Economy
NGX Attracts $4bn Eurobonds, N1.7trn Equities, Bonds in Q1
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
In the first quarter of 2022, the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited attracted $4 billion in Eurobonds, N1.701 trillion in domestic bonds and equities from the federal government and corporate organisations.
These debt instruments and stocks were listed on the platform to provide investment options to investors in the nation’s capital market, deepening the landscape, improving liquidity and tradability, as well as increasing access to capital to fund growth initiatives.
Under the NGX’s bond market, the Federal Government of Nigeria dominated issuances, raising about N589.05 billion locally and listing $4 billion in Eurobonds.
Corporates also leveraged the low yield environment to fund expansion objectives and pursue debt refinancing, raising a total of N35.3 billion.
In the equities market, NGX started the year with the landmark listing of BUA Foods’ 18 billion shares listed at N40 per share, adding N720 billion to the NGX market capitalisation.
Abbey Mortgage Bank also listed its right issue of about N3.028 billion, while Access Holdings, following its merger and acquisition listed new shares of 35.545 billion shares valued at N353.675 billion.
It is no secret that capital is critical for business growth either in form of debt through bonds, or equity through shares. The exchange, as an important component of the capital market, therefore plays a significant role in the capital formation process because of the tremendous opportunities that ensue from its activities.
It is expected that a thriving bourse will continue to mobilize long-term savings to finance long-term investment by providing risk capital in the form of equity or quasi-equity to entrepreneurs, a role NGX continues to prioritize.
It will be recalled that NGX highlighted five major focus areas in 2022 in its efforts to deepen access and attract a new generation of investors to the market.
The Chief Executive Officer, NGX, Mr Temi Popoola, said the exchange would drive its growth in 2022 by focusing on five strategic areas, including building on digital transformation, listings and delistings, technology, partnerships and sustainability.
He noted that 2021 was a historic year for the bourse as the former Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) completed its demutualisation process, following statutory approvals from the Securities and Exchange Commission and Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
Mr Popoola said NGX would seek to consolidate its historic status with a new verve of digitisation by creating innovative and automated access to the market while ensuring the overall quality of listed companies and ease of the capital-raising process.
According to him, the exchange would deploy strategic initiatives to attract financial technology (Fintech) firms to the stock market, including the launching of a Nasdaq-style board for the listing of tech companies.
“Today, there is a lot of capital raising from tech companies globally. Our market can be a source to raise this capital. SEC has already taken the lead. It will help to drive economic growth and mobilise capital from sectors of surplus to deficit,” Mr Popoola said.
He added that the NGX would also accelerate the digitisation of its processes and operations to attract more investors, especially the millennials and youths, who are increasingly turning to alternative investment options.
He said NGX would work to integrate the market with digital banks and other transactional channels in order to make the market a viable and accessible investment option to all investors.
Market enthusiasts continue to note with excitement the moves NGX is making in this regard and are gaining increasing confidence with the positive start recorded in 2022.
Economy
Four Securities Erase N51.17bn from NASD Exchange
By Adedapo Adesanya
Four securities weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.95 per cent on Friday, erasing N41.17 billion from the bourse, which had its market capitalisation at N2.567 trillion compared with the previous session’s N2.618 trillion.
In the same vein, the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) decreased at the close of business by 85.28 points to 4,277.07 points from 4,362.32 points.
The price decliners were led by 11 Plc, which gave up N20.50 to sell at N200.50 per share compared with the preceding day’s N221.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc dropped N16.94 to close at N155.20 per unit versus Thursday’s closing price of N172.14 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc went down by N2.11 to N84.68 per share from N86.79 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc lost 11 Kobo to end at N16.74 per unit, in contrast to the N16.85 per unit it closed a day earlier.
During the trading day, the value of transactions jumped by 172.1 per cent to N29.9 million from the preceding session’s N10.9 million, and the volume of trades soared by 136.5 per cent to 955,096 units from the previous 403,901 units, while the number of deals went down by 11.4 per cent to 31 deals from 35 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, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 68.6 million units sold for N4.7 billion.
