Capital Market
SEC steps in as more Nigerians buy foreign stocks
The Securities and Exchange Commission has said it will register and actively monitor brokers selling stocks for foreign companies in furtherance of its mandate of ensuring investor protection and market transparency, especially for retail investors. The Executive Commissioner Operations, SEC, Mr Dayo Obisan, was quoted in a statement by SEC on Sunday as saying this during an interview with Bloomberg over the weekend. According to Obisan, SEC intends to license firms offering foreign stocks under a “digital sub-broker” regulation. Punch
Investors Stake N16bn on 1.4 Billion Shares
The Nigerian equities market attracted investment inflow of N15.918 billion last week staked on 1.419 billion shares in 18,459 deals. This indicated an increase by 46.3 per cent from the N10.883 billion invested in 1.441 billion shares in 19,614 deals the previous week. However, the Nigerian Stock Exchange Limited (NGX) All-Share Index (ASI) depreciated by 1.6 per cent to close at 39,198.75, while market capitalisation declined to N20.431 trillion. This Day
Lagos Commodities Exchange Set to List First Gold
The Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE) is set to admit Dukia Gold‘s diversified financial instruments, backed by gold as the underlying assets in a sector worth over N300 trillion. Addressing journalists at the pre-listing media interactive session in Lagos, the Dukia Gold’s Chairman of Dukia Gold, Mr. Tunde Fagbemi, said that the instruments which would be in form of Exchange Traded Notes (ETN), Commercial Papers (CP) and other gold-backed securities would enable the company deepen the commodities market in Nigeria. This Day
Banking
Fitch affirms FBN Holdings ratings
Fitch Ratings, an international provider of credit ratings has affirmed the Long-Term Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) of FBN Holdings Plc (FBNH) and its primary operating subsidiary, First Bank of Nigeria Limited (FBN), at ‘B- ‘with a Negative Outlook. The affirmation reflects its view that the impact of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) replacement of FBNH and FBN’s boards, the identification of corporate Business Day
Jaiz Bank’s Q1 revenue rises to N5.99bn
Jaiz Bank Plc has said its gross revenue increased by 43 per cent to N5.99bn in the first quarter of 2021 from N4.18bn in the corresponding period of 2020. It disclosed this on Sunday in a statement, titled ‘Jaiz Bank declares N979.17m profit for Q1, 2021’. “Profit before taxation increased significantly by 54 per cent which amounted to N979.17m as against N636.69m recorded in the same period last year,” Punch
Economy
Trade deficit widens to $2.51bn after border reopening
Nigeria’s trade deficit rose from $1.69bn in December 2020 to $2.51bn as of the end of January 2021 despite the reopening of the borders, statistics made available by the Central Bank of Nigeria have shown. For more than a year, the Federal Government shut the country’s land borders due to alleged violation of ECOWAS protocols by neighboring countries. The border closure was aimed at stemming the tide of smuggling, illicit migration, arms banditry, drug trafficking and proliferation of light weapons. Punch
For once, rising oil prices mean falling knives
The uptick in oil prices is indicative of a recuperating economy, after an ‘interregnum’ triggered by COVID-19. But for Nigeria, the positive outlook is a reminder of the historic falling knives that is associated with crude and everything it represents in the domestic economy. If oil prices are bullish, as they currently are, the government earns more money and can fulfil its financial obligations. When it earns less, as it did last year when crude bottomed out as it were, its financial capacity shrinks, sending the economy, which is reasonably dependent on government spending to tailspin. The Guardian
Nigeria’s capacity to service debt very weak, says LCCI
The Director-General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dr Muda Yusuf, says Nigeria’s debt profile is unsustainable. According to Yusuf, Nigerians should be worried about the level of accumulated debt as it appears the nation lacks the capacity to service the debt. He said, “We should be worried, particularly from the point of view of the capacity to service the debt. “In 2020, for instance, debt servicing to revenue was close to 80 per cent. In the current budget, the debt service provision is about N3.2tn. This is huge and clearly, the debt profile is clearly unsustainable. Punch