Economy
NEM Insurance Seeks Shareholders’ Approval to Raise N2.6bn
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The board of NEM Insurance Plc has said it plans to raise an additional capital aimed to improve operations of the company.
In a statement issued by the firm, it was disclosed that the amounted needed for now is about N2.640 billion, which would be raised through issuing of additional shares of the insurer.
NEM Insurance said it wants to issue new 1.056 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N2.50k per unit by a Special/Private Placement.
However, before this can be done, the board is seeking authorisation of shareholders of the company.
This approval would be sought at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the firm slated for Tuesday, June 25, 2019 at the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos.
“That on the recommendation of the directors, the shareholders hereby authorise the directors to raise additional capital through the issuance of not more than 1,056,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, at N2.50k per share by way of a Special/Private Placement.
“That the shares proposed to be issued pursuant to the above resolution and the rights attaching thereto shall rank at least pari passu with the ordinary shares held by the existing shareholders in the company.
“That the shareholders hereby waive their pre-emptive rights under Article 43 of the Company’s Articles so as to enable the Special/Private Placement to proceed.
“That for the purpose of giving effect to the above, the board be and is hereby authorized to agree, make and accept all such term(s), condition(s) and modification(s) as it may deem fit, including, condition(s) and modification(s) stipulated or required by any relevant authorities and to seek all requisite approvals from the appropriate authorities, appoint consultants and advisers, finalize and execute all agreements or documents and to do all acts, deeds and things in this connection and incidental as the board in its absolute discretion may deem necessary and expedient for the purpose of the Special/Private Placement without being required to seek any further consent or approval of the members or otherwise to the end and intent that they shall be deemed to have given approval thereto expressly by the authority of this resolution,” the board said in a notice.
It was further disclosed during the AGM, shareholders will also be asked to amend the company’s Articles of Association by including a new Article 52, which states that, “The company may give notice of its Annual General Meeting and other statutory notices, its balance sheet (including every document required by law to be annexed thereto for consideration at the company’s General Meetings) in hard print or electronic format to any person entitled to receive such notices, either by sending them by post to the person’s last known registered address or by electronic mail to his/her last known electronic address.”
They will further authorise the changing of Article 52 to 53 and will then contain the clause “The accidental omission to give notice of a meeting or the non-receipt of notice of a meeting by any person entitled to receive notice shall not invalidate the proceedings at any meeting.”
Business Post reports that this amendment followed an issue the insurance company had with one of its shareholders last year.
In June 2018, the insurer held its AGM, but a number of shareholders including Eaton Acquisitions, Premium Green Limited, Starvest Limited, Three Sea Investment Limited and Oluwaseyilola A. Ojo notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) of an infraction by NEM Insurance, claiming that the insurance company did not follow the laid down rules by notifying them of the planned AGM.
As a result, the aggrieved shareholders asked the regulators to invalidate the meeting as well as all the resolutions reached at the AGM, including the resolution to raise additional capital through a private placement at a price below the market price of NEM Insurance stock.
This request was granted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and it directed the board of NEM Insurance to reconvene the 48th AGM, with proper notice given to shareholders in line with extant laws.
At the next month’s meeting, the board will present to shareholders the Annual Financial Statements of the company for the year ended December 31, 2017 and Reports of Directors, the Auditors Report thereon and Audit Committee’s Report.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The World Bank has approved a $500 million facility for Nigeria to expand longer-term lending to small and medium sized businesses.
Approved under the Fostering Inclusive Finance for MSMEs in Nigeria (FINCLUDE) project, the package comprises a $400 million International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan and a $100 million International Development Association (IDA) credit. Both IBRD and IDA are members of the World Bank Group.
The scheme will be implemented by the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), with credit guarantees provided through DBN’s subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Limited (ICGL).
FINCLUDE is designed to address constraints faced by micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria which despite accounting for most businesses and nearly half of gross domestic product (GDP) face long-standing barriers to formal finance.
Fewer than one in 20 MSMEs have access to bank credit; loans are often short-term and costly; and collateral requirements exclude many viable firms. Women-led enterprises, which make up a substantial portion of MSMEs, are disproportionately affected, facing higher rejection rates and limited tailored products. Agribusinesses, central to food security and rural livelihoods, similarly struggle to obtain more extended‑tenor financing for equipment, processing, storage, and logistics.
However, FINCLUDE seeks to address these constraints by expanding access to affordable, longer-term finance and tailored solutions for segments with the most significant development impact.
Speaking on this, the World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Mr Mathew Verghis, said, “FINCLUDE is about jobs, opportunity, and inclusion. By expanding access to finance for viable MSMEs—particularly women-led firms and agribusinesses—Nigeria can accelerate growth and deliver tangible benefits across communities nationwide.
“The project will make it easier for deserving small businesses to get the finance they need to grow and hire workers. With better support for lenders that practice inclusive finance and fairer, longer-term loans for entrepreneurs, we are backing the people who power Nigeria’s economy—especially women and those in agriculture.”
