Access Bank Posts N81bn Profit, Gives 25 Kobo Interim Dividend

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The chief executive of CardinalStone Finance, formerly CSAdvance, Mr Ayoola Adeola, said the company would deliver enhanced financial solutions and empower its customers with financial flexibility. Mr Adeola said this while commenting on the recent change of name of the organisation, done because it intends to offer a comprehensive range of financing solutions to a diversified clientele, including SME businesses and high-net-worth individuals. CardinalStone Finance is the subsidiary of CardinalStone Partners Limited. The firm said the transition marks a pivotal moment in the group’s pursuit of becoming a world-class financial services firm, catering to the evolving needs

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Despite the harsh operating environment and the unexpected policies of the government that affected businesses in Nigeria, Unity Bank Plc showed resilience in the first six months of 2023. In its half-year unaudited financial statements filed to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited over the weekend, the bank marginally improved its gross earnings by 0.37 per cent to N27.5 billion from N27.4 billion in the first half of last year. It was observed that 10 per cent growth in the fees and income commission to N3.5 billion from N3.2 billion helped the lender jerk up its income in

By Bliss Okperan The Managing Director and chief executive of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Mr Adesola Adeduntan, has disclosed that financial institutions in the country have the balance sheet to support big-ticket transactions, particularly from offshore investors. President Bola Tinubu travelled to the United States last week for the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and went with some businessmen and bank executives, including Mr Adeduntan. The Nigerian leader used the occasion to urge foreign investors to bring their funds into the country because he would create a business-friendly environment to make their investments grow. Nigeria, which is the largest

By Aduragbemi Omiyale If Nigerian banks intend to have a competitive advantage in the global market, then they must quickly integrate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles into their business strategies. This was the submission of the chief executive of the NGX Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo), Ms Tinuade Awe, at the 16th Annual Banking and Finance Conference organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Nigeria (CIBN) in Abuja. Recall that Nigeria has made a commitment to adopt the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards. At a panel session titled ESG in the Financial Services Industry: Challenges, Opportunities, and the

By Adedapo Adesanya A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Mr Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, has condemned a press statement issued by former Senator from the state, Mr Magnus Abe, where he (Mr Eze) claimed the former lawmaker maligned him and the person of the immediate past Minister of Transportation, Mr Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. According to Mr Eze, the press statement, which was titled Change in Nigeria’s Democracy, Work in Progress, and issued by Mr Abe’s spokesman, Parry Saroh Benson, was set out to destroy the credibility of former River States Governor, who he said brought the

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Trading at the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Thursday gained strength a day after the country’s economy went into recession. The market capitalisation recorded a growth of N282bn at the close of trading on Thursday with a total of 25 stocks appreciating in price, while 13 recording price declines. In all, the market traded on 229.225 million shares worth N2.117bn in 3,243 deals. The NSE market capitalisation soared to N9.760tn from N9.478tn, while the NSE All-Share Index also closed at 28,419.92 basis points from 27,599.03 basis points. The highest index point attained in the course of trading was

By Adedapo Adesanya The Senate has confirmed the appointment of four nominees as members of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) board. The confirmation was made during the plenary on Thursday, October 7, shortly before the presentation of the 2022 budget at the joint session of the National Assembly. It also followed the consideration of a report by the Committee on Downstream Petroleum Sector. The nominees are Mr Idaere Gogo Ogan – Chairman; Mr Farouk A. Ahmed – Chief Executive Officer; Mr Abiodun Adeniji – Executive Director, Finance and Accounts; and Mr Ogbugo Ukoha – Executive Director,

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Though wealth creation is a concept many people are familiar with, going about it smoothly has been the major problem of several individuals, who think it is a herculean task. However, one company known as Zimvest has demystified this Mount Everest with the use of technology, making it easy for retail and institutional investors to earn more value for their money. “The Zimvest platform was built with the user in mind. It provides AI-powered tools to analyse a client’s investment personality, risk tolerance, investment horizon and net worth, while ensuring that individual or corporate users’ are served

By Adedapo Adesanya First Bank of Nigeria Limited has announced the appointment of Mr Gbenga Shobo, who is currently the Deputy Managing Director (DMD) of the bank, as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer designate. The bank’s Chairman, Mrs Ibukun Awosika, said this in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos. Mrs Awosika said the appointment was subject to all regulatory approvals., including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which granted the lender its operational licence. She added that Mr Shobo succeeds Dr Sola Adeduntan, who would be leaving the bank in accordance with its term limit for chief executives, after successfully

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been advised by foreign investors to adopt interbank rate as the only official foreign exchange rate in the country if it hopes to get more investors in to the struggling Nigerian economy. This request was confirmed by reputable investment and research firm called Afrinvest West Africa Limited in a report it released at the weekend. Afrinvest disclosed that the investors want the central bank to quickly replace its multiple exchange rates with a transparent interbank market. This is not the first time such call was being made. In the past, the

By Dipo Olowookere Group Chief Executive Officer of Oando Plc, Mr Adewale Tinubu, and his deputy, Mr Mofe Boyo, have been ordered by a court in the United Kingdom to pay the sum of $680 million to Mr Gabriele Volpi, a Nigerian-Italian businessman. Specifically, the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) held that the firms run by the duo, Ocean and Oil Development Partners (OODP) and British Virgin Islands, which own 55.96 percent of Oando Plc, is indebted to Ansbury Investment Incorporated, owned by Mr Volpi. For a time now, Oando has been having issues with Ansbury over the running

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The board of directors of Dangote Cement Plc is planning to meet later this month to deliberate on the financial statements of the company for the third quarter of this year. This was the information released by the cement giant yesterday in a notice sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and the investing public for their perusal. Dangote Cement said the forthcoming board meeting is specifically slated for Tuesday, October 29, 2019 and would be for the consideration of the unaudited financial statements for the nine months ended September 30, 2019. “This is to inform the