Observer Money

Justicia Shipena  The Namibian Competition Commission (NaCC) says the Pepkor Holding merger with national clothing retailer Big Daddy Clothing will strengthen an already dominant market position.  The NaCC said it could also give the merging parties the ability to facilitate coordination. On Tuesday, the commission announced the approval of 13 mergers, following a meeting held on 8 May 2025. The first merger involves JD Financial Services Proprietary Limited acquiring the retail furniture segment of OK Bazaars Namibia Ltd, including the Furniture Debtors Book. JD Financial Services, which operates across various sectors such as retail, fintech, and strategic services, has extended…

Allexer Namundjembo The Bank of Namibia (BoN) will embark on a comprehensive national currency review within the next three months.  The review is aiming to assess and improve the materials, design, and production processes of the country’s banknotes and coins. This was announced by BoN Governor Johannes !Gawaxab during the launch of the upgraded N$50 banknote in Windhoek on Monday.  The review, he said, is intended to enhance cost-efficiency and durability across all denominations in circulation. “As a final note, we call on all Namibians to handle their money responsibly. Defacing or mutilating banknotes contributes to unnecessary replacement costs and…

Chamwe Kaira Swakop Uranium executive president Irvine Simataa has confirmed a recent visit to Zambia by company officials. He described Zambia as a highly prospective and progressive mining region in the SADC. Simataa said the visit had two objectives. The first was on behalf of its majority shareholder, CGNPC Uranium Resources Company (URC), to meet with government, private sector, and other stakeholders for exploratory talks on possible partnerships to develop uranium projects in Zambia. The second objective was for Swakop Uranium to build technical relationships with Zambian mining peers operating mines similar in scale to the Husab Mine. This effort…

Chamwe Kaira Deep Yellow, which is developing the Tumas Project in the Erongo Region, has released an update on the uranium market in a report titled Uranium Demand and Supply Equation – A Total Mismatch. Managing Director John Borshoff said China continues to show strong growth, the European Union supports nuclear energy, India is projected to become the world’s third-largest economy by 2027, with nuclear as a key energy source, and the Middle East is advancing its nuclear ambitions. Borshoff said uranium supply has declined for over a decade. He noted that Kazatomprom appears to be in trouble, while Cameco…

CHAMWE KAIRA  The board of directors of Bank Windhoek has announced the retirement of Jacobus Christiaan “Koos” Brandt as a non-executive director of Bank Windhoek. The group said Brandt retired from the board on 30 April, concluding an illustrious career of over four decades with Bank Windhoek and Capricorn Group Limited. Brandt is one of the founders of Bank Windhoek, leading the group of visionary entrepreneurs who established Bank Windhoek in 1982. He has served Capricorn Group and Bank Windhoek with distinction in various leadership capacities. Notably, Brandt was the chairperson of Bank Windhoek from 1982 until 30 June 2017,…

Chamwe Kaira  Minister of Works and Transport, Veikko Nekundi, stated that his ministry aims to ensure the 2025/2026 budget delivers a modern and reliable transport infrastructure within its N$2.7 billion. The transportation development programme will include the construction of feeder and access roads, upgrading gravel roads to bitumen standard, road rehabilitation, and the development and maintenance of state-owned aerodromes. Nekundi highlighted the completion of several major projects, including the rehabilitation of 58km of the Windhoek-Okahandja road, transforming it into a dual carriageway from Brakwater to the intersection of Okahandja-Karibib and Okahandja-Otjiwarongo roads.  He also mentioned the completion of Phase 1…

Niël Terblanché The National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia (Namcor) and its joint venture partners, TotalEnergies, QatarEnergy, and Impact Oil & Gas, will move forward with developing the Venus Field in Block 2913B, offshore Namibia.  This decision comes despite the recent unsuccessful drilling of the Marula-1X exploration well. The Marula-1X well lies about 47 kilometres south of the Venus-1X discovery. It was drilled to a depth of 6,460 metres, targeting Albian-aged sandstones.  No hydrocarbons were found in the primary target, and no drill stem test was performed. Victoria Sibeya, acting managing director of Namcor, said on Tuesday that a full analysis…