Economy
Mobilist Exits Investment in InfraCredit
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Kingdom’s MOBILIST programme has successfully exited its investment in Nigeria’s Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) to five Nigerian pensions funds, boosting local investment in infrastructure and strengthening Nigeria’s financial markets.
MOBILIST is a flagship UK programme, managed by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) that supports investment solutions that help deliver the climate transition and the United Nation’s Global Goals in developing economies.
According to a statement, MOBILIST’s exit represents the biggest trade in InfraCredit’s shares since its listing by introduction on the NASD Over-the-counter (OTC) Exchange Plc in April this year.
The transaction enabled the five domestic institutional investors, which is made up of pension funds and insurers, to take up shareholding in InfraCredit.
Business Post reports that four of these funds did not participate in the initial listing.
InfraCredit is Nigeria’s first and only domestic creditor guarantor, issuing Naira-denominated guarantees that help to mitigate risk for investors and improve the creditworthiness of Nigerian infrastructure debt instruments. These guarantees enable Nigerian institutional investors to invest in instruments used to finance infrastructure projects.
The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth, & Development Office (FCDO), through MOBILIST, had invested N9.5 billion ($6 million) in Infracredit’s listing, which saw the company raise a total of N27 billion ($17.7 million) after attracting investment from two local pension funds.
The listing broadened InfraCredit’s domestic institutional shareholder base and gave the company access to new sources of capital, expanding its capacity to provide guarantees for new infrastructure projects.
InfraCredit also benefited from technical assistance, and catalytic investments facilitated by MOBILIST, Financial Sector Deepening Africa (FSDA), British International Investments (BII), the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), and FCDO-Nigeria. These contributions have played a critical role in de-risking local investments and mobilising domestic institutional capital towards green infrastructure projects.
The secondary sale of MOBILIST’s shares extends this impact, offering liquidity to untapped buyers who are natural long-term private sector equity holders but who did not participate at the initial point of listing.
Following the secondary sale, Nigerian pension funds will collectively own more than 27 per cent of InfraCredit’s ordinary equity, reinforcing domestic institutional ownership and governance of a strategically important financial institution, alongside the public sector capital (including the UK) which remains invested in the company.
Speaking on the deal, the British Deputy High Commissioner (Lagos), Mr Jonny Baxter, said, “The UK consistently prioritises transformational investments that unlock commercial markets. InfraCredit is one such example, an indigenous guarantee platform which is now attracting Nigerian institutional investors. To date, InfraCredit has facilitated over N300 billion in financing, valued at more than $500 million equivalent indexed at issuance, in support of infrastructure development across Nigeria.
“We’re excited to see this momentum continue to grow, driven increasingly by domestic capital and delivering strong returns to Nigerian investors. A win-win where more infrastructure is built to support Nigerian businesses, and more value returned to Nigerian stakeholders.”
On his part, the CEO of InfraCredit, Mr Chinua Azubike, said, “This secondary transaction is a proud milestone for InfraCredit and for Nigeria’s financial markets. It reinforces our long-term ownership vision that catalytic foreign investment can pave the way for sustained domestic institutional participation at scale.
“We are delighted to welcome four new Nigerian pension funds to our ownership base, a reflection of deepened market confidence and the growing role of local investors in financing Nigeria’s sustainable future.”
Adding his input, MOBILIST Programme Lead within FCDO, Mr Ross Ferguson said, “MOBILIST’s investment in InfraCredit proved the potential of using public markets to mobilise private – and importantly – local investment in sectors driving sustainable development and growth. The programme’s exit only reinforces this potential and highlights how innovative development finance can generate impact beyond an initial investment by contributing to the creation of deeper, more liquid capital markets while recycling capital for future investments.”
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited began the new week bearish after it shed 0.21 per cent on Monday due to profit-taking.
Business Post reports that four of the five key sectors of Customs Street tracked pointed southwards yesterday, as only the energy index gained 0.10 per cent.
The insurance counter lost 1.38 per cent, the banking space depreciated by 0.81 per cent, the industrial goods sector weakened by 0.45 per cent, and the consumer goods segment declined by 0.02 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) retreated by 428.63 points to 200,484.43 points from 200,913.06 points, and the market capitalisation moderated by N275 billion to N128.694 trillion from N128.969 trillion.
The market breadth index was negative during the session, as there were 27 price gainers and 34 price losers, representing weak investor sentiment.
