CAPITAL MARKET
Sell-off persists on NGX as capitalization plunges further by N98b
Trading on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) closed on a downturn yesterday, following price losses that outweighed gains, causing market capitalization to dip further by N98 billion. The All-Share Index (ASI) decreased by 189.10 absolute points, representing a dip of 0.49 per cent to close at 38,044.58 points. Similarly, the market capitalization value shed N98 billion to close at N19.830 trillion. The downturn was driven by price depreciation in large and medium capitalized stocks amongst which are; Dangote Cement, Guaranty Trust Bank, MRS Oil Nigeria, Eterna and UAC of Nigeria (UACN). The Guardian
SEC sets deadline for crowdfunding platforms’ registration
The Securities and Exchange Commission has directed all existing investment crowdfunding portals/digital commodities investment platforms to comply with the registration requirements or cease operations by June 30, 2021. The capital market apex regulator said on Thursday that the platforms should note the requirements and eligibility criteria for raising funds through and/or operating a crowdfunding portal. According to the SEC, the rules governing crowdfunding business in Nigeria came into effect on January 21, 2021Punch
ECONOMY
Naira slips to 490/$ at parallel market, CBN plans digital currency
The naira exchanged to the dollar at N490/$ at the parallel market on Thursday. According to naijabdcs.com, the official exchange rate website of the Central Bank of Nigeria for the Bureau de Change operators, the country’s currency was bought and sold at N488/490 to the dollar as of Thursday evening. The naira had earlier exchanged to the dollar at N483 in previous week. The CBN recently adopted the the NAFEX Investor & Exporter forex window rate of N410.25 as its official exchange rate to the dollar. Punch
Emefiele: N35tn Infrastructure Investment Needed for Double-digit Growth
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said Nigeria requires about N35 trillion investments in infrastructure for the economy to post a double-digit growth. But Emefiele, in a goodwill message he delivered yesterday at a webinar on “Financing Public-Private Partnership to Boost Infrastructure Delivery in Nigeria,” organized by the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) in Abuja, added that given the paucity of government revenues, it will be difficult to support such investments using government funds alone. This Day
NERC to Enforce Compensation for Under-supplied Electricity Customers
Electricity consumers may finally begin to get some compensation for under-supply of power to their homes and businesses from July, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), has said. The move comes against the backdrop of complaints by energy consumers that the Service-Based Tariff (SBT), which has led to a huge increase in electricity bills paid by customers only places obligations on them without appropriate sanctions for Distribution Companies (Discos) that under-supply. This Day