Economic uncertainty sent fundraising by venture-capital firms plunging to a nine-year low in the fourth quarter of 2022, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing data from investment data company Preqin. VCs raised USD 20.6 bn in new funds during the October-December period, down 65% y-o-y — the lowest fourth-quarter total since 2013.

What happened? Years of easy money had until last year enabled VCs to raise multi-bn USD funds to pour into speculative startups, but tightening financial conditions have brought this to an end. Rising borrowing costs hit tech valuations and share prices hard last year and investors are now being more cautious about where they put their money.

EMs including Egypt worry World Bank’s switch to climate finance could imperil its credit rating: Egypt is reportedly among a host of developing countries calling on the World Bank to protect its ultra-high triple-A credit rating, as the early departure of David Malpass ushers in a greater focus on climate finance at the multilateral lender. The G11 group of developing nations — plus other EMs including Egypt, the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and more than two dozen African countries — said it was important to “avoid measures . . . that might not be understood by rating agencies in positive light,” in a note seen by the Financial Times.

The fear: That the bank could make changes that allow it to take on more risk in order to invest more in climate projects — putting it in danger of losing its exceptionally high credit rating, which allows it to offer cheap financing to poorer countries.

Dubai is trying to become a regional center for hedge fund trading: Dubai is in negotiations with over 50 hedge funds that control more than USD 1 tn in assets to set up shop in the city, according to Bloomberg. Hedge fund traders are increasingly choosing to set up in Dubai, lured in by the city's lack of taxes, ease of conducting business, and reputation as an international travel hub, as well as a convenient time zone for portfolio managers with investments spanning several continents.

ALSO IN PLANET FINANCE-

• Qatar mulls eurobond issuance: Qatar is gauging investor appetite for a potential eurobond sale, with a non-deal roadshow beginning yesterday. (Bloomberg)
• Israel isn’t easing the rate hikes: The Bank of Israel lifted its key rate by 50 bps to 4.25%, its highest since late 2008. This was a bigger hike than expected by analysts, which had forecast a 25-bps increase. (Bloomberg)
• A (temporary) sigh of relief for Facebook: Facebook parent Meta has temporarily averted a collective lawsuit in the UK of up to GBP 3 bn over claims that it abused its market position. (Reuters)

	EGX30	16,814	-3.0% (YTD: +15.2%)
	USD (CBE)	Buy 30.53	Sell 30.63
	USD at CIB	Buy 30.53	Sell 30.63
	Interest rates CBE	16.25% deposit	17.25% lending
	Tadawul	10,371	-1.2% (YTD: -1.0%)
	ADX	9,976	0.0% (YTD: -2.3%)
	DFM	3,462	+0.1% (YTD: +3.8%)
	S&P 500	4,079	-0.3% (YTD: +6.2%)
	FTSE 100	8,014	+0.1% (YTD: +7.6%)
	Euro Stoxx 50	4,271	-0.1% (YTD: +12.6%)
	Brent crude	USD 83.70	+0.8%
	Natural gas (Nymex)	USD 2.23	-1.9%
	Gold	USD 1,850.30	0.0%
	BTC	USD 24,774	+0.9% (YTD: +49.9%)

THE CLOSING BELL-

The EGX30 fell 3.0% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 1.87 bn (4.2% below the 90-day average). Local investors were net sellers. The index is up 15.2% YTD.

In the green: Juhayna (+0.1%).

In the red: Ezz Steel (-5.9%), Elsewedy Electric (-5.8%) and Telecom Egypt (-5.5%).