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Cape Town
25-26 February 2026
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Overview
Sponsors and Partners
Agenda
Register

Date: 25-26 February 2026
Venue: Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC)

Co-hosted by 

Overview

Organised by two of the world’s most influential market associations, this new summit is designed by the industry, for the industry. It aims to bring together over 1,000 senior stakeholders from across Africa and internationally—including issuers, investors, regulators, DFIs, and banks—for two days of strategic dialogue, networking and technical exchange. The programme will focus on:

  • Capital market development and regional integration across both the loan and bond markets
  • Sustainable finance and climate transition
  • Regulatory innovation and financial inclusion
  • Blended finance, FinTech, and digitalisation
  • Market infrastructure and trading platforms

The landmark event has already secured the backing of South Africa’s four leading banks—Absa, Nedbank, RMB, and Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking—as platinum sponsors, with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) joining as a strategic partner. In addition, a number of other local African, regional and international institutions, including DFIs, law firms, service providers and members of the insurance market have already confirmed their support and sponsorship. Together, this support underscores the Summit’s role in bringing Africa’s debt markets together, as well as creating a collaborative, inclusive, industry-led platform to advance Africa’s loan and bond markets.

Mark your calendar now and be part of a tailored event aimed at enhancing liquidity, efficiency, transparency, and sustainability in Africa’s loan and capital markets.

Interested in sponsoring this event? Contact us: sponsorship@icmagroup.org
Interested in speaking opportunities? Contact Amelia.Slocombe@lma.eu.com or Allan.Malvar@icmagroup.org
 

 


 

Companies already registered to attend

 

Association for Savings & Investment SA (ASISA) First Abu Dhabi Bank (PJSC) Nexent Bank N.V.
AXA XL FirstRand Bank Limited Norton Rose Fulbright LLP
Bank of China (Europe) S.A. G Elias Ocorian
Bloomfield LP Ghana Stock Exchange Odujinrin & Adefulu
British International Investment plc Global Green Growth Institute Rand Merchant Bank
China Construction Bank HSBC Bank plc S&P Global Limited
China Construction Bank (London) Limited ICBC Standard Bank Plc Sanlam Investments
Citibank (Hong Kong) Limited IHS Towers Sanlam Specialized Credit, division of Sanlam Life Insurance Limited
Citigroup Global Markets Limited Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited, London Branch Slaughter and May
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP Investec Asset Management SM & Co Advocates
Clifford Chance LLP KAP The Fidelis Partnership
Commerzbank AG KfW IPEX BANK The Mauritius Commercial Bank
Credendo - Guarantees & Speciality Risks Liberty Group Limited Transnet SOC Ltd
ČSOB Advisory, a.s. Linklaters LLP Webber Wentzel
Debt Issuers Association (DIA) Luxembourg Stock Exchange Werksmans Attorneys
Development Bank of Southern Africa Munich Reinsurance Company White & Case LLP
ENSafrica Advocates Nedbank Limited Willis Towers Watson
FCMB Bank (UK) Limited Nederlandse Financierings-maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V.  

 


 

Platinum Sponsors

 

       

 

Strategic Partner 

 

Platinum Sponsors

   
   

 

Strategic Partner 

 

 

Supporting Associations

 

   

 


Wednesday, 25 February 2026 - Conference Day 1 

08.00  Registration open 
08.15 – 08.50 Sponsored breakfast session | Building Africa’s Talent Pipeline - Fostering Skills and Leadership in African Finance
A practical discussion on training, retaining, and elevating African financial talent—aligning skills with market needs and building inclusive leadership for a globally competitive finance ecosystem.
09.00 – 09.15 Welcome Address
09.15 – 09.25 Opening Keynote Address
09.25 – 09.35 Keynote Address
09.35 – 10.15 Panel: Advancing Africa’s Capital Markets — Driving Growth and Integration
This strategic conversation will explore how Africa can transform its financial markets to support inclusive growth, regional integration, and long-term resilience. Leaders will discuss expanding market access, diversifying instruments, and strengthening institutional frameworks to attract sustainable capital flows. The dialogue will highlight the importance of building money markets and benchmark reforms, while also emphasizing the need to ‘Africanise’ capital market policy—ensuring frameworks reflect local contexts and priorities while remaining aligned with global standards.
10.15 – 11.00 Panel: From Regulation to Market Development — How Central Banks Support Debt Markets in Africa
This high-level dialogue with African central bank governors will explore how central banks act not only as regulators and supervisors but also as market enablers shaping Africa’s financial markets. Against a backdrop of global volatility, tighter capital conditions, and evolving creditor landscapes, panellists will discuss how sound regulation, robust market infrastructure, and effective monetary operations can foster deeper, more resilient markets.

