Economy
Nigeria Rejects Moody’s Rating Downgrade
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Federal Government has strongly rejected the downgrading of Nigeria from a B1 stable to a B2 stable rating by Moody’s Investors Service Research.
In a statement dated Wednesday, November 8, 2017, the Nigerian authorities said the downgrade was not a true reflection of the current state of the country’s economy, which government said has improved.
“The attention of the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) has been drawn to today’s announcement of the decision by Moody’s to downgrade Nigeria from a B1 stable to a B2 stable rating.
“This is equivalent to Nigeria’s existing B/Stable Outlook rating from S&P and slightly lower than Nigeria’s B+/Negative Outlook rating from Fitch.
“While we respect the right of Moody’s to make this decision, we strongly disagree with the premise and must address some of the conclusions upon which the decision rests,” the statement said.
It said further that, Since Nigeria was last rated by Moody’s (as B1 stable) in December 2016, Nigeria has successfully emerged from a protracted recession and recorded important improvements across a broad range of indices, including A return to economic growth of 0.55% in Q2 2017, and returning business confidence, as evidenced by a PMI index of 55.0; a stable foreign exchange window for importers and exporters, with improving liquidity and convergence of the parallel and official rates; significantly improved foreign exchange reserves, now totalling $34 billion; increased oil production, combined with stable and now improving oil prices; a slowly improving revenue profile, with non-oil revenue (principally taxes) up 10%; month on month improvements in inflation levels since January 2017, with inflation continuing to trend downwards; strong year on year improvement on the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Rankings from 169th to 145th place, a 24 place move in one year; and in 2016, the highest capital expenditure deployment since 2013, making investments in critical infrastructure to support further growth.
“At the heart of Moody’s rationale is the need for Nigeria to improve non-oil revenue aggressively. This is absolutely and directly aligned to the government’s priorities. This is critical to our economic development and is the basis for the establishment of a stable and inclusive economy, which can withstand global shocks and has the resources to increase investments in our infrastructure.
“We have put in place a number of measures to improve our collection and FIRS has made good progress in increasing revenues, particularly when considering that the economy is still recovering from the oil price shock.
“Examples include introduction of a Tax Amnesty (the on-going Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS)), which is showing positive results; plugging leakages and deployment of technology driven revenue management strategies. An example is Health Pay, a pilot cashless revenue project in the health sector, which has recorded material increases in revenue.
“We have seen improvements in revenue in 2017. Fiscal revenues are linked directly to both the performance of the economy and the number of tax payers contributing. As a result of the foundation that has been established in 2017, we expect, similar positive trends in 2018.
“Our revenue initiatives are changing the mix of revenue sources available to government from the traditional oil or debt to a combination of oil, debt and domestic revenue. For example, the 2018 budget includes N710 billion proceeds from the restructuring of the Government’s equity in the JV oil assets. The reform is aimed at increasing private sector equity participation to improve efficiencies in the sector and also provides revenue to the government which will be deployed solely and exclusively for creating new assets in Nigeria.
“Moody’s highlights that while our debt levels remain low, interest is consuming a larger portion of revenue.
“It should be noted we are implementing a very prudent fiscal and debt management strategy to reduce the cost of our debt. Given the relatively higher domestic interest rates, we are focusing on longer term external borrowing with an aim to re-balance our domestic and international debt portfolio to a 60:40 split over the coming years.
“Our existing proposal to refinance $3 billion of treasury bills through external borrowing is expected to reduce Nigeria’s debt servicing costs, further improving our fiscal position.
“We also expect this strategy to help to reduce the ‘crowding out’ effect of government borrowing in the domestic markets.
“The challenges that are highlighted in the Moody’s rating are clear, and are being addressed by the government, with the environment having improved significantly since the last period of assessment.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has promised to work with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Group Plc for the prevention of financial crime, and the reinforcement of trust and confidence in Nigeria’s capital market.
The Inspector General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, gave this assurance on Wednesday at the closing gong ceremony in his honour at the NGX in Lagos.
The police chief said, “A transparent and well-regulated capital market is vital to Nigeria’s economic growth. The Nigeria Police Force remains committed to working with regulators and market operators to prevent financial crime, protect investors, and uphold the integrity of our financial system.”
Earlier in his welcome address, the chairman of NGX Group, Mr Umaru Kwairanga, commended the leadership of the police in supporting market integrity.
“Market integrity is a shared responsibility. By honouring the Inspector-General of Police, we are reinforcing the importance of institutional alignment in protecting investors and preserving trust in our financial system.
“Strong collaboration between regulators, enforcement agencies, and market infrastructure institutions is essential to building a resilient and credible market that supports economic growth,” he stated.
The Director-General of SEC, Mr Emomotimi Agama, while speaking, emphasized the importance of coordinated enforcement, noting: “Investor protection is at the core of market regulation, and today’s engagement highlights how critical collaboration with law enforcement is to achieving that mandate. This partnership strengthens our enforcement capacity, enhances deterrence against illegal investment activities, and reinforces confidence in the Nigerian capital market.”
