Emefiele’s Removal Excites Investors as Stock Market Gains N1.2trn

By Adedapo Adesanya The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reaffirmed its support for the removal of fuel subsidy and the exchange rate unification of the administration of President Bola Tinubu, insisting that the policies are good for Nigeria’s economy. A representative of the global lender, Mr Ari Aisen, while featuring on Channels TV on Tuesday, maintained that the two policies must remain for Nigeria to reach macroeconomic stability. “After the position that needs to be well managed to avoid potential reversal, policies of subsidizing fuel, and controlling exchange rate will lead to a much better outlook for the Nigerian economy,”

By Dipo Olowookere The bears tightened their grip on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Tuesday, chopping off 0.34 per cent from the local bourse despite assurances from Mr Yemi Cardoso he would endeavour to ensure the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) restores its independence. Mr Cardoso was confirmed as the new CBN Governor by the Senate yesterday and he promised to formulate evidence-based monetary policies, a departure from his predecessor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, who was accused of romancing the President and coming up with trial-and-error policies. Business Post reports that investors were more interested in trimming their exposure to

By Bliss Okperan The exchange rate instability in the country is already giving small business owners sleepless nights and it threatens their investments. This concern was raised recently by the National Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Association of Small-Scale Industrialists, Mr Segun Kuti-George. He emphasised that business owners would have to increase their prices because of the unavoidable consequence of the current exchange rate crisis in Nigeria. According to him, if consumers are unable to meet up with the increase in the cost of goods and services, businesses would be forced to shut down their operations, which would, in turn,

By Adedapo Adesanya Crude oil prices settled gained almost one per cent higher on Tuesday as expectations of tighter supply outweighed worries that an uncertain economic outlook would hurt demand. Brent crude futures rose by 67 cents or 0.7 per cent to $93.96 per barrel and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures increased by 71 cents or 0.8 per cent to $90.39 per barrel. Oil supply remains tight as Russia and Saudi Arabia have extended production cuts to the end of the year. Market analysts noted that oil supply is expected to underwhelm demand in the foreseeable future

By Dipo Olowookere The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 has no doubt disrupted the status quos and many governments and individuals have come to realise that things may no longer remain as usual. For governments of the third-world countries, there must be other ways to generate funds to provide for the numerous needs of the citizens and Nigeria is not an exception. The African giant has largely relied on one major item for revenue generation, which is crude oil, but the contagion has stressed the need to raise funds from other sources. On Monday, it was reported that the federal government

By Dipo Olowookere Four members of the Board of Directors of Union Bank of Nigeria (Union Bank) Plc have left the financial institution. This information was confirmed by the lender in a statement released on Friday. It was gathered Mr Ibrahim Kwargana has retired as an Executive Director of the bank, while the trio of Engr. Mansur Ahmed, Mrs Onikepo Akande, and Mrs Arina McDonald have resigned as Non-Executive Directors of the lender. Mr Kwargana’s retirement comes after 33 years in the banking sector. He was appointed as an Executive Director in 2009 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),

By Adedapo Adesanya As world leaders converge on Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, to discuss climate change in what is regarded as the Conference of Parties 27 (COP 27) summit, one of the critical points that the Nigerian government has hammered on is the energy transition plan. What exactly is this plan, and how will the country attain it? Understanding the Problem In Nigeria, desertification in the north, floods in the centre, pollution and erosion on the coast, and the associated socio-economic consequences all allude to the reality and grave impacts of climate change. This is worsened by the country’s rising population

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A committee has been constituted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to fix the deadline for account consolidation by investors who have multiple accounts which were part of the reasons why unclaimed dividend had risen to over N80 billion, Vanguard reports. It was gathered that the committee is also expected to address all other issues of multiple accounts by investors. Members of the committee were reportedly selected from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS Plc) and stock broking firms. Quoting a source, Vanguard said the committee is “working out the modalities; how

Nigeria’s leading retail financial institution, Access Bank Plc, is set to splash millions of Naira on lucky customers who will emerge winners in the forthcoming DiamondXtra monthly draw scheduled to take place on Wednesday, May 13, 2020. According to Adaeze Ume, Group Head, Retail Products and Segments, Access bank Plc, “We have been encouraging our customers to stay safe and stay connected by using our various digital channels this period. “We know these are trying times and our customers need funds to pay essential domestic bills, send money to their loved ones and also save up for unforeseen circumstances since

By Dipo Olowookere Wema Bank Plc has partnered with Asurf TV for the premiere of Hakkunde, an intriguing story of a young graduate through his journey to self-discovery and actualization. The innovative bank which recently launched ALAT, Nigeria’s first fully digital bank, is connected to the Nigerian film industry by a shared set of values including creativity, imagination and innovation. As a bank interested in fostering innovation in the country, Wema Bank partners with local businesses in different industries, especially in the creative space, to contribute to the economic growth of the country. Earlier in 2017, Wema Bank partnered with

By Dipo Olowookere A leading off-grid power service provider in Nigeria, Daystar Power, has secured an additional funding package aimed to accelerate its target of providing cleaner energy to many households in West Africa. On Tuesday, the foremost provider of hybrid solar power solutions to businesses announced securing a Series B investment of $38 million. According to the statement, the new funds will help the firm to expand its installed capacity to over 100 megawatts, meeting demand from its clients in the financial services, manufacturing, agricultural and natural resources sectors. It said the money would be used to grow its

By Adedapo Adesanya  Nigeria has resolved to join a key United Nations accord known as the Water Convention, in which the country will play its part in using its water resources for conflict prevention, climate change adaptation, and development. Nigeria, on March 22, officially became the 48th Party to the Water Convention and the 7th African nation to join since 2018, following the footsteps of Chad, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Togo and Cameroon. With over 213 million inhabitants, Nigeria is the most populous state in Africa, and shares with its neighbours most of its water resources, which include Lake Chad and