CAPITAL MARKET
Mutual Benefits’ capital base hits N20bn
Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc said the group’s capacity to underwrite bigger insurance risks has continued to increase as its capitalisation has reached N20bn. The Chairman of the company, Dr Akin Ogunbiyi, said this during the group’s 26th annual thanksgiving service in Lagos. He said that Mutual Benefits Life Assurance Limited is now recapitlised to the tune of N8.8bn while Mutual Benefits General is capitalised to about N12bn, bringing the total capitalisation of the group to over N20bn. Punch
Champion Breweries’ Shareholders Kick as Core Investor Moves to Make 100% Acquisition
Shareholders under the aegis of the Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) have picked holes in the approval given by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to The Raysun Nigeria Limited, which is a subsidiary of Heineken N.A, to take over Champion Breweries Plc 100 per cent. The Dutch company currently holds about 84.7 per cent of the shares of Champion Breweries Plc. However, SEC recently granted the company approval to proceed with the proposed Mandatory Takeover Offer (MTO) for 1,196,799,164 ordinary shares of Champion Breweries Plc at N2.60 per share, which represent the remaining 15.3 per cent stake in the company that the Dutch brewery did not yet own. This Day
With Global Stocks in Red, Nigerian Market Gains N2.46trn in Three Weeks
Global equities suffered their biggest decline in more than a year last week, as heavy losses in Netflix shares accentuated a sell-off in tech stocks that spilled into other sectors. But in Nigeria, it was the opposite, as the market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) appreciated remarkably by 11.05 per cent or N2.46 trillion in the first three weeks of trading in 2022. Precisely, the market capitalisation of the NGX opened in 2022 at N22.297 trillion, and closed last Friday at N24.761 trillion, while the NGX All-Share Index (NGX ASI) grew by 7.6 per cent or 3,240.91 basis points to 45,957.35 basis points, from the 42,716.44 basis points it opened this year. This Day
BANKING
N1.3trn NPLs, recovery hurdles hurt banks’ operations
As Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) in the banking sector ballooned to N1.3 trillion as of last November, lenders are raising the red flag that the humongous debts are crippling their operations , putting them under the risk of regulatory forbearance or systemic failure as recovery efforts are hampered by inefficiencies of the system. Lamenting this scenario recently, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Deputy Governor in charge of Financial System Stability, Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, decried some bank customers penchant for defaulting on their loans, blaming the trend for poor credit growth in the country The Sun
ECONOMY
Experts expect same interest rate, others as MPC holds today
Experts have predicted that the Monetary Policy Committee will retain the benchmark interest rate and others at the end of its first meeting in 2022. The Central Bank of Nigeria had disclosed that it would hold its next MPC meeting on Monday (today) and Tuesday. At the last meeting in November 2021, the MPC retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 11.5 per cent; asymmetric corridor at +100/–700 basis points; Cash Reserve Ratio at 27.5 per cent; and liquidity ratio at 30.0 per cent.” Punch
Dangote Oil Refinery to Begin Production before Q3, 2022
Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, said mechanical work on his much-awaited crude oil refinery located at the Lekki Free Zone, in Lagos State, had been completed and the facility would begin to run between August and September this year. Dangote disclosed this at the weekend in Lagos during a facility tour of the oil refinery, the fertiliser plant, and the Dangote Jetty, in the company of President, African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina. Dangote said full production at the refinery could commence by the end of the year or the beginning of 2023. This Day
5G deployment gets boost, CBN gives telcos forex priority
The deployment of fifth generation technology has got a boost as the Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria has placed the telecommunication sector on the priority list for access to foreign exchange. The Global System for Mobile Communications Association in late 2021 said Nigeria needs about $500m and 6000 base stations to roll out 5G in 10 cities. The CBN’s decision means telcos can now access adequate forex to acquire major equipment from overseas for 5G deployment, and enhance their other forex-related activities. Punch