GNI Plc also ended the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units exchanged for N8.4 billion, trailed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
Economy
Cautious Trading, Profit-taking Weaken Nigeria’s Stock Exchange by 0.66%
By Dipo Olowookere
The last trading session of this week on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited ended on a negative note, with a 0.66 per cent loss on Friday.
This was influenced by sustained selling pressure and cautious trading, which forced investors into profit-taking.
Data obtained by Business Post showed that the energy sector fell by 4.66 per cent, the insurance counter dipped by 2.23 per cent, the consumer goods index depreciated by 0.96 per cent, and the banking segment shed 0.28 per cent, while the industrial goods space remained unchanged.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) of Nigeria’s stock exchange went down by 1,531.81 points to 232,049.02 points from 233,580.83 points, and the market capitalisation dropped N983 billion to settle at N148.905 trillion compared with Thursday’s N149.888 trillion.
Aradel was the worst-performing equity after it lost 10.00 per cent to close at N1,417.50. International Energy Insurance slipped by 9.95 per cent to N5.79, Trans-Nationwide Express depreciated by 9.89 per cent to N3.28, eTranzact crashed by 9.79 per cent to N14.75, and UPDC slumped by 9.72 per cent to N28.12.
The best-performing equity for the day was Universal Insurance, which gained 6.32 per cent to close at N1.01, McNichols grew by 5.52 per cent to N8.60, Linkage Assurance expanded by 4.67 per cent to N1.57, NGX Group appreciated by 4.35 per cent to N120.00, and Transcorp increased by 3.62 per cent to N41.50.
As look at the activity level indicated that investors traded 388.7 million stocks worth N18.4 billion in 44,631 deals compared with the 393.7 million stocks valued at N19.2 billion executed in 45,813 deals a day earlier, representing a decline in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 1.27 per cent, 4.17 per cent, and 2.58 per cent, respectively.
Economy
Official FX Market Sees Naira Dip to N1,380.93/$1
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira recorded a loss of 82 Kobo or 0.06 per cent against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Friday, June 26, exchanging at N1,380.93/$1, in contrast to the previous day’s rate of N1,380.11/$1.
Equally, the domestic currency further weakened against the Pound Sterling in the official FX market yesterday by N6.06 to settle at N1,824.90/£1 versus the preceding session’s N1,818.84/£1, and lost N10.74 on the Euro to sell at N1,577 .58/€1 versus N1,566.84/€1.
At the GTBank forex counter, the Naira depreciated against the greenback during the session by N4 to close at N1,387/$1, in contrast to Thursday’s value of N1,383/$1, and at the parallel market, it was unchanged at N1,395/$1.
Interbank FX activity among financial institutions has fluctuated amid a sharp slowdown in forex market interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), as it allows demand and supply to move the market.
Also, a stronger greenback has generally put significant pressure on emerging-market currencies.
Nigeria has accessed the first tranche of a proposed $5 billion derivatives financing arrangement with First Abu Dhabi Bank PJSC, the largest lender in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The $5 billion facility, approved by the National Assembly earlier this year, is part of the federal government’s plan to diversify external financing sources and reduce borrowing costs. Structured as a Total Return Swap with First Abu Dhabi Bank, proceeds are earmarked for refinancing debt and supporting infrastructure financing.
If the proceeds are brought into the country through the official FX market, the transaction will increase the currency reserves or Dollar liquidity.
At the cryptocurrency market, Solana (SOL) grew by 2.2 per cent to $71.92, Cardano (ADA) gained 1.1 per cent to trade at $0.1474, Ripple (XRP) also appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $1.05, Dogecoin (DOGE) expanded by 0.9 per cent to $0.0755, and Ethereum (ETH) improved by 0.4 per cent to $1,578.84.
On the flip side, TRON (TRX) slid 0.6 per cent to $0.3203, Binance Coin (BNB) slumped by 0.3 per cent to $564.33, and Bitcoin fell by 0.2 per cent to $60,219.37, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
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