Economy
Man in Court for Impersonating Vetiva Capital
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
One Mr Jeremiah Onochie has been brought before Senior Magistrate Ibrahim Mohammed of FCT Court 6 in Abuja for impersonating Vetiva Capital Limited.
The capital market fraud suspect was arraigned for obtaining money from members of the public with a promise of 100 percent interest within one hour.
Information has it that the 22-year-old man hails from Amego, Akegbu Ugwu Village, Enugu State. The other suspects that are believed to be working with him are Hussaini Abdulrasheed and Chinonso Ndu who are still at large.
Vetiva Capital Management Ltd had on January 8, 2020, written a petition against three individuals namely Jeremiah Chukwu Onochie, Hussaini Abdulrasheed and Chinonso Ndu for impersonation and obtaining money from members of the public with the promise of 100 percent interest within an hour.
One of the suspects, Mr Onochie was tracked and arrested by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Police Unit for impersonation by posing and claiming to be the Managing Director of the company.
Furthermore, the suspect it was alleged, opened a WhatsApp group which he used to lure investors and promised victims 100 percent profits within one hour of investing.
He also opened a bank account with UBA Bank Plc and used POS to move the money out of the account within the shortest possible period.
The prosecution told the court that bank records showed that about N0.5 million was deposited by different investors at different time to the bank account, and there was almost immediate movement of money out of the account.
“However, Onochie claimed that on the day he collected this ATM card at the bank on his way from the bank on November 18, 2019, he was ambushed by armed robbers on that same day.
“The armed robbers at gun point took his ATM Bank Card, the PIN Number and his Bank Account Number and threatened him not to inform the police or even think of reporting to the bank talk more of blocking and changing his account and pin number. That was why he did not report the robbery to the appropriate authorities.
“On the other hand, records from the bank showed that, he made personal deposit of N1500.00 into the account on November 22, 2019 which is four (4) days after he claimed to have been attacked by armed robbers, he was tracked and arrested on 13th March 2020 in Enugu, Enugu state,” the charge read.
Senior Magistrate Ibrahim Mohammed, after listening to both sides, adjourned the case to May 17, 2020 as the suspect pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.
Request for bail by the defendant was granted on the condition that he meets the condition of paying the sum of N1 million, provide a surety that resides in Abuja, and has complete and valid property documents and must reside within FCT to be able to present him for the next trial.
Vetiva Capital Management Limited is a Financial Service company incorporated in Nigeria and is duly regulated and registered by the Securities & Exchange Commission and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to carry on business as an Issuing House, Market Maker and Fund/Portfolio Manager. Also, it carries out business of Trusteeship and Stockbroking.
By Adedapo Adesanya
About 143 companies that successfully passed the technical and prequalification stages of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s (NUPRC) 2025 Licensing Round will, today, compete for 50 oil and gas blocks at the commercial bid conference in Abuja, the final stage in the allocation process for the assets.
The commission said only the prequalified companies have been invited to attend the event, which will hold at the Conference Centre of the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, stressing that participation is strictly by invitation.
The commercial bid conference will determine the successful bidders for oil and gas assets located across Nigeria’s producing and frontier basins.
The 50 blocks comprise 16 onshore blocks and 18 shallow water blocks in the Niger Delta, one deep offshore block, three onshore blocks in the Benin Basin, four in the Anambra Basin, four in the Chad Basin, and four in the Benue Trough.
According to the commission, the winning bids will be determined through a transparent evaluation process based on clearly defined commercial parameters. These include the signature bonus offered by bidders, the proposed work programme commitment and the level of performance security provided. The final selection will be based on a weighted technical and commercial score.
The licensing round is being conducted under the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, which requires a transparent and competitive process for the award of petroleum assets.
NUPRC had announced the commencement of the 2025 Licensing Round on November 11, 2025, before opening the online bid portal on December 1, 2025, to enable interested companies to register and participate in the exercise.
To ensure prospective investors fully understood the requirements, the commission organised a pre-bid conference on January 14, 2026, at Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos. The event provided detailed explanations on the licensing guidelines and bidding procedures to registered participants and other stakeholders.
Registration and submission of prequalification documents closed on February 27, 2026, while the prequalification evaluation was completed on March 16, 2026.
NUPRC disclosed that 286 companies initially submitted applications for prequalification.
Following the evaluation process, 196 companies were cleared to participate in the technical and commercial bid stages.
The prequalified 143 companies eventually submitted a total of 200 bids for the available oil and gas blocks. These companies are now set to compete at the commercial bid conference, where the financial offers will be opened and evaluated to determine the eventual winners.
The licensing round is expected to attract fresh investment into Nigeria’s upstream petroleum sector, boost exploration activities across both producing and frontier basins, increase crude oil and gas reserves, and support the country’s drive to grow production and government revenue.
It also underscores the regulator’s commitment to implementing a transparent, competitive and investor-friendly licensing regime under the Petroleum Industry Act.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has retained all key monetary policy parameters following the conclusion of its two-day meeting on July 21, 2026, on Tuesday, maintaining its tight monetary policy stance to curb inflation and support macroeconomic stability.
According to the Governor of the apex bank, Mr Yemi Cardoso, who chaired the committee, the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR), which serves as the benchmark interest rate, remains at 26.50 per cent. The MPC also retained the asymmetric corridor around the MPR at +50 basis points and -450 basis points.
In addition, the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) for commercial banks was left unchanged at 45.00 per cent, while the CRR for merchant banks remains at 16.00 per cent. The committee also retained the CRR on non-Treasury Single Account (Non-TSA) public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent, with the liquidity ratio at 30.00 per cent.
The decision reflects the apex bank’s continued commitment to containing inflationary pressures through a restrictive monetary policy while safeguarding the resilience of Nigeria’s financial system amid ongoing macroeconomic adjustments.
By keeping all policy tools unchanged, the MPC signalled its intention to continue managing excess liquidity in the banking sector and maintain stability in financial markets.
The move is also expected to provide greater policy certainty for investors and businesses monitoring the country’s monetary policy direction.
The latest decision also means borrowing costs are likely to remain elevated in the near term as the central bank continues to prioritise price stability over monetary easing.
Analysts had expected the CBN committee to retain the rate after Nigeria’s headline inflation came in at 15.91 per cent as of June 2026, marking a slight decline from 15.93 per cent in May.
However, even as overall price growth has moderated significantly compared to previous periods, food inflation remains a persistent challenge, accelerating to 17.52 per cent in June.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Shareholders of Unilever Nigeria Plc will receive an interim dividend of N2 per share, the board of the organisation has said.
The cash reward was announced after the company released its financial statements for the first half of the year ended June 30, 2026.
The payment will be made on Friday, August 14, 2026, only to investors whose names appear on the Register of Members at the close of business on Friday, July 31, 2026.
A quick look at the financial performance of the firm in the first six months of this year showed that revenue improved by 22.22 per cent to N119.9 billion from the N98.1 billion achieved in the corresponding period of last year.
A rise in earnings also resulted in a 16.43 per cent surge in cost of sales, though this did not shrink the gross profit, which rose by 29.93 per cent to N54.7 billion from N42.1 billion. The operating profit stood at N24.4 billion in the period under review, higher than N18.8 billion in the same period of 2025, while the net finance income contracted by 9.43 per cent to N4.8 billion from N5.3 billion due to elevated borrowing costs.
Business Post reports that despite higher taxes paid in the first six months of 2026, the net profit grew by 8.33 per cent to N15.6 billion from N14.4 billion, enabling the board to pass on value to shareholders for their faith in the firm.
