Grant Macpherson

Diageo is reviewing its 65% stake in East African Breweries Ltd. (EABL), with a potential sale valued at up to $2B (KSh 258B), far above its KSh 155B market cap. [Bloomberg] The move aligns with Diageo’s Africa exit strategy. Potential buyers include Heineken and AB InBev.  EABL's full-year results are due July 31.

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🗞️ This womans month, FNB has released new insights into women’s spending patterns across its retail segment, revealing a significant year-on-year (YoY) growth and a marked shift toward digital and lifestyle-driven transactions. Women accounted for 44.6% of the total retail spend in 2024, with their overall spend increasing by 5.3% YoY and transaction volumes rising by 6.3%. This growth outpaced that of men, whose spend rose by 2.9% and transaction volumes by 5.3%.   “Women continue to be a powerful force in the retail economy, and their adoption of digital payment solutions continues to accelerate at an impressive rate,” said Senzosenkosi Nsibande, CEO of FNB Credit Card.   “At FNB, we’re proud to see how women across South Africa are embracing digital banking tools like our virtual cards to manage their finances with greater security, flexibility, and confidence. In fact, over the past year we’ve seen that women's virtual card spend since launch to December 2024 was R36.2 billion, which contributed 39.7% to the total virtual card spend of R91.0 billion over the same period. This shift reflects not just a technological evolution, but a powerful movement towards financial independence and inclusion, with innovative solutions that meet their needs and elevate their financial journeys,” says Nsibande.    Key Highlights: - Credit Card Usage: Women contributed 37.4% of total Credit Card spend, with a 2.5% YoY increase in spend and 2.4% growth in transaction volumes. - Virtual Card Adoption: Spend via Virtual Cards surged by 99.3% YoY among women, compared to 77.3% among men. Virtual Card usage grew from 6.1% of total spend in 2023 to 11.5% in 2024. - Online Spending: Women’s online spend rose by 17.7% YoY, with 21.5% of their total spend occurring online, compared to 19.1% for men. - Virtual Credit Card Transactions: Spend increased by 86.9% YoY, with 19.4% of women’s Credit Card spend conducted via Virtual Cards in 2024. - Online Credit Card Spend: Women spent 33% of their Credit Card total online, up 8.1% YoY, compared to 30.7% for men. - On spend categories, women’s top spending categories include: Groceries, Clothing & Accessories, Eating Out & Treats, as well as Fuel. For online purchases, the leading categories are Travel & Holidays, Groceries, and General Retail. Credit Card purchases reflect a preference for lifestyle and discretionary spending.   The added value of FNB’s virtual cards is that they come with a dynamic card verification value (CVV) security code which changes frequently. Customers can also temporarily block, cancel or replace their FNB or RMB Private Bank virtual cards via the FNB Banking App as soon as they suspect any kind of fraudulent activity.  #HelpChangesEverything #FNBeSafe #FNBVirtualCards #womansmonth

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Walmart is set to open its first branded stores in South Africa this year. The company has been operating in South Africa through Massmart's subsidiaries, like Makro and Game. New Walmart stores will stock diverse products, including locally sourced items, at competitive prices. This initiative intends to compete against major local retailers and e-commerce platforms.

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