By Adedapo Adesanya

Aradel Holdings Plc has extended the filing of its 2025 audited financial statements and first-quarter 2026 unaudited financial statements after failing to meet its previously announced May 29, 2026, target.

The company disclosed in a notice to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, shareholders and the investing public that both reports will now be released on or before June 19, 2026, citing challenges arising from the consolidation of its recently acquired additional 40 per cent equity interest in ND Western Limited.

Aradel had earlier informed the market on March 2, 2026, that the delay in filing its financial results was linked to the acquisition and subsequently indicated that the reports would be released on or before May 29, 2026.

The organisation said unforeseen complexities emerged during the consolidation process following the integration of the newly acquired stake into the group’s reporting framework.

According to the notice, “The delay is due to unforeseen complexities encountered in the consolidation process arising from the integration of the newly acquired interest in ND Western Limited into the Group’s reporting framework. Additional time is required to ensure that the consolidated results fairly present the financial position of the enlarged Group in line with applicable accounting standards and regulatory requirements.”

“The company is working closely with its external auditors to complete the process without compromising the quality, accuracy or integrity of the financial statements. Both the FY 2025 Audited Financial Statements and the Q1 2026 Unaudited Interim Financial Statements will now be released on or before 19 June 2026,” Aradel said.

The extension means the company’s closed period, which commenced on January 1, 2026, will remain in effect until 24 hours after the financial statements are released to the market. During the closed period, insiders and other restricted persons are prohibited from trading in the company’s shares.

The energy firm noted that trading in its securities by affected persons would resume after the expiration of the extended closed period. The oil producer further reiterated its commitment to regulatory compliance and transparency in its financial reporting.

By Dipo Olowookere

The last trading session of the week on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited ended on a positive note with a 0.26 per cent growth on Friday.

It was the first trading day after the two-day break observed on Wednesday and Thursday for Sallah celebrations by Muslims.

Market participants returned to Customs Street yesterday in high spirits, though keeping an eye on happenings in the macroeconomic environment.

This resulted in the market breadth index closing bearish after recording 32 price gainers and 33 price losers, implying weak investor sentiment.

Sovereign Trust Insurance and Zichis gained 10.00 per cent each to sell for N2.75 and N33.00 apiece, International Energy Insurance rose by 9.98 per cent to N4.52, McNichols grew by 9.85 per cent to N8.70, and Aradel Holdings increased by 9.59 per cent to N1,933.80.

Conversely, the trio of CAP, Austin Lax, and Premier Paints lost 10.00 per cent each to settle at N179.10, N3.96, and N33.75 apiece, LivingTrust Mortgage Bank decreased by 9.89 per cent to N4.01, and John Holt fell by 9.84 per cent to N16.95.

As for the performance of the key market sectors yesterday, the banking space shed 2.51 per cent, the consumer goods index depleted by 1.26 per cent, and the industrial goods sector tumbled by 0.05 per cent.

However, bargain-hunting raised the energy segment by 4.38 per cent and lifted the insurance counter by 0.86 per cent.

Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) closed higher by 646.63 points to 250,385.47 points from 249,738.84 points, and the market capitalisation improved by N415 billion to N160.509 trillion from N160.094 trillion.

A total of 1.2 billion stocks worth N43.4 billion exchanged hands in 93,626 deals during the session compared with the 564.1 million stocks valued at N27.2 billion traded in 65,666 deals in the preceding session. This showed that the trading volume, value, and number of deals went up by 112.73 per cent, 59.56 per cent, and 42.58 per cent, respectively.

Fidelity Bank ended the day as the busiest equity with a turnover of 483.0 million units valued at N8.7 billion, Access Holdings transacted 133.3 million units worth N3.2 billion, The Initiates sold 81.7 million units for N2.2 billion, Chams exchanged 43.9 million units valued at N173.8 million, and Dangote Sugar traded 28.4 million units worth N2.0 billion.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira returned from a two-day break on Friday, May 29, stronger against the United States Dollar by 16 Kobo or 0.01 per cent in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), trading at N1,375.25/$1 compared with N1,375.41/$1 it was exchanged on Tuesday.

The local currency also appreciated in the same market window against the Pound Sterling during the trading session by N3.62 to sell for N1,848.62/£1 versus N1,852.26/£1, but lost N2.16 against the Euro to close at N1,601.48/€1 compared with the previous rate of N1,599.32/€1.

The official forex market was closed on Wednesday and Thursday for the Sallah break.

A look at the GTBank FX desk showed that the Naira gained N4 against the Dollar yesterday to quote at N1,379/$1, in contrast to Tuesday’s closing value of N1,383/$1, and at the black market, it improved its value by N5 to N1,380/$1 versus the preceding session’s N1,385/$1.

Market analysts noted that the Nigerian Naira outlook remains stable, citing the latest round of FX inflows, which have lifted gross external reserves to $49.259 billion. Some projected that the domestic currency will close the first half of 2026 stronger as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) continues to inject FX inflows into the official market.

Also supporting expected stability is the continued government signal of growth. In his third year in office, in a speech on Friday, President Bola Tinubu inherited severe economic and structural challenges in 2023, including exchange-rate distortions, which he said have since been reformed.

“Multiple exchange rate windows and forex arbitrage created massive distortions, with Nigeria losing more than N8 trillion over three years to rent-seeking and speculative practices.”

According to the president, the situation required urgent and courageous decisions to avert a deeper economic crisis and fiscal collapse.

In the cryptocurrency market, US-Iran ceasefire hopes have failed to pull Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) higher, with the two largest cryptocurrencies losing almost 3 per cent as cooling spot bitcoin ETF inflows reinforced the pullback. BTC dropped 0.3 per cent to sell for $73,456.95, while ETH dipped 0.1 per cent to trade at $2,013.29.

Further, TRON (TRX) went down by 2.1 per cent to $0.3427, and Cardano (ADA) dipped 0.4 per cent to close at $0.2348.

On the other hand, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 4.7 per cent to $667.52, Ripple (XRP) grew by 2.00 per cent to $1.34, and Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.1 per cent to $82.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 each.