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Incoming CEO Pledges to Sustain Growth at Seplat

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Seplat OML 4

By Tenebe Anthonia

The incoming CEO of Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr Roger Brown, has promised to build on the achievements of the current occupier of the position, Mr Austin Avuru.

Mr Brown gave this assurance on Monday when he was introduced to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by the present team.

The energy company was at the exchange yesterday to mark its 10 years of its existence including the landmark dual listing of the company on both the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges about six years ago.

The firm was also given the honour to close the market on Monday with the closing gong.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Brown said, “I must thank NSE and recognise the crucial support we have received from the local bourse and our investors without whom none of our achievements would be possible.

“I am humbled and extremely proud to be trusted by the Board and Investors to lead Seplat Plc, especially in these challenging times.

“Mr Avuru is handing over a company that is in great condition and I am looking forward to running with the same energy as you supported by a great leadership team and an extremely strong group of employees.”

During his speech, Mr Avuru stated that, “It has been a great pleasure to maintain a relationship with NSE over the past six years.

“The relationship has been mutually beneficial and Seplat Plc is quite pleased to have been instrumental in enhancing the relationship between the NSE and the London Stock Exchange.

“It has been a great journey leading the company over the last ten years and it is an even greater pleasure to introduce Mr Roger Brown who led the efforts on the dual listing, has been instrumental in many over our achievements since he joined the firm seven years ago and is guaranteed to take the firm to greater heights.”

He further expressed the company’s delight over the invitation to once again sound the closing gong of the exchange, saying, “It is a great privilege and pleasure to be here as Seplat Plc celebrates another milestone.

“Six years ago, we were on the trading floor of The Exchange to commemorate our landmark listing and since then, we have risen to become a premium listed company on the NSE platform.

“I must, therefore thank NSE for the support and all the investors and partners who have traded our stock making it possible for us to be where are today.”

In his remarks, the CEO of NSE, Mr Oscar Onyema, stated, “I congratulate the board, management and staff of Seplat on the 10th year anniversary celebration.

“I must also applaud Mr Avuru on his many accomplishments over the years and likewise congratulate Mr. Roger Brown on his appointment as the Chief Executive Officer effective August 1, 2020.

“As Mr Brown takes the reins, we would like to assure the leadership of Seplat Plc that NSE is committed to helping issuers derive great value from their interaction with the market, and we will remain your trusted business partner in achieving your strategic business objectives.”

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Economy

FX Transactions: Court Jails Lagos BDC Operator Without CBN Licence

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Faruk Umar illegal BDC operator

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

An unauthorised Bureaux De Change (BDC) operator, Mr Faruk Umar, has been convicted and sentenced to six months imprisonment by Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos.

Justice Aneke on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, held that Mr Umar was guilty of the offence levelled against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The judge also pronounced a fine of N50,000, in lieu of the prison sentence, which should be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federation. His phone was also forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Mr Umar’s road to the correctional centre began when he was arrested by operatives of the EFCC for dealing in foreign exchange transactions without a requisite licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

He pleaded guilty to a one-count charge raised against him, which read, “That you, Faruk Umar, sometime in August 2024 at Eko Hotel Area, Victoria Island Lagos State, within the jurisdiction of this court, engaged in a foreign exchange transaction other than through the official foreign exchange market and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 11(1) (a) of the National Economic Intelligence Committee Establishment, (ETC) Act, 1994 and punishable under Section 11(2) of the same Act.”

The convict, alongside others, was arrested on August 26, 2024, following intelligence on the activities of illegal BDC operators at the Eko Hotel area of Victoria Island, Lagos.

He was subsequently arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate of the agency on a one-count charge bordering on fraudulent foreign exchange transactions.

After he pleaded guilty, the prosecution counsel, C.C.Okezie, sought to present an investigative officer of the EFCC, Hamisu Sanni, to review the facts of the matter.

Sanni narrated that the convict confessed to being involved in buying and selling of foreign currency without a licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

He told the court that Mr Umar’s phone was subjected to forensic examination, adding that “It revealed over 40 conversations related to forex transactions with other individuals.”

Thereafter, Okezie, through Sanni, tendered in evidence the confessional statements of the convict as well as findings from the investigation. He, therefore, prayed the court to convict him as charged and also sentence him accordingly.

