Adelaide Changole

Absa Group Ltd. said first-half profit climbed to a new high as growth in its South Africa business offset a decline in earnings from its operations elsewhere on the continent.

South African operations helped offset weaker earnings elsewhere on the continent as headline earnings rose 8% to a record R12.8bn.

Absa Group Ltd. is looking to expand its presence in Nigeria, adding Africa’s most populous nation to its push to diversify beyond its biggest markets.

The bank is considering converting its Nigerian representative office into a merchant bank to reduce its reliance on its three largest African markets.

South Africa is targeting a debut sovereign green bond as soon as this fiscal year to help raise the 3.7 trillion rand ($228 billion) needed to mitigate the effect of greenhouse gas emissions over the next decade.

Discovery Ltd.’s full-year earnings rose as South Africa’s largest health-insurance administrator benefited from years of strategic investment and as profit from its banking division climbed.

Normalised headline earnings reached R11.8bn, with Discovery Bank delivering its first full-year profit and the annual dividend rising to R3.84.

Santam Ltd. has paused its foray into the US as a decline in property premium rates in the world’s biggest economy forced South Africa’s largest general insurer to rethink its expansion plan.

Discovery Ltd. is accelerating the US rollout of its flagship wellness program as South Africa’s biggest health-insurance provider seeks to diversify its business and generate more revenue outside its home market.

Softening US property rates have prompted the insurer to prioritise Syndicate 1918 and its broader international growth strategy.