CBN Denies Charging for MSMEs Loan Request

By Adedapo Adesanya The new leadership of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) signalled no confidence to traders and investors as the Naira was further dealt a heavy blow at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) and the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) arms of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, September 25, though it maintained stability against the United States Dollar in the parallel market. In the official market, the Naira lost 3.41 per cent or N25.49 against the greenback to finish at N773.25/$1 compared with last Friday’s closing rate of N747.76/$1, as the value of forex transactions went down by 58.3

By Precious Olisa This news may not be palatable to developers and Nigerians planning to start a building project, as the Cement Producers Association of Nigeria has warned that the price of a 50kg bag of cement may start selling for N9,000 when the dry season begins in November. At the moment, the product is sold at over N5,000. In a statement jointly signed on Sunday by the National Chairman of the group, Mr David Iweta, and its National Secretary, Mr Ufomba, the manufacturers said the rise in the price of cement would be caused by the decision of the

By Adedapo Adesanya Oil prices moderated in choppy trade on Monday as Russia relaxed its fuel ban amid a widening demand worry. Brent crude futures lost 2 cents during the session to trade at $93.29 per barrel, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude depreciated by 35 cents to close at $89.68 per barrel. Last week, prices were down after a hawkish Federal Reserve rattled global financial markets and raised concerns that interest rates could stay higher for longer affecting oil demand. This snapped a three-week rally of more than 10 per cent after Saudi Arabia and Russia constrained

Major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower opening on Thursday after stocks moved modestly higher over the course of the two previous sessions. Profit taking may contribute to initial weakness on Wall Street after the major averages ended Wednesday’s trading at new record closing highs. Traders are also digesting earnings news from financial giants Citigroup (C) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) as the earnings season gets underway. Stocks turned in another relatively lackluster performance during trading on Wednesday but managed to end the session modestly higher. With the gains on the day, the major averages climbed to new record

By Adedapo Adesanya Central Securities Clearing Systems (CSCS) Plc dampened the mood at the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange on Wednesday after it caused a 0.39 per cent loss. This led to the N2.38 billion loss suffered by NASD investors at the close of business yesterday and depleted the market capitalisation to N602.50 billion from N604.88 billion. In the same vein, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) decreased by 2.89 points to wrap the session at 729.26 points compared with 732.15 points recorded at the previous session. During the midweek session, the stock price of CSCS Plc depreciated by 75

By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke Nobody plays with their money. That’s why many people are very careful. Hence, since your ATM card is connected to your bank account, you will be worried and disorganised. Imagine you receiving alerts as someone withdraw your money from an unknown location. So, if your ATM card is stolen, Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency, shares the things you should do. Don’t panic It’s money we are talking about here. Some people may even pee in their pants if their ATM card gets missing. Really, you don’t have to do this. Compose yourself and do the

By Dipo Olowookere Figures have shown that unemployment and underemployment in Nigeria were higher for women than men in the fourth quarter of last year. In the Unemployment and Under-employment Rate by Gender subsection of a report released yesterday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in the period under review, 16.3 percent of women in the labour force (those between 15 – 65 willing, able and actively working or searching for work) were unemployed in Q4 2016, and a further 24.2 percent of women in the labour force were underemployed. On the other hand, 12.3 percent of males were

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The appointment of Mr Aasim Qureshi to the board of directors of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, the parent company of Ecobank Group, has been announced by the company. In a statement issued today, the financial institution said Mr Qureshi was joining the board as a Non-Executive Director and nominee of Qatar National Bank (QNB). The new director is replacing Mr Abdulla M. Al Khalifa on the board of directors of Ecobank, a company which has its headquarters in Lome, Togo. Mr Al Khalifa was also a nominee Qatar National Bank and had been on the Ecobank board since

Major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lower opening on Thursday following the mixed performance seen in the previous session. The downward momentum on Wall Street comes as traders continue to digest the Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates by a quarter point on Wednesday. Stocks showed a lack of direction throughout much of the trading session on Wednesday before ending the session mixed. The narrow Dow climbed to a new record closing high. The Dow rose 46.09 points or 0.2 percent to 21,374.56, while the Nasdaq fell 25.48 points or 0.4 percent to 6,194.89 and the S&P

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The Banker Magazine has ranked Zenith Bank Plc as the number one tier-1 bank in Nigeria, maintaining the position for the 13th straight year. In its 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking, the journal said Zenith Bank boasts a Tier-1 capital of $2.75 billion, emerging as the 460th bank globally. The ranking, which was published in the July 2022 edition of The Banker Magazine of the Financial Times Group, United Kingdom, was based on the 2021 year-end Tier-1 capital of banks globally. Tier-1 Capital describes capital adequacy, which is the core measure of a bank’s financial strength

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has said that Africa’s industrialisation agenda is at the heart of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and fossil fuels remains a very significant part of the energy mix required for industrialising the continent. This was disclosed by Mr Simbi Wabote, the Executive Secretary of the board, during his keynote address at the 9th Anniversary Lecture and Investiture into the Realnews of Fame Hall of Fame in Lagos. Mr Wabote said that revenues obtained from the sale of the hydrocarbon resources would remain “key drivers of the economies