Economy
Amzat, Others to Speak at 20th Africa Business Summit in London
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Managing Director of Zedcrest Group, Mr Adedayo Amzat, will join other important personalities to speak at the 20th edition of Africa Business Summit (ABS) scheduled for the London Business School, the United Kingdom on Saturday, May 14, 2022.
The summit is themed Africa Post-Pandemic: Unlocking the Next Frontier of Growth and has Zedcrest as a silver sponsor as part of its desire to promote an inclusive economy in Africa and to further extend the company’s prosperity inclusion advocacy to Africans in diaspora, and foreign investors.
The Minister, Secretary General, Presidency of Ivory Coast, Abdourahmane Cissé and the Director of Google West Africa, Juliet Ehimuan, are the keynote speakers.
On the panel with Mr Amzat are Admassu Tadesse, President of TDB Group; Serge Ekué, President at BOAD (West African Development Bank); Kudazyi Hove, Entrepreneur and Board Member; Caleb Usoh, Country Director (Nigeria) at OCP SA; Ido Sum, Partner at TLcom Capital; Jonathan Brenton, Head of International Trade at Pernod Ricard; Dr Davis Musinguzi, Co-Founder & CEO at Rocket Health; Eren Kelekci, Chief Investment Officer, Food and Agriculture at African Development Bank Group.
Others include Habiba Ben Barka, Chief of Africa Section at UNCTAD; Colin Coleman, former CEO Goldman Sachs SSA, Yale Fellow; Fani Titi, CEO at Investec; Joseph-Alain Saraka, Chief Strategy Officer at ARISE; Peter Nyeko, co-founder and Managing Director of Mandulis Energy; Ibrahim Sagna, Director Advisory & Capital Markets at Afrexim; Mohamed Dabbour, CEO at Aesthina Partners Ltd and Thione Niang, founder at JeufZone Farm.
Commenting ahead of the event, Mr Amzat said, “With 70 per cent of Africa’s population under the age of 30, the continent is really the last frontier for global companies and investors hunting for the next big markets to deploy both capital and products.
“The continent has also witnessed a huge leap in the quantum and quality of entrepreneurial efforts, particularly in the emerging technology world. African founders have proven that they are world-class in applying innovative technologies in solving our everyday problems.
“However, the local capital markets haven’t developed enough to facilitate this growth, leading to a disproportionate reliance on foreign capital.
“Domestic capital pools from the Banks, Pension Funds, Asset Managers and HNIs will need to be mobilised to support the growth of innovation on the continent.”
He opined that the number of deals and funding in African startups has been growing over the last few years, and the ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) could also boost the African startup ecosystem by creating the biggest Free Trade Area in the world.
The Africa Business Summit has established itself as a leading forum for shaping an integrated and innovative perspective on Africa’s future. It is a student-led initiative of the London Business School (LBS) that attracts an audience of over 500 investors, policymakers, business leaders, professionals, diaspora, students, and alumni.
Zedcrest Group is the parent company of Zedvance Finance Limited, a leading consumer lending firm; Zedcap Partners, a foremost securities brokerage firm engaging in the broking of financial products in sub-Saharan Africa Over-the-counter (OTC) Fixed Income and currencies markets (FICC). Zimvest, an asset management firm licensed by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) is also a subsidiary of the group.
It was recently recognised as the fastest-growing firm in Nigeria’s financial services sector, the second fastest-growing company in the country and the fifth fastest-growing in Africa in the 2022 Financial Times ranking for Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies published on its official website.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unveiled plans to make sustainability reporting mandatory for large public interest entities from 2027.
This comes as Nigeria moves to align its corporate disclosure framework with global environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting standards.
The phased implementation will begin with voluntary adoption by early adopters and large public interest entities before becoming mandatory in 2027. The requirement will extend to other public interest entities in 2028 and small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs) by 2030.
The Director-General of the SEC, Mr Emomotimi Agama, disclosed this at the 2026 Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC) Sustainability and ESG Conference 3.0, themed ‘Building a Sustainable Africa: Integrating Environmental Stewardship, Social Investment, and Strong Governance for a Prosperous Future’ in Lagos.
