Economy
FBNQuest Reiterates Commitment to Africa’s Tech Startups Growth
By Adedapo Adesanya
FBNQuest, the investment banking and asset management subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc, has continued to demonstrate itself as a forerunner in supporting the growth of technology startups in Africa through its recent participation in the 2nd investment vehicle of TLcom Capital (TIDE Africa Fund II – TAF 2).
TLcom Capital LLP, an Africa-focused venture capital firm recently announced a first close of $70 million for its $150 million Africa focused tech fund (TIDE Africa Fund II -TAF2), this achievement firmly positions the firm as one of the largest independent Venture Capital (VC) fund managers fully dedicated to the continent. Most of this capital has come from returning Limited Partners (those who backed the first fund), indicating their confidence in the fund manager.
These Limited Partners (LPs) include Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) like Sango Capital, IFC, Proparco, and CDC Group (now known as British International Investment), as well as the private sector and philanthropic investors like FBNQuest Funds and King Philanthropies, respectively.
A new investor backing TAF 2 is AfricaGrow – a joint venture platform backed by Allianz (the world’s largest insurer) and DEG (the German DFI). The new fund gives TLcom the opportunity to expand its focus on fast-growth tech-enabled African startups to markets like Egypt and strengthen its long-standing presence across East and West Africa.
In the manager’s first Africa-focused VC fund (TIDE Africa Fund I – TAF 1) which closed at US$71Mn, FBNQuest’s capital contribution in TAF 1 helped TLcom back and catalyse eleven companies directly via co-investments of over US$200Mn into these companies in subsequent funding rounds.
This has helped produce successful tech companies such as Andela, Kobo360, Twiga Foods, uLesson, Okra and Autochek.
In addition to these, TLcom has built a robust network in the Africa tech ecosystem with over ten years of direct participation in the space. The fund manager has established ecosystem initiatives such as a CEO Summit – a summit to catalyse synergy and collaboration between CEOs of portfolio companies, and a Tech Female Founders Summit – an event designed to build a collaborative network of African female tech founders.
Speaking on the TAF 2 first close, Mrs Ijeoma Agboti, Managing Director, FBNQuest Funds stated, “We recognise the transformational role that technology must play in narrowing the gap between industries in Africa and the rest of the world, and we are proud to have played a key role in enabling this growth.”
FBNQuest, in a release seen by Business Post, said it is pleased to have participated in the first close of TLcom’s 2nd pan-African Tech Fund (TIDE Africa Fund II) which follows a first close commitment to the manager’s maiden fund (TIDE Africa Fund I).
It noted its decision to support TLcom on its second fund was based on the fund manager’s track record of investing in high growth tech companies with strong business fundamentals and implementing value creation strategies that improve the operations and profitability of these companies.
“We remain confident that TLcom is well-positioned to continue to deliver on our shared objective to provide capital, the required operational support and access to international partnerships to technology companies in the Africa region through the TIDE Africa Fund II.
“As a leading Alternative Investments manager, backing the TIDE Africa Fund II adds to the organisation’s selective portfolio of tech-focused funds, and once again highlights its capabilities in the high growth technology venture capital space,” the company noted.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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