Economy
Naira Redesign: EFCC Begs BDCs, Bankers for Info on Illicit Deposits
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) and the Association of Chief Compliance Officers of Banks in Nigeria (ACCOBIN) have been urged to provide prompt information on illicit deposits as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) tries to control the volume of cash in the financial system.
Last Wednesday, the CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele, said the bank would redesign the higher banknotes; N200, N500, and N1,000 to curb the red-hot inflation and counterfeiting.
He said from December 15, 2022, the new notes would be introduced and by January 31, 2023, the old note would no longer be accepted as legal tender in the country.
Since the announcement, Naira notes stashed in different places are beginning to find their way into the financial system and have weakened the value of the Naira at the parallel market. The Naira was exchanged with the Dollar on Wednesday at N850/$1.
To curtail this, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) raided some BDC operators in Abuja on Tuesday. The agency now wants to work with the forex traders to bring calm into the market.
The Chairman of the EFCC, Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa, held a meeting with the leaders of ACCOBIN and ABCON in Lagos and he used the occasion to explain to them that the agency intends to tackle FX malpractices, money laundering and other fraudulent activities in the nation’s financial sector.
He asked the two groups, which he described as critical stakeholders in the financial services sector, to promptly give information about fraudulent activities, especially illicit deposits and the movement of money through deposit money banks.
“In view of the recent move by the CBN to redesign and re-issue higher denominations of the Nigerian currency, the Naira, there is a need for us to be proactive and be circumspect of the actions of the criminals who will use the financial institutions to launder illicit funds and commit other nefarious activities.
“It is important for you to understand what this policy is all about, considering the fact that a lot of activities will happen, particularly as the 2023 general elections approach.
“We want to work with you to get more information on how to deal with these issues,” he said.
Mr Bawa, who stressed that the EFCC believes that the financial institutions have an important role to play in ridding Nigeria of financial and economic crimes, also charged the banks’ compliance officers and BDC operators to be wary of activities of criminals who might want use the financial institutions to hoard monies for the purpose of vote buying.
He emphasised the need for financial institutions to take Know Your Customer (KYC) seriously and improve intelligence sharing with the commission.
“The EFCC cannot do the job alone. We need to work with you as critical stakeholders, particularly in ensuring a seamless exchange of relevant information to forestall the commission of economic and financial crimes.
“We need better cooperation, synergy, collaboration, intelligence sharing, and, if need be, joint operations with you.
“If there is better management, in terms of communication about the people bringing in monies or the modus operandi being used to disguise this origin of the monies, it will go a long way in tackling the issue of money laundering and financial crimes.
“You are very critical in the fight against economic and financial crimes. This is because, at the end of it, money leaves the bank and money goes in, either for deposit or withdrawal,” the EFCC chief said.
Mr Bawa said “the issue of KYC must go beyond citing utility bills and receipts of customers. This needs to be taken further to forestall cybercrime.”
He also called on the banks to continually develop vetting mechanisms with a view to addressing insider abuse by staff.
In his remarks, Mr Boye Ogunlade, Chairman of ACCOBIN, expressed his satisfaction over the engagement, adding that “this is a good initiative and we hope that it should be held regularly.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 1.18 per cent, with the Unlisted Security Index (USI) crossing the 3,000 mark after it went up by 35.24 points on Tuesday, November 26 to 3,032.92 points from the 2,997.68 points recorded in the previous session.
At the close of transactions yesterday, the market capitalisation increased by N12.36 billion to settle at N1.063 trillion, in contrast to Monday’s closing value of N1.050 trillion.
During the session, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc gained N3.31 to sell at N43.90 per share versus the N40.59 per share it traded a day earlier, and 11 Plc appreciated by N16.75 to end the session at N230.00 per unit versus the preceding closing rate of N213.25 per unit.
On the flip side, Afriland Properties Plc slipped by 11 Kobo to sell at N15.81 per share, in contrast to the N15.92 per share it was transacted a day earlier.
There was a slump in the volume of securities traded in the session by 80.2 per cent to 327,425 units from the 1.7 million units traded in the preceding session, but there was a rise in the value of transactions by 141.9 per cent to N15.7 million from the N6.5 million traded on Monday, and the number of deals decreased by 55.0 per cent to nine deals from the 20 deals carried out a day earlier.
At the close of business, Geo-Fluids Plc remained the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 1.7 billion units sold for N3.9 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with the sale of 752.2 million units valued at N7.8 billion, and Afriland Properties Plc with 297.3 million units worth N5.3 million.