Mr Agama said Nigeria’s sustainability disclosure regime is being aligned with the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework, including IFRS S1 and IFRS S2, which have emerged as the global benchmark for sustainability reporting.
He said that institutional investors increasingly consider ESG performance a key determinant of capital allocation rather than a peripheral corporate responsibility issue, noting that the price of entry is disclosure.
He said the reforms would strengthen investor confidence and position Nigerian businesses to access global capital markets, where sustainability disclosures are becoming an essential investment requirement.
According to him, Nigeria’s capital market has recorded significant expansion, with market capitalisation growing from about N130 trillion to nearly N160 trillion following recent market reforms, while assets under management have surpassed N9 trillion.
To deepen sustainable finance, Agama said the commission was promoting infrastructure, green and municipal bonds, alongside infrastructure-focused investment funds, to mobilise long-term capital for critical national projects.
He added that the commission would also encourage investments in the blue economy and support financing for the power sector through green energy bonds, project bonds and public-private investment structures.
The SEC chief cited the recent launch of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Impact Board as another milestone in advancing sustainable finance and urged companies, regulators and investors to move beyond commitments by embedding sustainability into governance, operations and investment decisions.
Economy
International Breweries Plans Share Capital Reduction to Remove N191bn Losses, Enable Dividend Payout
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The board of International Breweries Plc is proposing a share capital reduction exercise to enable it to pay dividends from future profits.
The brewery firm has been unable to give shareholders a cash reward despite bouncing back into profitability because of accumulated losses of up to N191 billion.
To resolve this issue, which is becoming worrisome to the company’s investors, the board is planning to apply a portion of the balance in the Share Premium Account to eliminate the accumulated losses.
In a notice signed by its scribe, Temitope Oluwatosin, International Breweries informed the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited and the investing public that the share capital reduction should restore distributable reserves and re-establish its capacity to pay dividends to shareholders.
It was disclosed that the transaction would be “executed pursuant to the provisions of Section 131 of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020 (as amended), subject to the appropriate regulatory approval and confirmation by the Federal High Court.”
“Following the elimination of accumulated losses, the company proposes a further reduction of the Share Premium Account to enable the return of capital to shareholders.
“The amount payable per ordinary share will be distributed on a pro rata basis, determined with reference to the total amount approved by the board for distribution from the Share Premium Account,” a part of the disclosure stated.
International Breweries noted that shareholders would be required to vote on the proposed share capital reduction at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) scheduled for the Grand Ballroom of the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos, on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at 11.00 am.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The submission of the second quarter of 2026 Ownership Structure and Capital Flows Returns by capital market operators in Nigeria closes today, Friday, July 10, 2026.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave all registrars, brokers/dealers, fund managers and other relevant capital market operators this deadline via a statement on Wednesday, July 8, 2026.
The documents are needed in support of the compilation of Nigeria’s Balance of Payments (BOP) and International Investment Position (IIP) statistics.
According to the SEC, the exercise forms part of ongoing efforts to improve the quality, coverage, and reliability of Nigeria’s external sector statistics.
Operators are required to provide quarterly data on new equity and debt investments by residents and non-residents; equity and debt holdings of non-residents in Nigerian entities and those of Nigerian residents in foreign entities; investments arising from mergers, acquisitions, and other business combinations involving resident and non-resident entities; and other cross-border capital market transactions.
Specifically, reporting entities are required to submit information on investments in newly issued equities and debt securities; foreign portfolio investment holdings in Nigerian companies; ownership interests arising from business combinations involving non-residents; investments by multinational corporations in the Nigerian capital market; equity investments held abroad by resident companies; and bond investments held abroad by resident companies.
The regulator reminded operators that accurate and timely reporting is critical to the compilation of reliable BOP and IIP statistics, directing all fund managers, brokers/dealers, registrars, and other relevant capital market operators to ensure full and timely compliance with this reporting requirement.
It thanked those who have consistently complied with this requirement and acknowledged their contribution to this important national assignment.
It noted that the submission of ownership structure and capital flows data is a continuous quarterly reporting obligation, advising them to carefully review the guidance accompanying each reporting template and ensure that all submissions are complete, accurate, and submitted within the stipulated timeline.
