Economy
Lagos Considers Sale of N185bn Bond at Lower Coupon Rate
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Lagos State government is considering selling N185 billion bond to investors at the Nigerian debt capital market, the Permanent Secretary, Debt Management Office (DMO), Mr Olujimi Ige, has said.
This is coming a few days after the Commissioner for Finance, Mr Rabiu Olowo, said at an event in Abuja last week that the state government was planning to borrow N125 billion from bond sales as it did in January 2020, when it issued N100 billion 10-year bonds at 12.25 per cent coupon rate.
Speaking at the DMO retreat at the Lagos Sheraton Hotel, Ikeja Lagos, Mr Ige said subscription to the N100 billion bond of last year lent credence to the credibility of Lagos State with its listing on the FMDQ Exchange and Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
“This has also given greater visibility to the State, ensured transparency as well as increased the Bond Holder’s confidence.
“It has also enhanced the state’s ratings as Fitch, GCR and Agusto had accorded the state A+ and B+ respectively, and alerted investors to the value of our bond issuance programme,” he said at the retreat themed with the theme Sustaining Lagos State Debt Beyond Global Pandemic.
Mr Ige disclosed that the N185 billion bond would be used to fund various projects and replace the recalled bonds at a lower coupon rate.
On his part, the Commissioner for Finance, represented by the Accountant-General, Dr Abiodun Muritala, reiterated the resilience of Lagos State during the advent of COVID-19 and the #EndSARS protest, which did untold damage to infrastructure and lives.
He expressed the belief that the incidents have made the state stronger and more resolute in its quest to give Lagosians infrastructure and services, noting that the influx of people trooping into the city every hour has overstretched its resources and presents a daunting challenge, maintaining that the present administration was determined to confront all issues arising from the rural-urban migration.
He explained that the new bond would be used to further provide dividends of democracy to residents of the metropolis in fulfilment of the promise of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
In his presentation, the Head of Service (HoS), Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Public Service Office (PSO), Mr Samson Ajibade, said that public administrators must keep abreast of international best practices while taking full advantage of the latest technologies in the performance of their duties and responsibilities.
“In fact, the place of technology in today’s workplace has become absolutely non-negotiable. As such, to do otherwise would not be in our character,” he said.
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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