The session will go beyond sovereign debt to consider central banks’ role in supporting local currency issuance, green and sustainable instruments, and regional harmonisation. It will also situate sovereign financing within Africa’s broader macroeconomic and debt sustainability context, highlighting how central banks can build trust, transparency, and investor confidence across markets.
  • Diversifying sovereign financing: local currency bonds, sukuk, green bonds, syndicated loans
  • Building liquid domestic markets: yield curves, repo frameworks, market makers
  • Advancing legal, supervisory, and institutional reforms for integrity and efficiency
  • Embedding debt sustainability and creditor dynamics in a wider macroeconomic discussion
  • Harmonising regional infrastructure: CSDs, credit rating regimes, cross-border issuance platforms
  • Expanding central banks’ developmental role in capital market growth
11.00 – 11.45 Coffee Break
11.45 – 11.55 Keynote Address
11.55 – 12.35 Panel: Africa’s Loan Market Agenda — Unlocking Capital and Driving Development
This session will examine the loan market agenda in Africa, focusing on mobilising bank finance, syndicated lending, and private credit to meet development needs. It will explore how DFIs, commercial lenders, and private credit providers can work together to close financing gaps, support infrastructure investment, and enhance access to capital for both sovereigns and corporates.

The discussion will also consider how regional cooperation and cross-border loan syndications can increase liquidity, while highlighting the role of credit enhancement tools in reducing risk and attracting new participants. The session will stress the importance of aligning public and private sector financing strategies to ensure sustainability.
  • Strengthening domestic and regional loan markets
  • Mobilising syndicated loans and private credit for development
  • Role of DFIs and credit enhancement tools in expanding access to finance
  • Bridging public and private sector financing strategies
  • Cross-border investment flows through loan syndications
  • Supporting capacity building and innovation in loan structuring
12.35 – 13.15 Panel: Africa’s Bond Market Agenda — Building Depth and Investor Confidence
This session will focus on Africa’s evolving bond market agenda, from strengthening local currency debt markets to creating regional investment platforms and expanding access to long-term capital. Alongside sovereign issuance, the panel will explore how corporate bond markets can be developed to diversify financing sources, broaden the investor base, and provide sustainable funding for Africa’s private sector. It will examine how regulatory coherence, innovation, and improved transparency can enhance investor confidence and reduce perceived risks.

Key discussion points will include lessons from recent sovereign debt defaults and restructurings, the role of credit ratings and rating agency practices, and the persistent challenge of the so-called “African risk premium.” The panel will also highlight opportunities for greater integration with Asia and MENA bond markets, fostering cross-border issuance and investment flows. 
  • Developing resilient local currency bond markets
  • Expanding corporate bond issuance and secondary market liquidity
  • Enhancing transparency, disclosure, and creditworthiness.
  • How regulated should debt capital markets be across Africa? Balancing oversight, harmonisation, and market dynamism
  • Addressing credit ratings, African risk premia, and rating agency biases
  • Role of domestic and international institutional investors in deepening bond markets
  • Expanding trade and investment links with Asia and MENA through bond issuance
  • Policy reforms to safeguard investors while enabling market development
13.15 – 14.15  Lunch
14.15 – 14.25 Keynote Address
14.25 – 15.10 Panel: Funding Growth, Managing Risk — A Corporate and Investor Perspective
Corporates across Africa face a growing need for efficient, diversified, and sustainable financing tools while investors often expect a risk premium. This session examines the funding requirements of corporates against expectations of investors, how domestic and international investors are engaging with corporate debt markets, and how issuers can best structure debt to manage risk while funding expansion.
  • Bonds vs. bank loans
  • Role of private credit and DFIs
  • Investor appetite and market access
  • Addressing Africa’s infrastructure funding gap through innovative financing
14.25 – 15.10 Roundtable session (by invitation only) | Credit Risk Insurance
This interactive discussion will help delegates obtain a better understanding of the credit risk insurance product and the market more broadly. Themes will include:
  • The role of the broker
  • Considerations when looking to insure credit risk.
  • Negotiating a policy document – balancing bank and insurer requirements
  • Common sticking points and how they might be resolved
15.10 – 15.55 Panel: Converging Capital — Navigating Multi-Asset Investment in Africa
This panel discusses how Africa’s markets are adapting to a multi-asset reality, and what it means for issuers, intermediaries, and investors. It highlights the emergence of hybrid strategies, the growing influence of private markets, and the integration of alternative players including hedge funds, insurance providers and sovereign wealth funds, into mainstream investment channels. It also raises important questions about market regulation, transparency, liquidity, and systemic resilience in a world of increasingly complex financial interlinkages.

