Africa’s banking industry has gone through huge changes during Jacko Maree’s career. The former chief executive of Standard Bank believes the future for banks on the continent looks promising, but says they will have to adapt to regulatory changes and tap new types of clients. Interview by Paul Wallace.

Speculation about who will succeed Sanusi Lamido Sanusi as Nigeria’s central bank governor next year is mounting. Outgoing Access Bank CEO Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, one of the leading candidates, tells The Banker the role would be difficult to turn down. 

Many investors are confident that 2013 will be remembered as the year the US economy finally started its recovery. For other parts of the world, not least the eurozone and most major emerging markets, the memories are likely to be a lot gloomier. Paul Wallace reports.

Namibia has managed to overcome the worst of the global economic slump, while a huge new uranium mine could boost its growth greatly in the next few years. But the country still has plenty to do to tackle its most pressing social issues. 

Namibia’s banks are among the most sophisticated and safest in Africa, but they are coming under increasing pressure to service the country's unbanked population and small businesses. 

Ecobank has been hurt recently by several allegations concerning its corporate governance. But Thierry Tanoh, its chief executive, insists it has done nothing wrong. He also explains why the pan-African lender represents a unique investment opportunity. 

The US private placement bond market is proving popular with mid-sized European companies and those that lack credit ratings. American investors, starved of supply, hope the trend lasts a while longer. 

Somalia’s central bank governor has to create a financial system virtually from scratch. But, as Paul Wallace writes, there is no shortage of foreign and local investors wanting to establish banks in the country, which seems to be on the mend for the first time in two decades.