Economy
Idiong Vows to Take Africa Prudential to Greater Heights
**As Ashade Formally Hands Over
By Dipo Olowookere
Mr Peter Ashade on Monday formally handed over the mantle of leadership to his successor at Africa Prudential Plc, Mr Obong Idiong.
The formal handing over ceremony, which was a farewell dinner, was held at the Muson Centre in Onikan, Lagos with some bigwigs in the financial market gracing the occasion.
Mr Ashade stepped for Mr Idiong after 12 years of meritorious service. He could not hide his excitement for being celebrated for his giant strides at Africa Prudential while he headed the leading share registrar service provider.
Chairman of Africa Prudential, Mrs Eniola Fadayomi, who was present at the ceremony organised to honour Mr Ashade, commended him for his selfless service to the firm.
She said the outgoing chief executive would be greatly missed, but expressed optimism that Mr Idiong will live up to expectation.
Also speaking at the event, Chairman of the United Bank of Africa (UBA), under which the company was carved out, Mr Tony Elumelu, thanked Mr Ashade for transforming a ‘mere’ department of the UBA to a strong and formidable company in the financial sector.
He also said Mr Idiong would not fall below expectation, especially with the standard the outgoing CEO had set for the firm.
In his remarks, Mr Ashade thanked the board, management and staff of Africa Prudential Plc for the support they gave him while in office. He expressed confidence that Mr Idiong will not disappoint as he steers the ship of the company. “Congrats to Obong as you lead the company to greater heights,” he said at the emotional farewell dinner.
On his part, Mr Idiong, who admitted that the job before him was enormous, promised to take the firm to greater heights.
“I look forward to building on this legacy [set by my predecessor] as we continue to deliver Africa Prudential to the future with the support of everyone,” he stated.
Africa Prudential Plc was formerly a department in UBA Group, but it grew to a full-fledged registrar company, becoming the first registrar firm in the country to be listed in the stock exchange.
In its 2017 financial statements, the firm posted a profit after tax of N1.72 billion in 2017 against N1.02 billion in 2016.
In addition, the firm recorded a 37.10 percent growth in its gross earnings to N3.32 billion from N2.42 billion in the corresponding period of 2016.
Furthermore, the company’s total assets closed at N21.93 billion as at December 31, 2017 in contrast to N16.82 billion as at December 31, 2016.
During the period under review, #AfricaPrudential increased its shareholders’ fund by 52.49 percent to N6.94 billion from N4.55 billion in 2016.
Business Post reports that as at the close of transactions on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) yesterday, the share price of Africa Prudential was N4.05k per share.
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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