Economy
Investors’ Wealth Rises N33bn as Rush for Banking Stocks Grows
By Dipo Olowookere
The sustained demand for banking stocks by investors caused transactions on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited to close 0.16 per cent higher on Thursday.
This made investors’ wealth swell by N33 billion as the market capitalisation of the exchange increased to N21.275 trillion from N21.242 trillion, while the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 63.95 points to 40,829.15 points from 40,765.20 points.
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Business Post reports that FBN Holdings was the most traded stock at the session with the sale of 605.0 million units valued at N8.9 million, Fidelity Bank traded 20.6 million units worth N53.6 million, Wema Bank transacted 15.2 million units valued at N11.3 million, Ecobank exchanged 15.0 million units worth N88.9 million, while Transcorp traded 13.8 million units valued at N13.0 million.
At the close of business, a total of 812.3 million stocks worth N10.6 billion were transacted in 4,863 deals as against the 400.7 million stocks worth N3.5 billion traded in 5,145 deals at the midweek session.
This implied that the volume of shares traded by investors rose by 102.74 per cent, the value of the transactions went up by 203.95 per cent, while the number of deals went down by 5.48 per cent.
Investor sentiment, unlike the previous day, was positive yesterday as there were 24 price gainers and 20 price losers.
On top of the gainers’ chart was University Press, which gained 9.92 per cent to settle at N1.44 and was trailed by Presco, which rose by 5.92 per cent to N85.00.
Universal Insurance appreciated by 4.76 per cent to 22 kobo, Chams also improved by 4.76 per cent to close at 22 kobo, while UPDC appreciated by 3.65 per cent to sell at N1.99.
Conversely, BOS Gases topped the losers’ table after its equity price depreciated by 9.87 per cent to N10.50 and was followed by Caverton, which lost 9.71 per cent to trade at N1.58.
Axa Mansard went down by 5.22 per cent to N2.36, Courtville depreciated by 4.88 per cent to 39 kobo, while Sovereign Trust Insurance reduced by 4.35 per cent to 22 kobo.
It was observed that in terms of the sectorial performance, the insurance sector was the only decliner as it depreciated by 1.24 per cent on Thursday, while the energy counter closed flat.
The banking index appreciated by 0.70 per cent, the industrial goods sector improved by 0.08 per cent, while the consumer goods counter appreciated by 0.06 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has unveiled a unified Taxpayer Identification (Tax ID) system for all taxable persons across the country as part of efforts to strengthen tax administration and improve transparency.
The agency announced the development in a public notice issued jointly with the Joint Revenue Board (JRB) on Monday.
According to the notice, the initiative is backed by Sections 6, 7, and 8 of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act, 2025, which mandate every taxable person in Nigeria to obtain a Tax ID, in a wider move to expand the country’s tax base.
The NRS said the new framework is designed to create a centralised and harmonised taxpayer database that would enhance interactions between taxpayers and revenue authorities at both federal and sub-national levels.
“The Tax ID will serve as a single, unified identity for all taxpayers, enabling seamless interaction with tax authorities at both federal and sub-national levels. It is designed to consolidate taxpayer records, eliminate duplication, and ensure more efficient management of tax-related information,” the agency stated.
The revenue agency explained that the new system would simplify tax compliance procedures, including taxpayer registration, filing of returns, and payment processes.
According to the NRS, the framework is also expected to improve accountability and reduce leakages in tax collection by creating better visibility and tracking of taxpayer information nationwide.
“The initiative will simplify tax compliance processes, including registration, tax filing, and payment procedures. The system will improve transparency by enabling better visibility and tracking of taxpayer records while reducing leakages and improving accountability in tax collection. The framework will also harmonise taxpayer information across all levels of government,” the notice added.
The agency further disclosed that the new Tax ID system would replace the existing Tax Identification Number (TIN) Validation API currently used by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), financial institutions, and other organisations for taxpayer verification.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three bellwether stocks weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.31 per cent on Monday, May 18.
This brought the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 54.71 points to 4,133.70 points from 4,188.41 points, and shrank the market capitalisation by N32.73 billion to N2.473 trillion from N2.506 trillion.
Yesterday, FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc contracted by N12.45 to sell at N146.55 per share compared with last Friday’s closing price of N159.00 per share, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc declined by N2.34 to N70.00 per unit from N72.34 per unit, and NASD Plc lost 50 Kobo to trade at N34.50 per share versus N35.00 per share.
The trio overpowered the N5.56 gained Newrest Asl Plc. This stock ended the trading session at N61.15 per unit, in contrast to the previous session’s N55.59 per unit.
During the trading day, the volume of securities traded by investors slid by 56.1 per cent to 514,142 units from 1.2 million units, and the value of securities dropped 29.8 per cent to close at N17.4 million versus N29.8 million, while the number of deals jumped 12.5 per cent to 27 deals from 24 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 60.8 million units exchanged for N4.1 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.9 million units traded for N1.9 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis 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 transacted for N1.2 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was a horrible day for the Nigerian Naira in the different segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Monday, May 15, as its value further weakened against the United States Dollar.
In the black market window, the Naira lost N5 against the Dollar yesterday to sell for N1,390/$1 compared with the previous value of N1,385/$1, but at the GTBank forex counter, it remained unchanged at N1,383/$1.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), the Nigerian currency depreciated against the greenback by N2.66 or 0.19 per cent to sell for N1,373.70/$1 compared to last Friday’s rate of N1,371.04/$1.
Equally, it fell against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment by N9.05 to trade at N1,839.66/£1 versus N1,830.61/£1, and lost N5.42 on the Euro to close at N1,600.49/€1 versus N1,595.07/€1.
The performance of the local currency during the session indicates early worries despite all signals pointing to stability, amid improved Dollar sales by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with steady, higher oil receipts to bolster the nation’s reserves.
Activity at the market showed that turnover rose 57.3 per cent to $76.29 million on Monday from $48.49 million posted on Friday.
Over the weekend, S&P raised Nigeria’s credit ratings for the first time since 2012 and highlighted improved FX market liquidity and $10 billion turnover recorded in April 2026 as one of the major gains of the CBN-led FX reforms.
The agency said the liberalisation of the exchange rate has bolstered access to foreign currency and enabled a market-driven exchange-rate environment while supporting investor and consumer confidence.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market was bullish on Monday as investors monitored developments in the Iran conflict and weighed the impact of surging oil prices on inflation and US interest-rate expectations.
Ethereum (ETH) gained 0.7 per cent to trade at $2,134.10, Cardano (ADA) rose by 0.6 per cent to $0.2515, Solana (SOL) expanded by 0.3 per cent to $85.11, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped 0.2 per cent to $643.29, TRON (TRX) increased by 0.03 per cent to $0.3565, and Bitcoin (BTC) advanced by 0.02 per cent to $76,912.12.
On the flip side, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 1.5 per cent to $0.1044, and Ripple (XRP) decreased by 0.5 per cent to $1.38, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
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