By Dipo Olowookere
The sum of N10 billion is about to be raised by Greenwich Merchant Bank Limited from the sale of commercial paper, Business Post reports.
The lending institution for players in the business sector intends to use the proceeds of the issue to support its short-term funding needs as part of its working capital management strategy, according to a notice.
The Naira-denominated corporate debt instrument is being issued to investors in the Nigerian capital market under the company’s N100 billion commercial paper programme.
In the details of the exercise, Greenwich Merchant Bank is selling the commercial paper in Series 1 and 2, and subscription commenced on Wednesday, March 1 and will end on Thursday, March 9, 2023.
Series 1 of the note has a tenor of 179 days, with a discount rate of 12.22 per cent and a yield of 13.00 per cent, while Series 2 has a maturity of 270 days, with a discount rate of 12.69 per cent and a yield of 14.00 per cent.
Interested investors are required by the company to pay N5 million as the minimum subscription.
Greenwich Merchant Bank has three operating segments: corporate banking, investment banking, and treasury. Its three main income streams are trading income, interest income, and fees and commission.
In the 2021 fiscal year, the company had a balance sheet of N86.19 billion, of which 97.28 per cent was held in liquid assets, sufficient to cover its short-term obligations, indicating that the organisation should be able to settle its obligations, including debt repayment.
The company’s net operating cash flow, according to researchers at Meristem, remained at a positive value of N46.30 billion in 2021FY versus N0.17 billion in 2020FY, signifying that the company’s earnings quality is positive (25.64x) and higher than 2020FY (0.14x).
Greenwich Merchant Bank obtained its merchant banking license from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in September 2020, and a month later, it commenced its banking operations.
Modupe Gbadeyanka 
Aduragbemi Omiyale