By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Taxpayers living in Lagos have been reminded of the need to submit their annual tax returns on or before Monday, March 31, 2025.

This reminder is from the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), which said taxpayers are obligated to file their return as stipulated under Section 41 of the Personal Income Tax Act (PITA) 2004 as amended.

Those required to submit their annual tax returns to the agency include self-employed individuals, those in the informal sector, and employees under the Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) scheme.

In a statement signed by its Head of Corporate Communications, Mrs Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude, the tax collecting firm said the report must include the total income from all sources for the previous fiscal year (January 1 to December 31, 2024, in this case) to the relevant state tax authority within 90 days of the commencement of the new assessment year.

She quote the chairman of LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair as stressing the importance of adhering to the deadline, urging taxpayers to fulfil their statutory obligations promptly to avoid penalties and other legal consequences.

He also highlighted that tax returns must be submitted exclusively through the LIRS eTax portal, accessible at https://etax.lirs.net, noting that the portal is designed to offer taxpayers convenience, security, and ease of compliance.

“In line with our commitment to simplifying the tax filing process, dedicated tax officers are available at our various tax offices to assist individuals with online registration and tax return submissions via the eTax portal,” Mr Subair stated.

For further assistance and tax-related inquiries, taxpayers can contact the LIRS Customer Service Center at 0700 CALL LIRS (0700 2255 5477) or email etaxinfo@lirs.net.Additionally, individuals can connect with LIRS through its official social media channels or visit www.lirs.gov.ng for more information.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange gained 0.48 per cent on Monday, March 3, with N9.00 billion added to the market capitalisation, closing at N1.875 trillion compared with the preceding session’s N1.866 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) went up by 15.88 points to close at 3,311.20 points versus last Friday’s 3,295.32 points.

During the trading day, Okitipupa Plc extended its recent gaining spree by N6.48 to end at N236.00 per share versus N229.52 per share, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc increased by 36 Kobo to close at N23.04 per unit compared with last Friday’s N22.68 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc appreciated by 15 Kobo to settle at N1.67 per share, in contrast to the previous trading day’s N1.52 per share.

The volume of securities traded at the bourse yesterday decreased by 42.5 per cent to 595,005 units from the 1.03 million units transacted by the market participants at the last session.

In the same vein, the value of securities bought and sold on Monday went down by 55.1 per cent to N17.9 million from the N39.9 million achieved last Friday.

Also, the number of deals carried out on the first trading session of the week depleted by 57.5 per cent to 17 deals from the 40 deals executed in the preceding trading day.

At the close of transactions, Impresit Bakolori Plc was the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with a turnover of 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million, trailed by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with the sale of 9.6 million units valued at N377.9 million, and Afriland Properties Plc with 17.2 million units sold for N352.3 million.

Impresit Bakolori Plc was also the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 533.9 million units worth N520.9 million, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 69.7 million units worth N23.6 million, and Afriland Properties Plc with 17.2 million units sold for N352.3 million.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira began a new week stronger against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) after it chalked up 0.1 per cent or N1.50 on Monday, March 3 to quote at N1,499.23/$1, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1,500.73/$1.

However, the local currency tumbled against the Pound Sterling by N20.92 in the official market during the session to settle at N1,901.61/£1 compared with last Friday’s value of N1,880.69/£1 and against the Euro, it depreciated by N17.99 to trade at N1,570.93/€1 compared with the previous trading day’s N1,552.94/€1.

At the black market, the Nigerian Naira weakened against the Dollar by N5 on Monday to sell for N1,510/$1 compared with the preceding session’s value of N1,505/$1.

In the cryptocurrency market, there were massive plunges across the board as the landscape tumbled on plans by the administration of President Donald Trump of the US to start tariffs on its top three trading partners – Canada, Mexico, and China.

The American president also announced plans to launch a strategic crypto reserve as he sets his sight to make the country the largest holder of the assets.

He named five coins that the US will be included in the reserve including: Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA).

The biggest loser in the last 24 hours was  ADA as it slipped by 19.8 per cent to close at $0.8128, followed by SOL which slid by 15.8 per cent to trade at $133.44, XRP went down by 13.9 per cent to close at $2.32, Dogecoin (DOGE) recorded a value depreciation of 12.8 per cent to sell at $0.1928, and  Litecoin (LTC) dipped by 12.6 per cent to finish at $105.00.

Further, ETH shrank by 12.2 per cent to end at $2,093.41, BTC dropped 9.0 per cent to end at $83,628.69, and Binance Coin (BNB) moderated by 6.6 per cent to trade at $562.50, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.