MTN Nigeria, Others to Pay Dividend This Month

By Adedapo Adesanya  Oil prices fell on Friday as the release of some hostages in Gaza reduced the geopolitical risk premium and indicated that the Israel-Hamas tensions may not have much effect on the oil market. Brent crude futures depreciated by 84 cents or 1 per cent at $80.58 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped $1.56 or 2 per cent to close at $75.54. There was no settlement for WTI on Thursday owing to the US Thanksgiving holiday. Prices notched their first week of gains in over a month ahead of next week’s meeting of

By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government has set plans in motion to raise $200 million from philanthropic individuals and organisations as part of efforts to create jobs and support Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria. Nigeria is home to over 36.9 million MSMEs, comprising 96.7 per cent of all businesses in Nigeria. According to data, 67 per cent of these businesses are youth-owned. MSMEs contribute over 45 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), with 98.8 per cent of them in the micro cadre. They account for nearly 90 per cent of the jobs in the

By Dipo Olowookere Shares of MeCure Industries appreciated by 60.73 per cent last week on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as investors began to see value in the company. Business Post reports that in the week, the price of the stock closed at N9.21 per unit compared with the preceding week’s N5.73 per unit, leading the gainers’ chart of 59 members, higher than 54 of the preceding week. On its part, Multiverse rose by 60.06 per cent to N5.81, Unity Bank improved by 57.26 per cent to N1.84, Secure Electronic Technology jumped by 52.78 per cent to

By Adedapo Adesanya  The federal government, through the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has announced plans to invest $1.1 billion to fully rehabilitate decaying port infrastructure at TinCan, Apapa, Rivers, Delta, Calabar, and Onne ports as part of efforts to improve the efficiency of the nation’s existing ports. Out of the estimated 47,000 kilometres of coastline in Africa, Nigeria makes up about 853 kilometres, creating the perfect opportunity to get access to its much-needed revenue. This coastline and a 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone make up Nigeria’s coastline in the Gulf of Guinea. The coastline equals a maritime area of

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Despite the harsh operating environment and the unexpected policies of the government that affected businesses in Nigeria, Unity Bank Plc showed resilience in the first six months of 2023. In its half-year unaudited financial statements filed to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited over the weekend, the bank marginally improved its gross earnings by 0.37 per cent to N27.5 billion from N27.4 billion in the first half of last year. It was observed that 10 per cent growth in the fees and income commission to N3.5 billion from N3.2 billion helped the lender jerk up its income in

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Terrestrial fibre constraints have been identified as the major factor hindering increased internet penetration in Africa. Speaking at the Africa Session of the International Telecoms Week conference in Chicago, United States, experts in the industry said the reach of internet on the continent was still limited due to limitations in the availability of terrestrial open-access fibre which remains extremely low in most markets especially Nigeria, Senegal, Uganda and Tanzania among others. According to the chief executive officer of Xalam Analytics, Mr Guy Zibi, the international capacity challenge has been solved, with most coastal countries exhibiting an oversupply

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The need for more women to be involved in electoral process in the country has been emphasised by Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Yakubu Mahmood. This, Prof Mahmood said, the Commission has been working hard to achieve. However, the INEC boss has commended political parties for the increasing opportunities given women to participate in the electoral process and contest elective positions. He also commended women for their increasing interest in the electoral process and encouraged their greater participation. Prof Mahmood gave the commendation when the newly elected executive of the National Council of

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By Modupe Gbadeyanka Veteran comic actor in the Yoruba section of the Nigerian film industry fondly called Nollywood, Babatunde Omidina, otherwise known as Baba Suwe, is presently crying out to Nigerians to come to his aid. The thespian, who ruled the movie sector in the 90s, wants financial assistance to enable him treat an undisclosed illness. After his ordeal with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) some years ago, Baba Suwe’s health deteriorated. On a radio show recently, the comic actor, who lost his actor wife, Omoladun, some years ago, broke down in tears pleading with the general public

By Dipo Olowookere Customers who have approached the Bank of Industry (BoI) for loan application have been given one month to complete their documentations or risk being snubbed. This, according to the bank, was necessitated by the present administration’s Ease of Doing Business mandate to remove critical bottlenecks and bureaucratic constraints to doing business in the country. General Manager of BoI, Mr Joseph Babatunde, disclosed that this move will help businesses get fast and improved service delivery. Speaking at the lender’s gender business group customers’ forum in Lagos, Mr Babatunde said, “We are advising our customers to make available all

A number of Nigerian banks have offered credit facility worth N50 billion to Airtel Nigeria, a telecom company, which plans to list its shares on both the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on July 4, 2019. In its offer prospectus, the firm said the loan agreement was signed on June 17, 2019, stating that the banks would allow it to make a repayment in five years, with two-year moratorium. “Airtel Nigeria entered into a bank facility agreement for an amount of N50 billion, which is available for a period of 180 days from the acceptance

Dipo Olowookere The Special Assistant to Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State on Political Matters, Mr Augustine Pelemo, the has been sacked with immediate effect. The Governor’s aide, who works from office of the Deputy Governor in Akure, the state capital, was directed to leave the position for posting a birthday message on Facebook, a popular social media platform. Mr Pelemo had on Sunday wished wife of the Deputy Governor, Mrs Ajewole Agboola Ajayi, a happy birthday, but what got him into trouble was addressing the woman as the Acting First Lady of Ondo State. Barely 24 hours after the