The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) is leveraging new technology to boost foreign investment, with Absa Securities Kenya executing the first sponsored access trades. This new model allows foreign investors to directly access the NSE’s trading engine, promising faster execution and supporting high-volume trades.

• The new mechanism aims to revive foreign participation, which is currently at multi-year lows.
• Absa Bank South Africa routed the initial trades, demonstrating the system's functionality.
• Head of Electronic Sales at Absa CIB Merlin Rajah stated that this signals strong market confidence and technological readiness.
• The NSE hopes this will attract more regional deal flow, particularly from South African institutional investors.

Viktoria Ventures has been awarded "Angel Network of the Year 2025" at the Africa Early-Stage Investor Summit (AESIS), recognizing its significant contributions to strengthening angel investing and early-stage financing across Africa.

• The award, presented by the African Business Angel Network (ABAN) and VC4A, highlights years of building investment structures, training investors, and mobilizing capital for African startups.
• CEO Stephen Gugu emphasized that the recognition validates their mission to expand investor capacity and foster a collaborative investment environment.
• The organization’s Angel Leads Program, delivered through the African Angel Academy (AAA), has trained 22 angel investors who formed the Moneva Syndicate, and a total of 797 angel investors from 38 African countries.

Nairobi has been ranked the third most attractive city in Africa in the newly released Jeune Afrique 2025 African Cities Attractiveness Index, marking its strongest showing yet as it cements its position as a regional tech and investment hub.

• Nairobi's rise is attributed to its expanding digital ecosystem, major infrastructure upgrades, and sustained investor interest, despite recent socio-political tensions.
• The Jeune Afrique 2025 African Cities Attractiveness Index evaluates 30 African cities using resident perceptions and objective economic indicators, including foreign direct investment flows between 2020 and 2023.
• Cairo topped the 2025 ranking, displacing Cape Town, while Kigali retained second place.

A recent High Court decision in Kenya, the Bruton Gold case, has reaffirmed that foreign companies do not need local registration to pursue legal claims, overturning a previous ruling that caused uncertainty for international businesses.

• The ruling clarifies that registration is for operating a business, not for accessing justice through the courts.
• Bruton Gold, a company incorporated in Dubai, successfully sued in Kenya despite not being registered locally.
• The proposed Business Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, aims to align the Companies Act with this judicial principle, further clarifying that unregistered foreign companies can sue and be sued.