Economy
NASD OTC Exchange Records 0.35% Appreciation
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange opened the week green as it saw a 0.35 per cent rise on Monday, August 28.
The growth recorded during the trading day lifted the market capitalisation of the bourse by N3.87 billion to N1.104 trillion from the N1.101 trillion achieved last Friday, as the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) increased by 2.77 points to settle at 788.14 points, in contrast to the previous trading day’s 785.37 points.
The performance of the NASD OTC exchange was buoyed by the improvements in the share prices of three companies on the platform, offsetting the losses posted by three of their counterparts.
Aradel Holdings Plc increased its value by N6.29 yesterday to trade at N451.89 per share compared to last Friday’s N445.60 per share, Acorn Petroleum Plc expanded by 2 Kobo to close the day at 29 Kobo per unit versus 27 Kobo per unit, while Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc went up by 1 Kobo to 14 Kobo per share from 13 Kobo per share.
Inversely, 11 Plc made a N6.34 loss to close the day at N180.00 per unit, in contrast to the previous N186.34 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc slipped by 50 Kobo to N17.50 per share from N18.00 per share, while FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dwindled by 10 Kobo to N73.86 per unit from N73.96 per unit.
The alternative stock market was busy yesterday, as the volume of securities traded by investors rose by 135.8 per cent to 5.9 million units from 2.5 million units, the value of shares transacted rose by 511.5 per cent to N37.2 million from N24.6 million, while the number of deals decreased by 4.6 per cent to 21 deals from 22 deals.
CSCS Plc remained the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 1.1 billion units worth N22.1 billion, IGI Plc was in second place with 644.2 million units valued at N52.0 million, and Geo-Fluids Plc stood in third place with 636.2 units worth N1.1 billion.
CSCS Plc also remained as the most traded stock by value (year-to-date) with 1.1 billion units valued at N22.1 billion, VFD Group followed with 26.4 million units worth N5.9 billion, and Aradel Holdings Plc was in third place with 5.7 million units valued at N1.9 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.36 per cent on Wednesday, August 19, slicing the market capitalisation of the platform by N9.41 billion to N2.60 trillion from N2.610 trillion, and reducing the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 15.67 points to 4,333.09 from 4,348.76 points.
The securities depository company lost N10.30 at midweek to close at N88.12 per share versus Tuesday’s closing price of N90.02 per share.
This offset the 38 Kobo gained by Golden Capital Plc during the session. The stock traded at N14.05 per unit compared with the preceding day’s N13.67 per unit.
Yesterday, the volume of securities soared by 557.2 per cent to 747,429 units from 113,728 units, the value of securities jumped by 934.0 per cent to N9.4 million from N375.7 million, and the number of deals increased by 35.5 per cent to 42 deals from 31 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units exchanged for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 79.9 million units worth N5.8 billion.
GNI Plc also finished the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units transacted for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units sold for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira weakened by N7.09 or 0.53 per cent against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Wednesday, August 19, to N1,350.41/$1 from the previous rate of N1,343.32/$1.
The local currency also significantly depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday, by N19.87, to close at N1,839.13/£1 versus the previous day’s N1,819.26/£1, and against the Euro, it lost N18.07 to end at N1,574.31/€1 versus Tuesday’s price of N1,556.24/€1.
However, at the black market, the Naira maintained stability against the US Dollar at N1,390/$1, and also remained unchanged at the GTBank forex desk at N1,357/$1.
Interbank FX turnover increased by 1.72 per cent to $370.980 million from $364.709 million, according to the daily update by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
On the other hand, the number of interbank FX deals declined to 100, from 108 the previous day, reflecting a moderate slowdown in activities.
Available data from the central bank showed that demand for FX by end-users in Nigeria fell by 35.23 per cent to $3.42 billion in April 2026, easing pressure on the Dollar market as the Naira recorded modest gains.
This occurred as FX utilisation across economic sectors declined during the month, while the Naira strengthened at the official market. Across several sectors, including oil, food, and manufacturing, there were drops.
The monthly average exchange rate improved 1.38 per cent to N1,361.22 per Dollar in April from N1,379.98/$1 in March. At the end of the review month, the domestic currency closed at N1,374.94 per Dollar at NAFEM, compared with N1,386.72/$1 at the end of March.
In the cryptocurrency market, coins recorded massive jumps following the US Treasury’s decision to at least double bond buyback operations and was reinforced by a bond-market surge and President Donald Trump’s call for Congress to advance crypto market-structure legislation.
The American President urged Congress to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, calling for “a fair version” of the market structure bill that has been stuck in the Senate.
Ethereum (ETH) surged by 18.2 per cent to $2,261.93, Solana (SOL) rose by 11.4 per cent to $85.77, Ripple (XRP) expanded by 10.5 per cent to $1.10, Bitcoin (BTC) grew by 8.6 per cent to $69,784.82, Dogecoin (DOGE) added 7.3 per cent to sell at $0.0751, Cardano (ADA) rose by 4.8 per cent to $0.1842, Binance Coin (BNB) jumped by 4.5 per cent to $628.45, and TRON (TRX) increased by 0.1 per cent to $0.3330, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) remained unchanged at $1.00 apiece.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Those who purchased the N40 billion bond issued by Geregu Power Plc in 2022 but did not receive payments last month as expected have reportedly now been paid by the energy company.
Geregu Power, listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, was in the news recently over the repayment default on July 28, 2026, triggering panic in the capital market.
Last week, the organisation admitted the issues caused by this default, but said, “Discussions and engagements are ongoing, and the company will continue to act in good faith in fulfilling its responsibilities.”
It further disclosed that “relevant stakeholders and advisers [are being actively engaged] regarding the resolution of the various challenges and is committed to achieving an orderly and mutually beneficial outcome.”
The latest information indicated that N6.03 billion owed investors under the firm’s N40.09 billion Series 1 Senior Unsecured Bond has been cleared.
This is expected to bring relief to investors, who may have feared the worst after the entity failed to meet its debt obligations when due.
However, on the FMDQ Securities Exchange, the status of the debt instrument remains as “credit default in the 8th coupon payment and 4th bullet principal repayment.”
As of the time of filing this report, Geregu Power has yet to confirm the clearing of the N6 billion debt.
