By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria generated N21.6 trillion in tax revenue in the first half of 2026, representing a 49 per cent year-on-year increase from the corresponding period of 2025, as recent tax reforms and improved compliance continued to boost government collections.

According to a report by CSL Stockbrokers, the strong performance extends Nigeria’s recent revenue growth trajectory, with total tax collections increasing from N12.3 trillion in 2023 to N21 trillion in 2024 and N28.3 trillion in 2025.

The report attributed the growth to the digitalisation of tax administration through a national electronic invoicing system, the implementation of four tax reform laws that took effect in January 2026, the transition of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) with an expanded revenue collection mandate, and stronger compliance across the oil and non-oil sectors.

It also noted that Executive Order 9, signed in February 2026, has strengthened revenue collection by requiring upstream oil and gas companies to remit royalties, taxes and production-sharing contract profit oil directly to the Federation Account.

The report said non-oil taxes accounted for 76 per cent of total NRS collections during the review period, reflecting a gradual broadening of the country’s tax base and reducing dependence on hydrocarbon-related revenues.

It added that the improvement helped raise Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio to 13 per cent from 10.3 per cent, although the figure remains below the government’s medium-term target of 18 per cent and the average recorded by many African peers.

CSL said sustaining the current pace of revenue growth would require continued legislative backing and effective implementation of the new tax framework.

The report recommended incorporating the provisions of Executive Order 9 into permanent legislation through amendments to the Nigeria Tax Administration Act or the Petroleum Industry Act to provide greater legal certainty for upstream revenue remittances.

It also identified nationwide implementation of the new tax laws, wider adoption of electronic invoicing, improved taxpayer compliance and continued digitalisation of tax administration as key measures to support further gains in domestic revenue mobilisation.

According to the report, stronger and more predictable government revenues could improve Nigeria’s fiscal sustainability by narrowing the fiscal deficit while creating additional fiscal space for infrastructure development and social spending, provided expenditure remains disciplined.

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Emerald Holdco has been authorised by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to proceed with its mandatory takeover offer (MTO) of shares of Beta Glass Plc worth N6.94 billion held by minority investors.

In a notice to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, it was disclosed that the MTO involves 11,741,509 ordinary shares of Beta Glass at a unit price of N590.94.

Shareholders of the company are required to fill out the MTO form for the exercise, which opened on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, and is expected to close at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, August 4, 2026.

Business Post reports that Emerald Holdco recently completed the acquisition of 100 per cent of the shares of Emerald Nigeria Intermediate Holdings B.V. (formerly Frigoinvest Nigeria Holding B.V), which owns 76.03 per cent of Packaging Industries Nigeria Limited (formerly Frigoglass Industries (Nigeria) Limited) from the Frigoglass Group.

As part of this transaction, Emerald Holdco has assumed indirect ownership of 331,260,999 ordinary shares in the company, previously held by Frigoglass Group, which represent approximately 55.22 per cent of the issued share capital of the organisation.

In accordance with the Nigerian Takeover Rules, Emerald Holdco is required to make a takeover offer to all other shareholders of Beta Glass. It is permitted to make an offer for all or a portion of the shares held by the other shareholders of the firm.

Following this requirement, Emerald Holdco sought and obtained approval from its board and shareholders to launch a takeover offer to all qualifying shareholders for the acquisition of up to 11,741,509 ordinary shares, representing 1.96 per cent of the total issued and fully paid-up share capital of Beta Glass.

The board and shareholders granted this approval on February 5, 2026, and March 3, 2026, respectively.

By Adedapo Adesanya

A plunge in the share price of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc purged the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 6.11 per cent on Tuesday, July 7.

The milk producer, famed for brands like Peak Milk and Three Crowns, was the sole price loser during the session, shedding N12.41 to end at N139.41 per unit compared with the previous day’s N151.82 per unit.

As a result, the market capitalisation of the alternative stock market went down by N155.40 billion to close at N2.387 trillion, in contrast to Monday’s closing value of N2.543 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) fell by 258.90 points to close at 3,978.07 points compared with the preceding session’s 4,236.97 points.

Business Post reports that NASD Plc was the only price gainer for the day, gaining 80 Kobo to close at N34.10 per share versus N33.30 per share.

Yesterday, the value of securities surged by 98.3 per cent to N15.9 million from the preceding session’s N2.8 million, the volume of securities increased by 183.6 per cent to 323,780 units from 114.175 million units, and the number of deals grew by 61.1 per cent to 29 deals from 18 deals.

At the close of business, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded security by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 70.7 million units exchanged for N4.9 billion.

GNI Plc also ended the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.