With this convergence comes both opportunity and risk: the opportunity to diversify sources of capital, fund innovation and infrastructure, and broaden Africa’s investor base — but also the risk of volatility, fragmentation, or regulatory lag if market structures do not evolve in tandem.
  • Market Integration and the Rise of Multi-Asset Strategies
  • The Expanding Role of Private Capital
  • Hedge Funds, Insurance, Alternative Capital, and Structured Products
  • Institutional Investors, Insurance providers and Blended Finance
  • Regulation, Market Architecture, and Risk Oversight
15.10 - 15.55 Roundtable session | Benchmark reform in Africa: The Jibar transition

This roundtable will explore the transition from JIBAR to ZARONIA (the risk-free reference rate) and its wider implications for African financial markets. Discussion will address the progress of the reform, legal and operational challenges for loans, bonds and derivatives referencing JIBAR and how to ensure ZARONIA is embedded in the market going forward. Participants will also consider lessons learned from international benchmark reforms and how African market participants can best prepare for a smooth and coordinated transition.
15.55 – 16.40 Coffee Break
16.40 – 17.25 Panel: Aligning Capital with Climate and Development Goals — Africa’s Sustainable Finance Pathway
Sustainable finance instruments, including green, social, and sustainability-linked bonds/loans, are critical to aligning market activity with Africa’s climate, environmental, and inclusive growth objectives. This session discusses the enabling conditions needed for scale and credibility, while also taking a forward-looking view: what has and hasn’t worked in Africa so far, whether sustainable finance remains relevant, and how to weigh its benefits against its costs.
  • Policy coordination across markets to attract sustainable finance
  • Taxonomies and ESG disclosure
  • Incentives for issuers and investors
  • Role of DFIs in sustainable finance
  • Role of the financial sector in driving green transformation and job creation
  • Future of sustainable finance in Africa: relevance, lessons, benefits vs. costs
16.40 – 17.25 Sponsored roundtable session | Legal and operational reforms: the African repo markets
This roundtable will explore legal and operational reforms needed to strengthen repo markets across African countries. It will consider the enforceability of close-out netting and collateral rights, the adoption of the Global Master Repurchase Agreement (GMRA) in different jurisdictions, and the operational hurdles facing settlement systems, collateral management, and market infrastructure.
17.25 – 17.35 Keynote Address
17.35 - 17. 45 Concluding Remarks
17.45 – 18.45 Networking Reception (Exhibition floor)

 

Thursday 26 February 2026 - Conference Day 2

08.00 Registration open
09.00 – 09.10 Welcome remarks
09.10 – 09.20 Keynote Address
09.20 – 10.05 Panel: Transforming Risk into Opportunity — Building Africa’s Securitisation Markets
Securitisation holds significant untapped potential in Africa to convert illiquid assets into investable securities, mobilize capital for SMEs, housing, and infrastructure, and expand institutional investor portfolios. This session examines how to scale the market through legal reforms, investor education, and transaction support.
  • Transaction structures and transparency
  • Credit enhancement and investor safeguards
  • Regulatory clarity and enabling infrastructure
09.20 – 10.05 Roundtable session | Strengthening the Primary Dealer Framework: Pathways to More Resilient Bond Markets in Africa
This workshop reviews the evolution of South Africa’s Primary Dealer (PD) framework, drawing on international role models and fresh survey insights from market participants. Discussion will focus on legal and institutional arrangements, appointment and termination, auctions, market-making, and incentives—providing practical guidance for strengthening PD structures to support more liquid and resilient bond markets across Africa.
10.05 - 10.45 Panel: Digital Pathways to African Market Connectivity and Growth
This high-level panel will explore how financial market integration and digital innovation can jointly accelerate the development of Africa’s capital markets. Bringing together senior market practitioners, policymakers, DFIs, fintech specialists, and regulators, the discussion will focus on actionable steps that can be taken in the next 2–5 years to enhance cross-border connectivity and deepen market liquidity.

