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January 15 , 2022 . By HAWI DADHI

Liquidity Crunch Casts Menacing Shadow Over Banking Industry

When the central bank imposed a freeze on collateral-based loans last August, there was no shortage of outcries from businesses across industries and sectors. The freeze was lifted at the end of November, but many are reeling from its consequences. Yordanos Assemire is among the businesspeople aw...

January 1 , 2022 . By HAWI DADHI

Holiday Season Proves Tough Time for Event Organisers

Unlike the past few holidays dampened by the COVID-19 pandemic and the year-long war, Addis Abeba appears to have regained its mood for festivities. Nowhere is this more evident than at Mesqel Square, a traditional setting for public events. Last week, the area was bustling with the Christmas spirit. The buzzing phrase responsible for the revival? “The Great Ethiopian Homecoming." A month ago, the administration of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) called Ethiopians abroad to sojourn home for the upcoming Christmas holiday, daring no less than one million members of the Diaspora to pass...

December 30 , 2021

Foreign Loans Plunge Amid Debt Reshuffling Talks, War

The most expensive road ever built in Addis Abeba had begun four years ago, hopes high that it would be a passageway easing congestion on an otherwise jammed highway. The 10Km corridor from Qality to Tulu Dimtu, connecting the capital to expressways leading south, is vital for external trade. It links Addis Abeba to a dry port facility in Modjo. The cost of the much-touted project was partly covered by 103 million dollars in loans received from the Export-Import Bank of China (EIBC), with the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) contracted for a price tag of nearly 230 million B...

October 16 , 2021 . By HAWI DADHI

Banks Miss Deadline, Mergers Prove Unattainable

Residing in a country with no capital market, an organised marketplace for trading securities and shares, Bereket Haile, 32, uses social media platforms to buy and sell shares, particularly banks. He finds they have a higher rate of return than most other sectors. Having a background in civil society work, he has over 22,000 network connections on Linkedin. When the financial sector was flooded by new entrants rushing to join the banking industry, Bereket did not hesitate to react quickly. He had hoped to make a profit when the value of the shares appreciates. He acquired stakes in eight ba...

Agenda

Sunday Markets Offer Consumers Respite from Soaring Prices

Consumers and traders have congregated in designated areas of Addis Abeba for a Sunday market that many have come to depend on for affordability. Last Sunday, hundreds of shoppers, around a dozen coop...

September 18 , 2021

COVID-19 Third Wave Comes Crashing Down

On the sunny afternoon of Wednesday last week, roughly 50 health personnel on duty at Millennium Hall, once a venue for festivity, were rushing to the patient wards through the donning area. Every inc...

September 10 , 2021

Live Music Makes Big Comeback

In the Atlas neighbourhood, cash notes are part of the decorative scene on a stage in Mimi’s Addis, a popular restaurant and lounge on Namibia Street. Seemingly oblivious to the money at his feet, A...

September 4 , 2021

Dancing with Inflation, Central Bank Grip Tightens

The past year has been all but dull for the authorities at the central bank and executives of the banking industry. The first was busily churning out directives, the latter frantic about coping with a...

August 28 , 2021

Property Market Grinds to Halt

The streets of Addis Abeba are as varied as they are many, although too many of them have yet to be named. From the narrow alleyways of the old Piassa to the boulevards of contemporary Bole and the be...

August 21 , 2021

Coffee Exports Climb, Industry Players Cheer Reforms

When Tamiru Tadesse came to Addis Abeba almost nine years ago, he was determined to pursue post-graduate studies in control engineering, a subject he spent two years teaching his students at Debre Ber...

August 14 , 2021

Businesses See Abrupt Central Bank Decision Counterproductive

The sky was gloomy; it was a cloudy afternoon last week. The typical August weather of fog and chill was reflected in the mood of the city residents, such as Shewaminale Mekonnen, the chief financial...

August 7 , 2021

Out in the Cold, Clothing Market Takes a Hit

It was a freezing rainy day last week; the loud music and busy sidewalks in the Piassa area were in stark contrast to the exceptionally chilly weather that has gripped Addis Abeba this rainy season. U...

July 31 , 2021

Crackdowns on Hotel Properties Leave Workers Dismayed

It is a tiny dwelling made of corrugated iron near the Gerji Mebrat Hail area, Bole District. For Aster Tsegaye, a 30-year-old woman, it is home. Working as a housekeeper in one of the hotels locat...

July 24 , 2021

Import's Wild-Wild West

This year has been anything but a good year for Gabriela Esayas, a businesswoman who started a few years ago. Ordinarily, she would import goods up to three times a year. Not having been approved a...

July 18 , 2021

Deposit Mobilisation Barely Keeping Up With Cash Hoarding, Inflation

A businessman trading in electronics, Abel never thought he would be burdened in making timely payments for suppliers. Running a store in Mercato, he has a weekly turnover of somewhere around 800,000...

July 11 , 2021

Trouble Tying Construction Firms with Banks, Insurance Looms Large

Established over two decades ago when a handful of businesspeople were interested in joining the construction industry, Afro-Tsion Construction Plc started a business with a capital of 50,000 Br. Toda...

July 3 , 2021

Starting Business Never Gets Easier

Finding a job in the Ethiopian labour market had been all but a pleasant experience for Lamesgen Wubshet, a graduate of computer engineering from Meqelle University. He spent three years in search aft...

June 26 , 2021

In the Shadow of War, Voters Give Electoral Verdict

This past Monday was the second time Belay Zerihun, a second-time voter, has had to stand in a long queue over the past couple of months. The first time was in early May when he went to get his voter...

June 19 , 2021

How Could This Happen?

A mother of three, Netsanet Hadgu, usually buys consumer goods once a month. However, when her family goes through those goods faster than she thought, the 42-year-old widow prefers to walk to the nea...

June 12 , 2021

With the New Budget Bill Comes Deficit Financing Fear

The central bank released its much-anticipated report for the second quarter last week, albeit it did so almost five months later than it was initially expected to. It was not like any other, covering...

Columns

Commentaries | Jan 15,2022

Peace Process within Arm's Reach. Beware Spoilers!

Foes and friends of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) agree that his administration is full...

Editorial | January 15 , 2022

Diaspora Homecoming Breathes Life into Businesses. Will It Last?

On the verge of losing his job as a sales officer at Ayat (Real Estate) Share Company, Wak...

Featured | January 15 , 2022 . By SAMUEL BOGALE

Liquidity Crunch Casts Menacing Shadow Over Banking Industry

When the central bank imposed a freeze on collateral-based loans last August, there was no...

Agenda | January 15 , 2022 . By HAWI DADHI

HIBRET STANDS TALL & HIGH

Melaku Kebede (leftmost), president of Hibret Bank, was all smiles late last week as he sh...

Fortune News | January 15 , 2022

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COVID-19 UPDATES: All the stories and commentaries on Coronavirus, in one place

Liquidity Crunch Casts Menacing Shadow Over Banking Industry

Holiday Season Proves Tough Time for Event Organisers

Foreign Loans Plunge Amid Debt Reshuffling Talks, War

Banks Miss Deadline, Mergers Prove Unattainable