Author: Khusoko

Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira will star in a limited series based on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s best-selling novel ‘Americanah’ ordered by HBO Max. https://twitter.com/WarnerMediaGrp/status/1172592930135166982 “‘Americanah’ has been a passion project for me since I read Chimamanda’s beautiful novel in 2013,” Nyong’o said in a statement. “It’s a tale that is simultaneously timely and timeless. HBO Max is the perfect partner to bring this profound and celebrated story to life, and I’m thrilled that Danai will bring to the project her intelligence, wit, and understanding of the stories and the worlds of ‘Americanah.’” https://twitter.com/Lupita_Nyongo/status/1172637795589877760 Americanah tells the story of…

NIC Bank Limited has been admitted as a Non-Executing Member to the Nairobi Securities derivatives market (NEXT) as a non-executing member. The admission will enable NIC Bank to offer custodial services to investors looking to participate in the derivatives market besides facilitating settlement of derivatives trades for custodial clients. “The admission follows the bank’s fulfillment of the NSE’s Derivatives Market membership criteria,” said NSE in a statement. NIC bank has been offering custodial services for the last 15 years to pension schemes and provident funds, unit trusts, and high net worth corporates.

Dubai-based hotel management company Aleph Hospitality has signed a franchise agreement with Marriott International for a new Protea Hotel in Kisumu, Kenya. Kisumu is Kenya’s third-largest city. Aleph Hospitality will operate the new-build property on behalf of the asset owner, Bluewater Hotels and it is scheduled to open in January 2022. Bani Haddad, Founder and Managing Director of Aleph Hospitality, said: “As Aleph Hospitality continues to expand across Africa and the Middle East, we are delighted to once again collaborate with Marriott International, following the signing of Four Points by Sheraton Monrovia earlier this year.” Edward Guda, Managing Director, Bluewater…

Two Kenyan inventors, Tracy Kimathi, Elijah Kiprotich Chirchir and his business partner Philemon Kipchirchir Masas, projects have been selected for the high profile Global Grad Show in Dubai. The projects have been enabled by The Sochin Research Institute. Tracy Kimathi founded an eco-based organization called Tree_Sea.mals that uses renewable resources to generate social impact.  Through the use of mini-grids, her company generates power using solar energy that is then distributed to the local community. A 1kWp mini-grid prototype is already running in Meru County (below) and Tree_Sea.mals is now looking for funding to operate a pilot in Dadachabasa Village, Isiolo County.…

The mobile-traded government bond, M-Akiba, missed its target after raising Ksh.263 million against an expected return of Ksh.500 million in its third re-opening. The Central Depository & Settlement Corporation (CDSC) and the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) said in a statement Thursday the bond attracted additional 51,461 new accounts, bringing the total M-Akiba accounts to 565,725. “It is exciting for us to see the impressive growth of M-Akiba as we witness it cross the Ksh.1billion mark. We continue to honor our promise to our customers by offering them an efficient investment platform; as illustrated by the payouts made to customers,” noted…

A recent court ruling declaring the Kenya-Mauritius Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) void has sent Kenya back to the negotiating table with Mauritius. The court’s judgment is based on the fact that the DTAA was not properly ratified under Kenyan law. Kenya’s government argues that the treaty promotes investment and jobs; however, critics such as the Tax Justice Network Africa (TJNA), which filed this suit, argue that DTAAs rarely lead to any benefits for developing countries. TJNA argues that instead, they result in massive revenue leakage for African countries which outweighs incoming foreign direct investment (FDI).   Should countries, therefore, abandon…