Standard Chartered Botswana delivered a robust financial performance for the full year 2025, successfully navigating a challenging economic landscape while reinforcing its commitment to long-term shareholder value. The bank surpassed its Return on Tangible Equity (ROTE) target of 25%, achieving a notable 26% despite persistent market pressures. Total income for the year declined 11% year-over-year to P950.8 million. Net interest income contracted sharply by 13%, while non-funded income dipped slightly by 1%, accounting for 20.8%...

Lucara Diamond Corp. has successfully raised a US$350 million senior secured bond to refinance existing liabilities and expedite the development of its flagship Karowe Underground Project in Botswana. The five-year bond, priced at a fixed 12.5% interest rate, supersedes the company’s prior US$220 million project finance facilities. This strategic refinancing aims to bolster liquidity and ensure the project remains on schedule for full underground production. Proceeds from the bond have been deployed to retire the...

Botswana’s economy suffered a significant contraction in the final quarter of 2025, driven primarily by a steep decline in the mining sector. According to the latest data from Statistics Botswana, real gross domestic product fell 5.4 percent year-on-year during this period. The downturn reflects persistent challenges from weak global demand for diamonds and broader sectoral slowdowns. The mining and quarrying industry took the hardest hit, with value added plunging nearly 47 percent in the fourth...

Tensions in the global oil markets, stirred by geopolitical uncertainties around the Strait of Hormuz, have set off strategic ripples far beyond the immediate Middle East region. One notable development is unfolding in Southern Africa, where Botswana is making a significant move to secure its energy future by seeking a stake in Angola’s ambitious Lobito Oil Refinery project. This maneuver, announced by Botswana’s Minerals and Energy Minister Bogolo Kenewendo in Parliament, signals a new chapter...

Botswana Minerals has initiated the first phase of its copper exploration program in Ngamiland, a largely untapped region in northwestern Botswana. The company, listed both in London and Botswana, is concentrating its efforts on licenses within the northeastern extension of the Damara Belt, an area widely regarded for its substantial mineral potential. Early-stage activities will focus on refining and prioritizing high-value targets while developing geophysical strategies to inform subsequent drilling campaigns. Phase 1 aims to...

Batswana are feeling the pinch as a fresh wave of cost pressures tightens its hold on household finances. Rising fuel prices and transport fares are converging to squeeze already stretched budgets across the country. At the heart of this latest financial strain is the recent fuel price adjustment announced by the Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority (BERA). The regulator raised unleaded petrol 95 prices by 5.05 thebe per litre, diesel by 8.77 thebe, and illuminating paraffin...