As for the chairman of NGX Limited, Mr Ahonsi Unuigbe, “A transparent and orderly market can only thrive where rules are respected and misconduct is addressed decisively. The presence of the Nigeria Police Force in this collective effort sends a strong signal that safeguarding the market is a national priority.”
Similarly, the chief executive of NGX Group, Mr Temi Popoola, stressed the importance of aligning innovation with oversight, pointing out that, “Technology and market growth must be supported by strong enforcement and investor protection frameworks. Our collaboration with the SEC and the Nigeria Police Force reflects a unified approach to preserving the credibility of Nigeria’s capital market.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rallied by 0.09 per cent on Wednesday, February 4, amid renewed appetite for unlisted stocks.
This lifted the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 3.18 points to 3,641.30 points from the previous session’s 3,641.30 points and raised the market capitalisation by N1.9 billion to N2.180 trillion from the N2.178 trillion quoted on Tuesday.
The bourse recorded three price gainers and four price losers at the midweek session.
The advancers were led by Air Liquide Plc, which went up by N2.04 rise to end at N22.53 per share versus the previous session’s N20.49 per share, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) added 97 Kobo to sell at N44.97 per unit versus N44.00 per unit, and Acorn Petroleum Plc appreciated by 2 Kobo to N1.37 per share from N1.35 per share.
On the flip side, Geo-Fluids Plc lost 55 Kobo to sell at N6.26 per unit versus N6.81 per unit, Nipco Plc depreciated by 48 Kobo to trade at N259.00 per share versus N259.48 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc declined by 40 Kobo to N63.10 per unit from N63.50 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) depleted by 1 Kobo to 65 Kobo per share from 66 Kobo per share.
Yesterday, the volume of trades slid by 64.5 per cent to 2.5 million units from 7.0 million units, the value of transaction decreased by 53.2 per cent to N17.7 million from N37.9 million, and the number of deals went down by 47.1 per cent to 18 deals from 34 deals.
CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 16.0 million units valued at N652.6 million, followed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 1.7 million units exchanged for N111.2 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 11.7 million units traded for N76.1 million.
CSCS Plc was also the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 16.0 million units sold for N652.6 million, trailed by Mass Telecom Innovation Plc with 13.3 million units worth N5.3 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 11.7 million units valued at N76.1 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira rallied at the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Wednesday as supply continues to outweigh demand, giving it an edge against the United States Dollar.
In the parallel market, the Nigerian Naira improved its value on the greenback yesterday by N5 to quote at N1,450/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,455/$1, and at the GTBank FX desk, it gained N3 to trade at N1,383/$1, in contrast to Tuesday’s exchange rate of N1,386/$1.
In the the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), which is also the official market, the Naira firmed up against the Dollar at midweek by N14.63 or 1.1 per cent to settle at N1,358.28/$1 versus the preceding session’s N1,372.91/$1.
Against the Pound Sterling, the domestic currency appreciated on Wednesday by N14.16 to N1,863.43/£1 from the previous day’s N1,877.59/£1, and gained N13.73 on the Euro to end at N1,606.03/€1 versus the N1,619.76/€1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
The strengthening of the Naira value has been driven by the injection of forex into the financial markets by foreign investors seeking attractive investments in the emerging markets, helping to boost Nigeria’s external reserves, which provide the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) with the capacity to support the local currency.
As of February 4, 2026, the reserves reached $46.59 billion.
The local currency has been able to find a solid path despite no indications of any intervention from the apex bank in recent week, strengthening the case of price discovery.
Policy moves by the CBN is also offering a backbone for the FX market as it considers some strategic reforms through a policy known as the Single Regulatory Window.
In its 2025 Fintech Report, the central bank said this scheme will significantly reduce time-to-market for new digital financial products by streamlining licensing and supervisory processes across multiple agencies.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was in red amid a broad sell-off in global technology stocks, with reports showing that liquidity was notably thin, amplifying price moves and contributing to forced liquidations. The decline followed a sharp sell-off in global technology stocks overnight, where concerns over the pace of artificial intelligence adoption and rising capital spending by major firms weighed heavily on valuations.
Bitcoin (BTC) lost 7.9 per cent to sell at $70,534.94, Ripple (XRP) declined by 11.2 per cent to $1.42, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 9.4 per cent to $689.70, Ethereum (ETH) crashed by 8.9 per cent to $2,072.46, and Solana (SOL) dipped by 8.7 per cent to $89.86.
In addition, Dogecoin (DOGE) depreciated by 6.9 per cent to $0.1008, Cardano (ADA) slipped by 6.8 per cent to $0.2792, Litecoin (LTC) dropped 5.1 per cent to trade at $57.56, and US Dollar Tether (USDT) went down by 0.1 per cent to $0.9980, while the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00.
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