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 Adedapo Adesanya
Food Concepts Plc neutralized the gains recorded by three securities, returning the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange into the negative territory with a 0.27 per cent loss on Thursday, December 4.
Yesterday, the share price of the parent company of Chicken Republic and PieXpress declined by 34 Kobo to sell at N3.15 per unit compared with the previous day’s N3.49 per unit.
This shrank the market capitalisation of the OTC bourse by N5.72 billion to N2.136 billion from N2.142 trillion and weakened the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 9.57 points to 3,571.53 points from 3,581.10 points.
Business Post reports that Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc went down by 50 Kobo to N38.50 per share from N38.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained 29 Kobo to sell at N55.79 per unit versus N55.50 per unit, and Geo-Fluids Plc added 5 Kobo to close at N4.60 per share compared with Wednesday’s closing price of N4.55 per share.
Trading data indicated that the volume of securities recorded at the session surged by 6,885.3 per cent to 4.3 million units from the 61,570 units posted a day earlier, the value of securities increased by 10,301.7 per cent to N947.2 million from N3.3 million, and the number of deals went up by 146.7 per cent to 37 deals from the 15 deals achieved in the previous trading session.
At the close of business, Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc was the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with the sale of 5.8 billion units for N16.4 billion, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 170.4 million units worth N8.0 billion, and Air Liquide Plc with 507.5 million units valued at N4.2 billion.
InfraCredit Plc also finished the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units transacted for N16.4 billion, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.2 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units traded for N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The upward trend witnessed at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited in recent sessions continued on Thursday as it further improved by 0.10 per cent.
This was despite investor sentiment turning bearish after the local equity market ended with 23 price gainers and 28 price gainers, indicating a negative market breadth index.
UAC Nigeria gained 10.00 per cent to finish at N88.00, Morison Industries appreciated by 9.94 per cent to N3.54, Ecobank rose by 8.53 per cent to N36.90, and Coronation Insurance grew by 8.47 per cent to N2.56.
On the flip side, Ellah Lakes depreciated by 10.00 per cent to N13.14, Eunisell Nigeria also shed 10.00 per cent to finish at N72.90, Transcorp Hotels slipped by 9.95 per cent to N157.50, Omatek shrank by 9.23 per cent to N1.18, and Guinea Insurance dipped by 8.46 per cent to N1.19.
Yesterday, the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 152.28 points to 145,476.15 points from 145,323.87 points and the market capitalisation chalked up N97 billion to finish at N92.726 trillion compared with the previous day’s N92.629 trillion.
Customs Street was bubbling with activities on Thursday, though the trading volume and value slightly went down, according to data.
A total of 1.9 billion stocks worth N19.2 billion exchanged hands in 23,369 deals during the session versus the N2.3 billion valued at N21.0 billion traded in 21,513 deals a day earlier.
This showed that the number of deals increased by 8.63 per cent, the volume of transactions depleted by 17.39 per cent, and the value of trades decreased by 8.57 per cent.
For another trading day, eTranzact led the activity chart with 1.6 billion units sold for N6.4 billion, Fidelity Bank traded 31.0 million units worth N589.3 million, GTCO exchanged 28.3 million units valued at N2.5 billion, Zenith Bank transacted 27.1 million units for N1.6 billion, and Ecobank traded 21.9 million units worth N744.3 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira marginally depreciated against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Thursday, December 4 amid renewed forex pressure associated with December.
At the official market yesterday, the Nigerian currency lost 0.01 per cent or 18 Kobo against the Dollar to close at N1,447.83/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,447.65/$1.
It was not a different scenario with the local currency in the same market segment against the Pound Sterling as it further shed N15.43 to sell for N1,930.97/£1 versus Wednesday’s closing price of N1,925.08/£1 and declined against the Euro by 20 Kobo to finish at N1,688.74/€1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,688.54/€1.
Similarly, the Nigerian Naira lost N5 against the greenback in the black market to quote at N1,465/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N1,460/$1 but closed flat against the Dollar at the GTBank FX counter at N1,453/$1.
Fluctuations in trading range is expected to continue during the festive season as traders expect the Nigerian currency to be stable, supported by intervention s by to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)in the face of steady dollar demand.
Support is also expected in coming weeks as seasonal activities, particularly the stylised “Detty December” festivities, will see inflows that will give the Naira a boost after it depreciated mildly last month, according to a new report.
“As the festive Detty December season intensifies, inbound travel, tourism spending, and diaspora inflows are expected to provide moderate support for FX liquidity,” analysts at the research unit of FMDA said in its latest monthly report for November.
Traders cited by Reuters expect that the Naira will trade within a band of N1,443-N1,450 next week, buoyed by improved FX interventions by the apex bank.
Meanwhile, the crypto market was down as the US Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, core PCE, likely rose in September—moving in the wrong direction. However, volatility indices show no signs of major turbulence.
If the actual figure matches estimates, it would mark 55 straight months of inflation above the US central bank’s 2 per cent target. The sticky inflation would strengthen the hawkish policymakers, who are in favour of slower rate cuts.
Ripple (XRP) depreciated by 4.5 per cent to $2.08, Solana (SOL) went down by 3.8 per cent to $138.11, Litecoin (LTC) shrank by 3.1 per cent to $83.23, Dogecoin (DOGE) slid by 2.5 per cent to $0.1463, Cardano (ADA) declined by 2.1 per cent to $0.4368, Bitcoin (BTC) fell by 0.9 per cent to $91,975.45, Binance Coin (BNB) crumbled by 0.9 per cent to $899.41, and Ethereum (ETH) dropped by 0.7 per cent to $3,156.44, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 apiece.
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