Secure Electronic Technology depreciated by 10.00 per cent to N1.17, May and Baker slumped by 9.42 per cent to N38.00, Legend Internet tumbled by 8.67 per cent to N6.85, Cutix shrank by 8.29 per cent to N3.21, and Fortis Global Insurance lost 7.97 per cent to trade at N1.27.
On the flip side, Austin Laz appreciated by 9.98 per cent to N4.41, Zichis gained 9.93 per cent to quote at N15.16, Trans Nationwide Express soared by 9.65 per cent to N2.84, The Initiates advanced by 9.60 per cent to N21.70, and Learn Africa improved by 9.41 per cent to N9.30.
The bourse closed with a turnover of 593.3 million shares valued at N25.7 billion executed in 60,311 deals compared with the 595.2 million shares worth N24.5 billion traded in 43,440 deals in the previous trading day.
This showed that the value of transactions went up by 4.90 per cent, the number of deals increased by 38.84 per cent, and the volume of trades decreased by 0.32 per cent.
Access Holdings finished the session as the most active with 86.6 million units sold for N2.3 billion, First Holdco exchanged 84.6 million units worth N4.3 billion, Secure Electronic Technology traded 31.1 million units valued at N37.4 million, Fidelity Bank transacted 26.7 million units worth N512.4 million, and Zenith Bank traded 26.1 million units valued at N2.6 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The first trading session for the Naira in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) ended on a negative note, as it lost N3.00 or 0.22 per cent against the Dollar on Monday, March 30, to trade at N1,383.58/$1 compared with last Friday’s closing price of N1,380.58/$1.
The local currency remains under pressure as increased demand for forex for international settlements and import-related obligations continue t0 strain available FX supply.
Last week, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) shed the policy requiring International Oil Companies (IOCs) to keep half of their export proceeds in Nigeria and allowed them to fully access their funds. Market analysts noted that this could reduce the dollar supply, putting pressure on the nation’s legal tender whenever outflows exceed inflows.
The country’s external reserves recorded a marginal decline, falling by 0.7 per cent to $49.48 billion, reflecting a depletion of about $350 million and signalling continued pressure on Nigeria’s FX buffer.
However, the Nigerian currency further appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N12.05 to N1,824.94/£1 from N1,836.99/£1, and gained N5.80 against the Euro to sell at N1,586.28/€1 versus N1,592.08/€1.
Equally, at the GTBank forex desk, the Naira improved its value against the greenback yesterday by N7 to N1,394/$1 from N1,401/$1, and remained unchanged at the parallel market at N1,410/$1.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was mixed even as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell eased any concerns about imminent rate hikes.
The central banker said the lender is inclined to look past the Iran-related energy shock for now and hold rates steady, adding that the US central bank — for the moment — is looking past short-term oil price shocks and focusing on inflation expectations that remain “well anchored.” As a result, bond yields fell, but oil continued its rise, ultimately pressuring the stock market and crypto.
Solana (SOL) gained 1.1 per cent to sell at $82.68, Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 1.0 per cent to $2,021.66, Cardano (ADA) grew by 1.0 per cent to $0.2431, Ripple (XRP) jumped 0.2 per cent to $1.32, and Bitcoin (BTC) added 0.1 per cent to settle at $66,568.25.
However, TRON (TRX) dipped 1.0 per cent to $0.3199, Dogecoin (DOGE) went down by 0.2 per cent to $0.0909, and Binance Coin (BNB) dropped 0.1 per cent to $609.25, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The deadline for filing income tax returns for the 2025 fiscal year has been extended by the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) by two weeks.
The Head of Corporate Communications for LIRS, Mrs Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude, in a statement on Monday, said the new deadline is April 14, 2026, and no longer March 31, 2026.
The tax filing is for individuals living in the metropolis, and they have been charged to give priority to the timely filing of their annual income tax returns, noting that compliance should be embedded as a routine personal practice.
The chairman of LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair, explained that the statutory deadline for filing individual annual tax returns is March 31 every year, adding that the extension is intended to provide individuals with additional time to complete and submit accurate tax returns.
He also reiterated that electronic filing through the LIRS eTax platform remains the only approved method for submitting annual returns, as manual filings have been completely phased out. Individuals are therefore required to file their returns exclusively through the LIRS eTax portal: https://etax.lirs.net.
Describing the platform as secure, user-friendly, and accessible 24/7, Mr Subair advised individuals to ensure that their TaxID (Tax Identification Number) is correctly captured in their submissions.
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