The FINCLUDE project will help to mobilise private investment and expand access to and usage of inclusive, innovative financial products for MSMEs nationwide.
Through DBN, the operation will strengthen the capacity of banks, including microfinance banks and non-bank financial institutions such as financial technologies (fintechs), to provide larger loans with more reasonable repayment periods, and—through ICGL—will scale partial credit guarantees so that lenders can extend credit to businesses they might otherwise consider too risky.
Targeted technical assistance will modernise loan appraisal by leveraging AI-enabled digital platforms to accelerate decision-making, improve data quality, strengthen impact measurement, and build capacity for both MSMEs and participating financial institutions.
According to the World Bank, a strong emphasis on inclusion will ensure that women-led businesses and agribusinesses benefit from these improvements.
Also commenting, Task Team Leader for FINCLUDE, Mrs Hadija Kamayo, said, “FINCLUDE will help to mobilize approximately $1.89 billion in private capital, expand debt financing to 250,000 MSMEs—including at least 150,000 women-led businesses and 100,000 agribusinesses—and issue up to $800 million in guarantees to catalyse lending.
“By extending the average maturity of MSME loans to about three years, it will help firms invest in equipment, factories, staff, and productivity, translating finance into jobs and growth.”
By Dipo Olowookere
The local stock market firmed up by 1.13 per cent on Friday as appetite for Nigerian stocks remained strong.
Investors reacted well to the 2026 budget presentation of President Bola Tinubu to the National Assembly yesterday, especially because of the more realistic crude oil benchmark of $64 per barrel compared with the ambitious $75 per barrel for 2025. This year, prices have been between $60 and $65 per barrel.
Business Post observed profit-taking in the commodity and energy sectors as they respectively shed 0.14 per cent and 0.03 per cent.
But, bargain-hunting in the others sustained the positive run, with the consumer goods index up by 3.82 per cent.
Further, the industrial goods space appreciated by 1.46 per cent, the banking counter improved by 0.08 per cent, and the insurance industry gained 0.04 per cent.
As a result, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 1,694.33 points to 152,057.38 points from 150,363.05 points and the market capitalisation chalked up N1.080 trillion to finish at N96.937 trillion compared with Thursday’s closing value of N95.857 trillion.
A total of 34 shares ended on the advancers’ chart, while 24 were on the laggards’ log, representing a positive market breadth index and bullish investor sentiment.
Austin Laz gained 10.00 per cent to close at N2.42, Union Dicon also jumped 10.00 per cent to N6.60, Tantalizers increased by 9.80 per cent to N2.69, Aluminium Extrusion improved by 9.78 per cent to N12.35, and Champion Breweries grew by 9.71 per cent to N16.95.
Conversely, Sovereign Trust Insurance dipped by 7.42 per cent to N3.87, Royal Exchange lost 6.84 per cent to trade at N1.77, Omatek slipped by 6.84 per cent to N1.09, Eunisell depreciated by 5.88 per cent to N80.00, and Eterna dropped 5.63 per cent to close at N28.50.
Yesterday, traders transacted 1.5 billion units worth N21.8 billion in 25,667 deals compared with the 839.8 million units sold for N32.8 billion in 23,211 deals in the preceding session, showing a surge in the trading volume by 76.61 per cent, an uptick in the number of deals by 10.58 per cent, and a shrink in the trading value by 33.54 per cent.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three stocks stretched the bearish run of the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.21 per cent on Friday, December 19, with the market capitalisation giving up N26.01 billion to close at N2.121 billion compared with the N2.147 trillion it ended a day earlier, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) dropping 43.47 points to 3,546.41 points from 3,589.88 points.
The trio of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc, and NASD Plc overpowered the gains printed by four other securities.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N6.00 to sell at N54.00 per unit versus N60.00 per unit, NASD Plc shrank by N3.50 to N58.50 per share from N55.00 per share, and CSCS Plc depleted by N2.91 to N33.87 per unit from N36.78 per unit.
On the flip side, Air Liquide Plc gained N1.01 to close at N13.00 per share versus N11.99 per share, Golden Capital Plc appreciated by 70 Kobo to N7.68 per unit from N6.98 per unit, Geo-Fluids Plc added 39 Kobo to sell at N5.50 per share versus N5.11 per share, and IPWA Plc rose by 8 Kobo to 85 Kobo per unit from 77 Kobo per unit.
During the trading day, market participants traded 1.9 million securities versus the previous day’s 30.5 million securities showing a decline of 49.3 per cent. The value of trades went down by 64.3 per cent to N80.3 million from N225.1 million, but the number of deals jumped by 32.1 per cent to 37 deals from 28 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc finished the session as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units valued at N16.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units transacted for N9.5 billion, and MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units traded for N4.9 billion.
The most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was still InfraCredit Plc with 5.8 billion units worth N16.4 billion, trailed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units sold for N420.7 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 536.9 million units traded for N524.9 million.
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