JP Morgan Bets on Kenya, Why Startups Fail

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What's Inside

• “10 years from now, Kenya Will Do a Lot for the Health of JP Morgan
• Why the ‘Silicon Valley Model’ is not to Blame for …
• Headlines you might have missed
• Interview of the Week

“10 years from now, Kenya Will Do a Lot for the Health of JPMorgan” -CEO Jamie Dimon

In mid-October, JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States with more than $4.2 trillion in assets, made a strategic expansion into Sub-Saharan Africa by opening representative offices in?Kenya?and Ivory Coast.?

• JP Morgan’s growing interest in East and West Africa was followed by an extensive trip by CEO Jamie Dimon, who met with key partners, regulators, and government officials.
• Dimon says he was impressed by the scale of tech innovation across Africa, while committing to make foundational investments even if they don’t yield immediate returns.
• Dimon sees the Africa expansion project as part of?JPMorgan's broader legacy-building effort.

“In Kenya, that’s not going to do anything for the fortunes of JPMorgan next year but 10 years from we’ll have a much better African network and that’ll do a lot for the health of JPMorgan,” Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan CEO, said at a private event hosted by Institute for International Finance (IIF) after his tour to Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria.

“The network we’re building there—it’s a gift to the next generation. We bank South African and Nigerian companies outside of their countries, conduct extensive research, and educate the world on these markets. This is only the beginning. Africa will be part of the next generation’s global business landscape,” Dimon added.

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The first lesson of economics is scarcity: There is never enough of anything to satisfy all those who want it. The first lesson of politics is to disregard the first lesson of economics.

-Thomas Sowell

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Kenya’s Economy in 2024: Challenges, Policy Shifts, and Investment Opportunities

Kenya’s economy in 2024 has been a blend of economic pressures, growth prospects, policy recalibrations, and evolving investment landscape.

kenyanwallstreet.com/kenyas-economy-in-2024-challenges-policy-shifts-and-investment-opportunities

Why the ‘Silicon Valley Model’ is not to Blame for African Startup Failures

By Abraham Augustine

Critics have offered the theory the mythical Silicon Valley model as the proverbial sin offering in talks, podcasts, conference panels, news articles, research papers, and the perenially negative comments from LinkedIn high priests about why startups in Africa fail.

I’ve seen it enough to be repelled by this rather simplistic notion that awards outsize blame on “borrowed models from Silicon Valley” for the?failure?of African technology businesses.?

There are two obvious reasons why this is untrue: imitation is common, adapting is common sense, and Silicon Valley is now more about the VC model than the geographical location that once exclusively held the nickname.

Read More.

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Headlines you might have missed

Nairobi Securities Exchange To Launch Options Derivatives Trading

Kenya's economic growth, as measured by Real GDP growth, will slow down from 5.6% in 2023 to 5.0% in 2024 and 2025 respectively.

Land Prices Grow Despite High Interest Rates, Political Unrest in Q3- Hass Consult Index

Uganda's Parliament Rejects Proposal to Merge Tax Appeals Tribunal with Other Tribunals

Treasury to Slash KShs. 12bn Budget by Limiting Cars Used by Public Officials- Draft Policy

Interview of the Week

Jamie Dimon, CEO JP Morgan speaks about Africa and Uncovering Opportunities for Growth

Have a great week!