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Economy

VFD Grows 2024 Earnings by 84.45% on Strategic Investments, Divestments

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VFD-Group

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

Nigerian financial services provider VFD Group Plc impressed its shareholders with an 84.45 per cent improvement in its gross earnings in the 2024 fiscal year after making strategic investments in financial services, fintech, asset management, real estate, logistics, and capital markets.

In the financial statements released to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, the company recorded N83.21 billion as gross earnings in FY 2024, higher than the N45.11 billion achieved in FY 2023.

It was observed that investment and similar income accounted for 85.54 per cent of the gross earnings with N71.17 billion versus N34.28 billion a year earlier, indicating a 107.62 per cent growth.

VFD attributed this to incomes from divestments, interest income from treasury activities, loans, advances and placements, and dividend income.

Further analysis of the results revealed that other income contributed 11.24 per cent to the gross earnings in the period under review with N9.35 billion compared with the N7.16 billion recorded in the preceding financial year.

This was majorly impacted by income from logistics and hospitality businesses, fair value gain on Investment property, and foreign exchange gains.

Business Post reports that the decision of the management to increase the staff strength to meet the increased level of business activities as well as salaries review to retain the staff raised the total expenses in the year by 49.49 per cent to N19.75 billion from N13.21 billion in the previous year.

A look at this line item showed that personnel expenses gulp 23.24 per cent of the total expenses after taking N4.59 billion versus N3.39 billion in FY 2023.

The organisation ended the year with a net profit of N10.41 billion compared with about N750 million in the preceding year after a payment of N2.05 billion as taxes versus N270.00 million a year earlier.

“In 2024, the group demonstrated a robust financial performance, underscoring the effectiveness of our investment strategy and the resilience of our business model.

“Strategic investments and divestments drove a significant increase in earnings and profitability during the year.

“We reinforced financial resilience, expanded our investment portfolio, and strengthened our governance framework, all while embracing digital innovation,” the chief executive, Mr Nonso Okpala, stated.

“Looking ahead to 2025, we are committed to capitalizing on emerging opportunities across Africa and the Western World, while consistently delivering long-term value for our shareholders, leveraging innovation, strategic partnerships, and disciplined execution to sustain our market leadership,” he added.

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Economy

OTC Exchange Records 2.1% Expansion in Sixth Trading Week of 2025

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NASD OTC exchange

By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange returned to the green territory in Week 6 of 2025 after it closed higher by 2.1 per cent last week.

This increased the portfolios of investors by N37.43 billion to leave the market capitalisation of the OTC exchange at N1.804 trillion compared with the N1.766 trillion it closed a week earlier and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) went up by 0.46 per cent or 66.06 points to settle at 3,184.87 points, in contrast to the previous week’s 3,118.81 points.

In the week, the volume of equities transacted in the sixth trading week of the year shrank by 73.3 per cent to 31.3 million units from 117.0 million units, the value of securities traded slumped by 75.6 per cent to N53.2 million from N217.8 million.

Afriland Properties Plc ended the week as the most active stock by value with N12.1 million, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc recorded N10.7 million, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc traded N7.5 million, Geo-Fluids Plc posted N6.0 million, and 11 Plc recorded N5.1 million.

IGI Plc was also the most traded instrument by volume with 27.2 million units, Geo-Fluids Plc transacted 1.33 million units, Afriland Properties Plc traded 0.722 million, Food Concepts Plc exchanged 0.496 million units, and Mixta Real Estate Plc posted 0.375 million units.

Okitipupa Plc gained 33.0 per cent to end at N93.90 per unit versus N70.13 per unit, Mixta Real Estate Plc appreciated by 20.9 per cent to N3.42 per share from N2.83 per share, Food Concepts Plc grew by 14.6 per cent to N1.65 per unit from N1.44 per unit, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc soared by 10.6 per cent to N24.00 per share from N21.74 per share.

In addition, UBN Property Plc rose by 9.9 per cent to N2.22 per unit from N2.02 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc advanced by 4.6 per cent to N17.00 per share from N16.25 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc surged by 2.8 per cent to N40.10 per unit from N39.01 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc added 2.7 per cent to end at N4.54 per share versus N4.42 per share.

On the flip side, Air Liquide Plc depreciated 10 per cent to N7.92 per unit from N8.80 per unit, Acorn Petroleum Plc dropped 8.7 per cent to finish at N1.26 per share versus N1.38 per share, IGI Plc plunged by 4.8 per cent to 40 Kobo per unit from 42 Kobo per unit, and 11 Plc moderated by 1.2 per cent to N253.00 per share from N256.00 per share.

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