Dangote Refinery Funding: Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote secured a record $2.5bn private investment to expand his Lekki refinery, lifting capacity toward 1.4m barrels/day by 2028 and setting up a potential IPO. AfCFTA Digital Trade Push: Nigeria inaugurated the ADAPT implementation forum to move from policy to execution on interoperable, trusted digital trade infrastructure, with Nigeria co-championing the AfCFTA digital trade protocol. Continental Credit Ratings: Africa is edging toward a new continental credit rating agency, with the African Peer Review Mechanism saying operations are due to start Oct. 6 in Mauritius, aiming to widen local context in sovereign and corporate risk views. Health Financing Reform: Ethiopia and UNECA agreed to strengthen the Transforming Health Financing in Africa Initiative, making Ethiopia an early adopter to boost domestic health funding and innovative, debt-sustainable financing. US Visa Overhaul: The US will end routine visa processing at Abuja and 24 other African missions from Aug. 1, shifting routine work to regional hubs. Nigeria Audit Market: PwC and EY lead Nigeria’s corporate audit market in 2025, each auditing 23 companies, underscoring continued concentration among top firms. Allied Gold Deal Shift: Zijin Gold terminated its $5.5bn acquisition of Allied Gold but will invest about $295m instead via private placement, with mine ramp-ups in Ethiopia and Mali in focus. Payments Spotlight: Flutterwave was named to CNBC and Statista’s World’s Top Fintech Companies list, reinforcing its push in cross-border commerce. Trade & Logistics: China, PSCs and Mozambique hosted a Maputo entrepreneurs meeting that signed 24 cooperation deals worth about $150m, focused on logistics infrastructure.