the market. For example, Liquid Network, Stacks and RSK have presented their Steibcoins. A project from bitSmiley Labs is also on the horizon.
CoinShares also predicts an increase in interest in Ethereum. Attention to digital money will increase with the appearance of the spot Ethereum ETF. Its launch is due in the second half of 2024.
The current period will be favourable for developing the cryptocurrency market. More and more countries are recognising the importance of this sector for progress. Therefore, we should expect changes in the rules of regulation of the industry, which will expand its opportunities.

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Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche is selling Eurobonds worth more than €1 billion. The reason for this decision is the purchase of Telavant, previously the property of Roivant Sciences and Pfizer. The total value of the transaction was US$7.1 billion.
The sale of Eurobonds will enable Roche to finance the acquisition partially. According to preliminary information, the Group intends to sell two types of bonds:
– bonds with a maturity of 4 years, for which the pharmaceutical company expects to receive about 45 basis points;
– bonds with a maturity of 13 years at 80 basis points over the average exchange rate.
Roche intends to use Eurobonds to finance mergers and acquisitions. The company also wants to use them to meet corporate objectives such as debt repayment, dividend payments or, if necessary, early redemption or refinancing.

Roche’s plans

The acquisition of Telavant became known in October 2023. Telavant is a pharmaceutical company developing treatments for inflammatory bowel disease. In addition, the purchase of Telavant will allow Roche to expand its experimental medicines business.
In December 2023, the Swiss pharmaceutical holding company completed the deal, which consisted of 5 parts. As a result, Roche managed to raise US$5.5 billion. The procedure involved the sale of euro-denominated bonds with maturities ranging from 3 to 10 years. Investors also participated in the transaction, placing orders worth US$12 billion.
Roche hopes that the acquisition of Telavant will strengthen its global market position. Since the beginning of 2023, the company’s shares have fallen by almost 18%, causing discontent among investors.

Terms of the Telavant acquisition

Under the terms of the deal, Roche will acquire the rights to develop, manufacture and sell Telavant, known as RVT-3101, in the US and Japan. Upon completing the transaction, Roche will pay US$7.1 billion immediately and a further US$150 million over time. The amount and timing of the repayments will depend on whether the drug meets expected profit and efficacy targets.
Telavant is a joint venture between Roivant and Pfizer. The main focus of the company is the research and commercialisation of a drug for several types of intestinal disorders, including:
– Crohn’s disease;
– Chronic diseases of the digestive system;
– inflammatory processes in the gut.
In addition, the drug is under active development, and its creators have not ruled out the possibility of using it to treat other related diseases in the future.

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Payments giant Mastercard has reached an agreement to acquire one of the divisions of African company MTN Group. This is the Fintech division. The deal is worth USD 5.2 billion. Payments will be made in two ways: cash transactions and investments in a minority stake in the division. The parties have not disclosed the percentage of securities involved in the deal.
The acquisition of the fintech division is a strategic move for Mastercard to expand in the African market. More and more young people in the region are opting for banking services available through smartphones and wireless connectivity. In this context, the development of fintech solutions has become a promising direction for MTN, a leading mobile operator on the continent. In turn, the collaboration with Mastercard opens up new opportunities to develop its business and increase its customer base.
Following the deal’s announcement, MTN’s share price rose by more than 9 per cent on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, the best daily gain of the day.
It’s worth noting that the partnership between the African operator and Mastercard began in 2021. At that time, the companies launched a joint project to provide global payment services available in 16 countries in the region.

MTN Business overview

MTN is a South African-based company that provides mobile telecommunications services across Africa and Asia in more than 20 countries. By 2020, it will be the seventh-largest operator in the world. It is the leader in Africa. MTN’s most important market is Nigeria, which has a 35% mobile market share and generates around 30% of all corporate revenues.
Originally called M-Cell, the company was established in 1994. In 2002, the company expanded aggressively in the Nigerian market and maintained a leading position.
Key milestones in the development of MTN:
– 2008 – the company acquired the South African division of US-based Verizon Business, which at the time operated in four other countries in the region in addition to South Africa;
– 2012 – the company became a DSL broadband operator in partnership with Afrihost;
– 2018 – MTN’s Ghanaian division floated on the local stock exchange, listing 35% of its shares. The move was the result of an agreement between MTN and the Ghanaian authorities;
– 2019 – the company provided access to WhatsApp messenger and its own ayoba platform.
In 2020, MTN management made a strategic decision to sell some of its assets in Afghanistan, Syria and Yemen. Some time later, the company also disposed of its 49% stake in Iranian operator Irancell. This was due to the low profitability of the Middle East business. And MTN decided to focus its efforts on other markets.