Similarly, Aradel Holdings Plc maintained its position as the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with a turnover of 108.7 million units worth N89.2 billion, trailed by Okitipupa Plc with 752.2 million units valued at N7.8 billion, and Afriland Properties Plc with 297.3 million units sold for N5.3 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira strengthened its value against the US Dollar at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Tuesday by 0.97 per cent or N16.18 to exchange at N1,659.44/$1 compared wth the previous day’s value of N1,675.62/$1 amid an improvement in the supply of forex to the market segment by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Data showed that the FX transactions for the trading session increased by 291.6 per cent or $317.19 million to $425.98 million from the $108.79 million recorded in the last trading session.
Also, the domestic currency improved its value against the Pound Sterling in the spot market yesterday by N23.42 to settle at N2,116.44/£1, in contrast to Monday’s closing price of N2,139.86/£1 and against the Euro, it closed flat at the value of N1,783.36/€1.
In the parallel market, the Nigerian currency remained unchanged against the US Dollar during the trading day at N1,750/$1, according to data obtained by Business Post.
At the 298th Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, the Governor of the CBN, Mr Yemi Cardoso, said the apex bank will continue to carry out measures to ensure stability in the FX market, and plans to avoid any move that will disrupt progress it has made. This was after the bank further raised the interest rate by 0.50 per cent to 27.50 per cent.
In the cryptocurrency market, some of the gains made during the recent post-US election price surge have weakened, as traders see the presidency of Mr Donald Trump as bullish for the industry especially with some of his allies and expected appointees to certain financial positions.
Ripple (XRP) shed 3.9 per cent to trade at $1.38, Binance Coin (BNB) depleted by 3.7 per cent to $619.77, Solana (SOL) slumped by 3.2 per cent to $230.87, Dogecoin (DOGE) fell by 3.0 per cent to $0.3938, Bitcoin (BTC) dropped 1.6 per cent to $93,220.19, Cardano (ADA) depreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.9682, and Ethereum (ETH) slid by 0.2 per cent to at $3,417.79.
However, Litecoin (LTC) appreciated by 0.4 per cent to quote at $94.68, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00, respectively.
By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited had a narrow escape from the claws of the bears on Tuesday after it closed higher by a marginal 0.01 per cent.
This happened as investor sentiment waned yesterday, with profit-taking witnessed in the banking space, which fell by 0.21 per cent at the close of transactions.
However, bargain-hunting from the other sectors ensured that the bulls took charge of the bourse, with the insurance index rising by 0.91 per cent.
Further, the industrial goods sector appreciated by 0.76 per cent, the energy counter improved by 0.36 per cent, and the consumer goods space gained 0.09 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) moved up by 13.61 points to 97,639.88 points from 97,626.27 points and the market capitalisation expanded by N9 billion to N59.178 trillion from the preceding day’s N59.169 trillion.
The market breadth index was negative during the trading session as Customs Street ended with 24 price gainers and 25 price losers.
Haldane McCall topped the gainers’ chart after it chalked up 9.98 per cent to trade at N6.17, Sunu Assurances grew by 9.80 per cent to N3.81, Japaul increased its value by 9.72 per cent to N2.37, Prestige Assurance jumped by 9.64 per cent to 91 Kobo, and Neimeth leapt by 9.55 per cent to N2.18.
Conversely, Multiverse lost 9.92 per cent to finish at N5.90, Tantalizers slowed by 9.30 per cent to N1.17, UPDC REIT tumbled by 9.01 per cent to N5.05, Universal Insurance retreated by 5.88 per cent to 32 Kobo, and RT Briscoe fell by 5.67 per cent to N2.66.
Yesterday, investors transacted 552.1 million stocks valued at N8.0 billion in 9,305 deals versus the 671.3 million stocks sold for N10.6 billion in 10,464 deals a day earlier, representing a decline of 17.75 per cent, 24.53 per cent, and 11.08 per cent in the trading volume, value and number of deals, respectively.
The most traded equity for the day was Haldane McCall, which exchanged 177.1 million units for N1.1 billion, followed by Tantalizers with 37.0 million units sold for N46.7 million, UBA transacted 29.6 million units valued at N947.3 million, Prestige Assurance traded 28.6 million units worth N25.6 million, and FBN Holdings transacted 21.5 million units valued at N536.2 million.
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