Economy
National Assembly Praises SEC for Fiscal Sustainability
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been praised by the National Assembly (NASS) for its decisive steps in ensuring it attains fiscal sustainability.
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance, Mr James Abiodun Faleke, applauded the agency during the 2023-2025 Medium Term Expenditure Framework/Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) interactive session in Abuja on Tuesday.
He expressed his pleasure at the various efforts the commission has taken so far in shoring up its finances, noting that, “Last year, when you came here, we challenged you to look inwards and return the SEC to sustainability and I am happy you have done that and that you are living up to expectations. I want to commend you for your efforts thus far, while also admonishing you to work harder.”
Speaking earlier, the Director-General of the SEC Mr Lamido Yuguda, stated that 2020 and 2021 were particularly difficult times for the organisation as it was running a deficit.
“When we came on board, it was very difficult but we assured the National Assembly that we were going to take certain actions to make this deficit a thing of the past and our story this year is that we have actually turned the corner.
“If you look at our 2021 and 2020, compare with the 2022 budget and the 6 months in 2022 you will see that there is an actual improvement in the way we manage the finances of the commission.
“It shows our budget for 2022 and the actual out time for the first half of that year. You can see that we projected a deficit of N1.6 billion, but as at the end of the first half, we have a surplus of about N2.5 billion,” he noted.
He stated that the presentation is a summary of the kind of efforts the current Management has made over the past few years to position the Commission on the path of fiscal sustainability.
Mr Yuguda told the Members that the SEC has so far carried out its promise to reduce the top-heavy structure in the Commission by offering some top personnel a voluntary exit package.
“Mr Chairman we were top heavy and we said before this committee that we had a plan to offer a voluntarily early exit to some of our top personnel and I am happy to report that at the end of last year we offered this scheme and quite a number of our staff took the offer and we were able to substantially reduce our workforce by almost 30 per cent,” he stated.
While admitting that the commission has been operating under very difficult circumstances since it is currently superintending over a market that was affected by the negative impact of the coronavirus pandemic, he assured that steps are being taken to ensure that the fortunes of the SEC continues to improve.
He said, “If we go through the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework which we started last year if we look at 2022 and 2023, you will see that we have worked on our expenditure and the deficit is now turning into a surplus. surplus. We, therefore, need the support of all to engineer the kind of transition we are thinking of at the SEC.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Nigeria slightly surpassed its quota set by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in July 2026.
In the month under review, the country produced about 1.57 million barrels of crude oil per day.
It was the third consecutive month Africa’s largest oil-producing nation was meeting its monthly quota, set to stabilise the price of the commodity on the global market by the oil cartel.
Data released by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) on Wednesday showed that the 1.5 million barrels per day ceiling for Nigeria was surpassed last month.
The agency disclosed in a statement today that the country produced 1.505mbpd of crude oil and 0.17mbpd of condensate, bringing the combined daily production to 1.67mbpd.
In the month under review, the daily peak production of crude oil and condensate was 1.78mbpd, while the lowest daily production was 1.57mbpd.
Although Nigeria met its OPEC quota in the month of July, the statistics show that on a month-on-month basis, production fell by 4 per cent.
This was attributed to the decline in production due to operational challenges experienced at the Erha and Akpo fields, which impacted crude oil output during the period under review.
These disruptions constrained production volumes and contributed significantly to the overall reduction in national crude oil output.
Despite the challenges, production operations across most other producing assets remained relatively stable, with operators implementing measures aimed at maintaining production efficiency and minimising the impact of operational constraints, NUPRC stated.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The over 9 billion shares of Lasaco Assurance Plc issued to shareholders of the company via a rights issue have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The equities were brought to Customs Street on Wednesday by the organisation, increasing its total issued and fully paid-up share capital.
Lasaco Assurance, which scaled the recapitalisation hurdle of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) in July 2026, raised fresh capital from the capital market to shore up its capital base.
The underwriting firm got about N18.5 billion from the rights issue, which involved the issuance of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares at a unit price of N2.00.
The exercise was on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
Confirming the listing of the additional stocks of Lasaco Assurance today, the Head of Issuer Regulation Department of NGX RegCo, Mr Godstime Iwenekhai, announced in a circular that, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Lasaco Assurance Plc were today, Wednesday, August 12, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N2.00 per share on the basis of five new ordinary shares for every existing six ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Friday, February 20, 2026.
“With the listing of the additional 9,236,321,546 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up share capital of Lasaco Assurance Plc has now increased from 11,083,585,855 to 20,319,907,401 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) has said the successful recapitalisation of the insurance industry will strengthen the sector’s ability to support financial stability and economic growth.
NIA Chairman, Mrs Ebelechukwu Nwachukwu, said a well-capitalised insurance industry would be better positioned to meet its obligations promptly, underwrite complex and large-scale risks and serve as a dependable pillar of the Nigerian economy.
She made the remarks while commending the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) for its structured implementation of the new minimum capital requirements under the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.
Mrs Nwachukwu said NAICOM’s clear guidelines, systematic verification process, defined timelines and rigorous supervision had provided operators with a credible framework for navigating the recapitalisation exercise.
She described the outcome as a major milestone for the industry and congratulated the 43 insurance and reinsurance companies that have successfully met the prescribed minimum capital requirements.
According to her, the exercise represents “a major win not just for regulators and operators, but for policyholders, investors and the wider Nigerian economy.”
Mrs Nwachukwu said the association would continue to work with NAICOM and other stakeholders to consolidate the gains of the exercise, with emphasis on sustainable industry growth, stronger market conduct and improved consumer confidence.
The official also expressed solidarity with the eight companies still undergoing final verification and regulatory review, urging them to remain confident as NAICOM completes the process within the 14-day review period.
The NIA chairman assured policyholders and the wider business community that the insurance industry would emerge from the recapitalisation exercise stronger, more resilient and better positioned to contribute to Nigeria’s economic development.
