Stablecoins and Eskom: Friday's plot thickens

Overnight global mood

Wall Street closed on a cautious note Thursday as rate expectations continue to dominate the conversation. London and Asia have been relatively quiet overnight, with sentiment holding steady ahead of the weekend. The JSE enters Friday with no major overnight shocks to wade through, which in this market counts as a minor victory.

Today's big stories

• Stablecoins surge past bitcoin hype in South Africa. Absa's digital assets head Rob Downes reveals stablecoin flows across African markets have more than doubled in four years, signalling a shift from speculation to actual utility. This is the financial equivalent of retail investors finally admitting they got into crypto for the wrong reasons. Read more.
• Eskom's 103-year stranglehold is ending in 2027. Private players will finally get a seat at the electricity generation table next year, officially terminating the world's longest monopoly over load shedding schedules. Watch EDF, IMP, and power infrastructure stocks for the implications. Read more.

Sector watch

Energy and utilities deserve your attention today. The Eskom story is not just nostalgia for a failed state enterprise; it signals real capital reallocation toward private generation and infrastructure. Financials will also merit a glance, particularly banks exposed to digital asset flows. If stablecoins are moving material volumes through Absa, others are watching closely. Expect any crypto-friendly fintech plays to drift upward on momentum.

One thing to watch

Energy sector positioning ahead of 2027's private generation rollout. The headline is Eskom's monopoly ending; the subplot is which JSE-listed energy companies will capture the growth. Infrastructure plays and renewable energy stocks could see fresh interest as the market begins pricing in a genuinely competitive electricity market. That is, if load shedding doesn't derail optimism first.