Here are three big stories from Africa and the global business landscape you (probably) didn’t miss but should keep in mind this week:

Nigeria is bracing up for more inflation.

Nigeria’s inflation rate reached a new seven-year high of 22.79% in June, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). This spike happened after President Bola Tinubu scrapped fuel subsidies and allowed the currency to weaken before declaring a state of emergency to control staple food costs.

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate has risen on each consecutive month this year. And the uptrend is not likely to end soon. Last week, petrol prices reached a new high of N617/litre, fueling concerns that inflation rates would increase again. Also, the naira weakened against the dollar to N850 at the parallel market as demand for the greenback rose.

In its Executive Board Work Programme (BWP) for the year 2024, released at the weekend, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also forecasted weak growth and higher inflation rates for several low-income countries, including Nigeria. One of the reasons is the high debt pressure these countries have to overcome.

Uganda adopts a ‘penny-wise’ strategy.

Uganda wants to replace low-denomination banknotes with coins, and a cost-benefit analysis will inform the decision. Adam Mugume, Bank of Uganda’s Executive Director of Research, said so in a letter published in the June International Monetary Fund (IMF) Fourth Review for Uganda. The exercise aims to cut down printing costs.

“Given high currency printing costs, we have conducted a market study to compare printing costs, and a cost-benefit analysis of replacing low denomination banknotes with coins,” the letter reads. The Bank would start by phasing out the 1000-shilling paper note before looking at others. According to them, the 1000-shilling notes have more heavy usage among residents, which reduces their lifespan.

In its 2021/22 Annual Report, Uganda’s Central Bank indicated the cost of issuing currency, which included printing and circulation, had surged by Shs 24.4b (16.5 per cent) in the period.

The Bank of Uganda has not disclosed a specific timeline for this action. But this won’t be its first time phasing out banknotes. Other small currency denominations, ranging from 1-500 shillings, are now coins.

Twitter is shedding its feathers.

Elon Musk is replacing Twitter’s iconic bird logo with an “X.” This move, according to him, is part of a rebrand for the social platform to X, the one-letter name he has used repeatedly in company and product names forever.

Musk announced the revamp on Sunday, saying on the social media app that “soon we shall bid adieu to the Twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds.”

The Starlink founder has already made significant changes to Twitter since he bought the company last year, including changing its name to X Corp in filings as part of his plans to create an “everything app” under the brand “X”. The company plans to shift from being a text-focused platform to integrating more audio, video and payments features and is looking to woo advertisers as well as partner with broadcasters or payments groups.

ICYMI: Market Roundup

• Nigeria’s stock market had a positive week, with the All-Share Index gaining 3.89% to close at 65,003.39 points.
• Top gainers on the Nigerian Exchange were John Holt Plc (58.01%), Chellarams Plc (32.39%), Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc (27.33%), Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (27.17%) and CWG Plc (26.38%).
• Top decliners were FTN Cocoa Processors Plc (-29.08%), Courteville Business Solutions Plc (-28.09%), Abbey Mortgage Bank Plc (-26.32%), Linkage Assurance Plc (-20.00%) and Japaul Gold & Ventures Plc (-15.15%).
• The naira ended the week trading at N777.82 against the dollar at the Investors’ and Exporters’ Window.
• Brent crude closed trading at $80.79 per barrel, up from last week’s $78.53. West Texas Intermediate closed at $76.41, up from last week’s $74.10.
• The crypto market’s valuation dropped from $ 1.21 trillion to $1.19 trillion. Bitcoin declined 1.65% to $29,788, Ethereum dropped 3.18% to 1870 and XRP fell by 2.57% to $0.73.
• Kasha, a Rwandan e-commerce platform, has raised a $21 M Series B round to expand operations to West Africa.
•  MyCover.ai, a Nigerian insurtech platform, has raised $1.25 M in pre-seed funding from Ventures Platform and Founders Factory Africa.
• Kaco, a Tunisian mobility startup, has secured an undisclosed fundraising round to finalise the construction of a production facility, aiming to manufacture a thousand scooters per year.
• PharmaRun, a Nigerian health-tech platform with Buy Now Pay Later options, emerged winner of the 2023 Pitch2Win startup competition. The startup won $10k in equity-free cash.