First Independent Mena Newspaper
Moroccan conglomerate Holmarcom is set to deepen the shift toward local ownership in the kingdom’s banking sector with its planned acquisition of BMCI from France’s BNP Paribas, in a deal that underscores the exit of the last French bank from Morocco’s retail lending. After completion of regulatory requirements, Holmarcom plans to merge BMCI with Crédit […]
Morocco’s public finances entered the second quarter of 2026 in considerably better shape than a year earlier, driven by robust first-quarter tax receipts that have allowed the Treasury to reduce its reliance on the domestic bond market and to approach its funding strategy from a position of relative comfort. According to an analysis published by […]
Morocco attracted 56 billion dirhams ($6 billion) in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2025, marking a sharp increase from recent years, Minister delegate for investment Karim Zidane said. Addressing members of the Upper House, Zidane said inflows had risen by nearly 73% compared with 2021, when they stood at around 32 billion dirhams. He attributed […]
Libya’s Prime Minister, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, on Monday, May 4, announced the approval of a unified national budget—the first in over 13 years—during a cabinet meeting held in Qasr Al-Akhyar, east of Tripoli. The breakthrough follows the “2+2 agreement” signed in April between representatives of the House of Representatives and the High Council of State, […]
Morocco’s Office des Changes has initiated formal enforcement proceedings against a number of individuals identified as holding crypto assets abroad, marking the first visible escalation of regulatory action in a sector that has long operated in a legal grey zone. In written notifications sent to the individuals concerned — a copy of which was obtained […]
Morocco’s hydrocarbons & mining agency is accelerating the Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline project with the launching of a $ 25 billion fundraising for this pipeline, according to press reports. This is the first funding initiative launched by the Office National Des Hydrocarbures & Des Mines (ONHYM) since its reorganization into a public limited company in February. […]
About 83% of all jobs in Africa were informal in 2024, highlighting the continued dominance of an economic model that sustains livelihoods while constraining public finances and social protection, according to consolidated figures from the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). The scale of informality has barely shifted over the past two decades, with the […]
Morocco’s economy is among the most resilient in Africa to external shocks from the war in the Middle East, helped by stronger foreign‑exchange reserves and broader financing options, S&P Global Ratings said, even as it warned that prolonged disruption could strain the sovereign credit outlook. In its assessment of African sovereign exposure, S&P said Morocco […]
The African Development Bank Group has donated $510,000 to Morocco’s Insurance and Social Welfare Supervisory Authority (ACAPS), to support the use of innovative technologies and strengthen financial inclusion in the insurance sector. The funding will enable the independent public authority responsible for regulating and supervising the insurance and social welfare sectors to promote greater inclusion […]
Morocco is navigating an increasingly complex food inflation landscape in which a record domestic agricultural harvest provides only partial protection against a mounting set of external and structural pressures. A detailed analysis published on Sunday by Medias24 offers one of the most comprehensive assessments to date of how global geopolitical shocks — particularly the disruption […]