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Investment company BlackRock has published its financial statements for the second quarter of 2023. During the period, the company’s assets grew to USD 9.4 trillion. However, despite the growth, investments in long-term products were less than expected. The actual amount differs significantly from the forecasts, which has disappointed experts.
The long-term products sector includes mutual funds and ETFs. This sector grew by USD 57 billion in the second quarter, with analysts expecting an average increase of USD 81 billion. Fixed income investments increased by USD 35 billion, and the segment that includes money management products grew by USD 23 billion. At the same time, withdrawals totalled USD 4.3 billion.
According to Rob Capito, president of the investment giant, the business is focusing on products that offer high fixed returns. BlackRock officials believe the current market provides good opportunities for high returns. According to BlackRock:
– active equity products contributed a total of USD 9.7 billion;
– active fixed income generated profits of USD 3.7 billion;
– liquid alternative products generated USD 2.5 billion for BlackRock’s clients.
BlackRock is the world’s largest firm in terms of assets under management. One of the factors in its success is the regular expansion of profit opportunities. One of the company’s priorities is to create the best possible working conditions for investors. To this end, the company offers universal partnership opportunities, including providing a range of financial products for private investment. BlackRock develops effective strategies to generate returns through equity funds, bonds and other instruments. The company also provides advisory, analytical and forecasting services for the financial markets.

Overview of BlackRock’s activities

BlackRock Investment Corporation appeared in the US in 1988 as a division of Blackstone. It received its current name in 1992. At the time, the company had USD 17 billion in assets under management, which grew to USD 53 billion two years later. The company went public in 1999. At that time, its assets reached USD 165 billion. Now, the company belongs to the financial group PNC. The amount of the transaction was USD 240 million.
According to the data, in 2022, BlackRock managed a capital of 10 USD trillion. In addition to traditional financial instruments, the company is also introducing digital assets. In the summer of 2023, BlackRock received SEC approval to develop the Spot Bitcoin ETF.

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Analysts at financial services firm Citigroup have issued a market outlook. According to the report, investors are increasingly turning their attention to US equities. This has been evident in the number of new longs that have been in place recently. Their momentum was the highest for the whole of 2023.
Citigroup notes that the market has a 9:1 ratio of longs to shorts. Strategists at Goldman Sachs, who have analysed the behaviour of hedge funds, see a similar pattern. It turns out that they have been actively buying US stocks for some time, with the growth rate of such trades being the highest since October 2022. At the same time, the funds have continued to unwind both bullish and bearish bets on the securities. Interestingly, the market is bullish on US equities. Optimism started to build when the S&P 500 reached 4,200, which is considered a breakout.
Volatility is also falling. It has already fallen to its most stable position this year. It should be noted that these developments are taking place in a situation where the risks to the market related to the US sovereign debt settlement are still quite high. The authorities have not yet reached a decision on its ceiling.
One of the factors behind the increased interest in US equities has been a change in investor strategy. They shifted their attention from cyclical industries to the technology sector, where profits can be high. As a result, the securities of several IT companies began to rise rapidly in value. According to Goldman, large-cap US technology stocks outperformed hedge fund long positions in the first three months 2002.

US stock market overview

It was not only the S&P 500 Index that showed strong growth in June. Other US market indicators were also active.
1. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.11% at 33610.2. Leaders were Chevron and Salesforce, both up just over 1%. Merck fell 1.2%.
2. The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 0.32% to around 4,297.5 points.
3. The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.6% at 13355.
Stocks in Casey’s fell more than 6% after the restaurant chain reported a profit cut. Chemical company Univar Solutions was slightly higher, up 0.2%. This was boosted by the announcement of the sale of the business to investment giant Apollo. The transaction was valued at more than USD 8 billion. Stitch Fix, which offers online tailoring assistance, was up 30%. The re-rating came after the company reported sales that exceeded analysts’ forecasts.
Despite the bullish sentiment, experts are still awaiting the Fed’s decision on a rate hike. The probability of a hike at current levels is around 73%.

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US company Berkshire has sold US$1.2bn worth of yen bonds. The deal was a massive setback for the investment giant. It was the most significant expense for the business in its history, with debt denominated in that currency. And Berkshire is considered one of the largest foreign issuers of bonds in Japanese currency. The main reason for the increase in costs was a change in policy by Japan’s regulator, which increased the burden on security holders.
During the bond sale, Berkshire posted spreads higher than the offer in the last transaction, which occurred in December 2022. Despite this, the value of the current sale showed an active debt momentum. Mizuho Securities acted as one of the registrars for the transaction. According to its statement, the 5-year bond yield is 1.14%, seven times Berkshire’s payout in 2019 when it first started issuing yen bonds.
This trend suggests that:
– despite the stability of the economy, Japan, like other countries, is susceptible to rising bond prices;
– the price of yen-denominated bonds is still relatively low by global standards;
– debt costs are rising, but Japanese equities are still inexpensive.
Analysts believe that this situation may not last long. Soon the Japanese central bank will follow the example of its international counterparts and raise interest rates. Currently, they are at negative levels. According to Amir Anwarzadeh of Asymmetric Advisors, the regulator must revise rates, leading to a stronger yen.