Speakers will consider how aligning disclosure standards, settlement protocols, and regulatory approaches can foster trust and investor confidence across jurisdictions. At the same time, the panel will examine how digital finance — from cross-border payment systems and interoperable digital platforms to innovations like digital bonds, loan securitisation and AI-driven trading — can unlock new opportunities for issuers and investors alike.
  • Leveraging digital tools to harmonise disclosures, enable cross-listing, and strengthen cross-border issuance platforms
  • Expanding fintech-driven solutions for SME finance, credit access, and securitisation
  • Developing interoperable payment, clearing, and settlement systems that support regional bond and loan markets
  • Creating innovation-friendly, transparent regulatory environments that balance growth and governance
  • Mobilising DFIs, central banks, and sovereign funds to build the infrastructure for digital debt markets
Anchored in the African Continental Free Trade Area agenda, the session will highlight how digital transformation and greater market connectivity can reinforce one another, creating deeper, more inclusive, and more investable African markets.
10.45 – 11.30 Roundtable session (by invitation only) | Sustainable finance (bonds and loans)
This practitioner-focused roundtable will explore how the ICMA and LMA Principles can be applied in African markets to structure credible, investable transactions. Participants will draw lessons from real deals, tackle challenges in disclosure and data, and discuss how to balance innovation with investor confidence.
10.45 – 11.30 Coffee Break
11.30 – 11.40 Keynote Address
11.40 – 12.20 Panel: The Africa Capital Markets Roadmap
Forward looking strategy session. Summarise the conference’s main insights and outline a collective vision for Africa’s debt capital markets by 2030.
  • How to build an investable, integrated African market over the next 5–10 years
  • Priority reforms in infrastructure, regulation, and investor base development
  • Mobilising partnerships between DFIs, governments, and private capital
  • Identifying “quick wins” from the summit’s discussions
11.40 – 12.20 Roundtable session (by invitation only) | Sovereign Finance Considerations
This roundtable will explore some of the key issues and considerations when structuring and documenting sovereign finance transactions (covering both the loan and bond market) from the perspective of the borrower/issuer and the investors/lenders.
12.20 – 12 .30 Closing remarks
12.30 – 14.00 Networking lunch

 

Thursday 26 February 2026 - Technical Training Workshops

These technical training workshops are designed as complementary learning streams and are open to all market participants, not only to conference delegates, at no cost. Non-conference delegates must register to participate.

Participants who choose two sessions will receive a certificate of attendance.
13.30 – 14.30 Syndicated lending – the commercial aspects
This session will provide an understanding of the fundamentals of the syndicated loan market in Africa, topics to include:
  • Overview of the product and the market
  • Roles and responsibilities of the finance parties, including MLA and the Agent
  • Pricing Dynamics
  • The primary vs. secondary market
13.30 – 14.30 The repo market and use of the GMRA
This session introduces the fundamentals of the repo market and its critical role in liquidity, market-making, and collateral management. It will explore the legal underpinnings of repo transactions, including title transfer and close-out netting, and highlight the Global Master Repurchase Agreement (GMRA) as the international standard that underpins legal certainty, risk reduction, and market best practice across jurisdictions.
14.30 – 15.30 Syndicated lending – an LMA documentation
This session will provide a deep dive into LMA documentation, including mandate letter, terms sheets, NDAs and facility agreements, as well as the key negotiating points for each from both a lender and borrower perspective.
14.30 – 15.30 Introduction to Fund Finance – teach-in
Description to follow.
15.30 Close of event
 

ICMA and LMA member registration

ICMA and LMA member firms are entitled to 5 complimentary passes per firm. Additional passes are charged as follows

Early bird (September 15 - October 15 2025)

£1,500 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

Standard fee (October 16 2025 - February 25 2026)

£2,000 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

Register now


Non-member registration

Non-member delegate fees are as follows:

Early bird (September 15 - October 15 2025)

Africa-based organisations: £1,500 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

International organisations outside Africa: £2,500 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

Standard fee (October 16 2025 - February 25 2026)

Africa-based organisations: £2,000 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

International organisations outside Africa: £3,000 per pass (plus applicable credit card charges)

Register now

Please note that non-member firms who purchase 2 or more passes are entitled to free LMA membership for the remainder of 2026. To request free membership after registering, please contact lma@lma.eu.com.

Please note that government bodies, central banks and other trade associations may be entitled to attend for free. To request a free pass, please register using the form below and enter code NONCORPORATE in the Access or dietary requirements/discount code box on the form. Free access is not guaranteed and is granted at the discretion of ICMA and LMA.


Press registration

We welcome press free of charge. Press in attendance must adhere to the LMA-ICMA Press Policy.

To request press access, please email Oliver Tinkler at oliver.tinkler@icmagroup.org.


Queries

For general registration queries or if you have not received a confirmation email within three working days of completing your online registration, please contact the ICMA Events department.


Travel and accommodation

Delegates must organise and pay for their own travel and accommodation. We strongly encourage you to book your accommodation as soon as possible. For accommodation options close to the CTICC, please view our accommodation options sheet.

Dynamics and developments in the international sustainable bond markets – Implications for the MENA region
Capital Club, DIFC, Dubai, 8 December 2021

Registration Form

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1.1
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1.2
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1.3
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1.8
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1.9
Deadline for receipt of written cancellation Refund
14 January 2026 100%
21 January 2026 50%
28 January 2026 20%
11 February 2026 and onward No refund

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