Berkshire’s operations in Japan

Warren Buffett’s company made its first yen bond sale in 2019. Since then, it has sold 1.2 trillion yen worth of debt. Berkshire entered the Japanese equity market in 2020 when it bought local companies for one of the most considerable sums in the sector. However, the investment giant will not stop there and plans to increase its investments in local stocks. It talks about the top five Japanese trading houses. The company now owns around 5% of their shares, but the stake could be increased to 7.4%. Buffett has also met with Japanese CEOs, but the outcome remains unknown. At the same time, the businessman expressed his desire to buy shares of other Japanese companies in the future but did not name them specifically.

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In April 2023, Fintech Farm held a funding round in which it raised US$22 million. The leading investor was the Nordstar fund. Experts believe the valuation of the neobank deployment platform could exceed US$100 million.
The current funding round was the second for the company, incorporated in the UK in 2020. The first took place in early 2022 and raised US$7.4 million. Investors then included Flyer One Venture Fund, fintech Solid, and an African marketplace.
Fintech Farm was founded by three businessmen: Mykola Bezkrovny, Oleksandr Vityaz and Dmytro Dubilet. The latter is famous for creating the Monobank online banking service. The platform allows the launching of Internet banking in partnership with traditional financial institutions.
Mobile banking based on the platform:
– Leobank;
– Liobank;
– Fibo.
The first Fintech Farm-based project is Leobank in Azerbaijan. It was launched in cooperation with the local Unibank. The application has about 1 million users. The project is already profitable.
Liobank is operating in Vietnam. It is still at the testing stage in two major cities in the country, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
Fibo is a non-banking solution designed specifically for Nigeria. It is also still in the testing phase and is available to Lagos residents.

The attractiveness of neobank to investors

The company focuses primarily on Asia and Africa, but management plans to expand its geographic reach. The company plans to launch ten projects in different countries in the medium term.
The funding round used the convertible loan mechanism, which the venture capital market considers quite popular when investing in promising start-ups. This approach implies that investors’ funds will be converted into company shares not in the current round but in the next one. The main argument for investments is the success of the Leobank project, which generates income and has a high rating among users.
According to Dmytro Dubilet from Fintech Farm, mobile banks based on the platform are functional and attractive to users. Every detail involved in the project’s launch is thought through, considering the target audience’s preferences. This makes it convenient for customers to use the app and enjoyable.
The fintech app model assumes the possibility of lending to a traditional financial institution, so each app has a partner bank in every country. It is selected according to several criteria. First and foremost, it must be a reliable and large business.
Despite excellent prospects and current successes, experts are somewhat cautious in predicting the future of Fintech Farm. Their main argument is the instability of the global banking system, which may limit the company’s development.

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In March 2023, Presight AI, a startup owned by G42, held an IPO that raised US$496 million. After listing, the project’s shares rose 1.8 times. This result shows that IPO investors are paying more and more attention to projects related to artificial intelligence technologies. In addition, interest in the Middle East market increased markedly, helped by higher oil prices. The UAE stock exchange is growing strongly, with more foreign investors putting money into promising local projects.
Abu Dhabi-based G42 received bids worth US$26 billion in its initial public offering. According to the startup, the funds raised were 136 times what they initially expected from the IPO. Presight AI shares traded at AED 1.34 per unit. In total, the company entered the market for 1.36 billion securities. It should be noted that this listing was the second for the Abu Dhabi bourse and proved to be highly successful.
The startup operates in the field of AI technology and cloud computing. It builds AI models for various applications, such as pharmaceuticals, logistics, banking, finance, etc. The UAE-based company’s solutions improve the efficiency of business processes and prevent the most common problems from occurring.

G42 company

Parent company G42 has developed an AI solution for testing cases of COVID-19. Using artificial intelligence, the UAE has deployed a laboratory to analyse around 40,000 samples daily. At the same time, the program loaded the test results into a special mobile app.
In 2022, G42 set up a fund to support technology deals. The capital was US$10 billion, which will be used for promising IT projects in emerging markets. Businessmen created a new company Businessmen created a new company in cooperation with the Abu Dhabi National Development Fund.
The fund, founded by G42, focuses primarily on investing in start-ups in the later stages of project development. The investment mechanism is private equity. Companies involved in developments in the healthcare system, alternative energy, and technology industries can receive funding.
Founded in 2018 in Abu Dhabi, G42 acquired Bayanat, a geodata provider, in 2020. The business works with Israeli defence groups Rafael and IAI to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks. The companies are jointly developing research and control of the virus.

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