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Nigeria Ought to Rebase Economy 2017—NBS Boss

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By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Statistician-General of the Federation, Dr Yemi Kale, has disclosed that Nigeria was supposed to rebase its economy this year, but as things stand, such may never happen.

Dr Kale told Economic Confidential in an interview in Abuja that money was not released by the Federal Government to carry out this exercise.

He said in the interview that, “We are supposed to have to done it (rebase) this year, but no allocation to that effect.

“Every country does it maximum five years. The United States of America does it once a year. Those ones have more money, so they do it every year, apart from the fact that their economy is more dynamic.

“Technology is changing so many things so they have to upgrade all the time. If you don’t rebase your economy, it is like as if you are using Betamark system.

“When we rebased the economy, the politicians grabbed it because it favoured them. If it were in the negative, nobody will even talk about it.

“I was surprised to see at the election period that APC went to our website to retrieve all the positive figures and refused to accept the ones tagged negative.

“PDP too took all the positives and refused the poverty rate figures! Meanwhile all of them are NBS data.

“I have seen a Minister who agreed with chapter two of our report and said chapter three was not correct. While commending us for a job well done on chapter two, chapter three was tagged not correct; the same document!”

Speaking further on the economic, the renowned Economist said all things being equal, the Nigeria will get out of recession next year.

“If all prices do not collapse including Niger Delta crisis, by 2018 we would have recovered,” Dr Kale told Economic Confidential.

He said further, “It was an extremely difficult period and we all felt it. I will say that most of the indicators suggest that we are coming out of it.

“We have not come out of it yet. As if the worst has already happened and it’s a low process of recovery. Now there is what we call technical recovery as different from the recovery Nigerians would prefer.

“When you tell somebody, the economy is coming out of recession, they would say what do you mean. After all, prices are still high.

“Coming out of recession means positive growth. And your positive growth can be plus zero point one (+0.1). That does not mean everything is fine. It technically means you are no longer in negative again,” said Dr Kale.

He further posited that the fact that you are no longer in negative does not translate to be buoyant, stressing that there is going to be a gradual process of recovery as things are improving.

“At least all the indicators are suggesting things are getting better. People always make this mistake when we say inflation is slowing down. Slowing down of Inflation does not mean prices are coming down.

“Inflation by definition is always a rise in price. All we are saying is that increase is not as much as before. Before it went up by 100 percent, but this time it went up by 50 percent. Having double digit inflation figure is still huge and a problem.

The fact that it went down from 18 percent to 17 percent and now to 16 percent shows improvement. But I can tell you 16 percent is not good but a huge problem”, he said.

According to him, “If the trend continues, by the end of the year things should have normalized and by 2018 Nigerians would now see the benefit of the recovery.

Modupe Gbadeyanka is a fast-rising journalist with Business Post Nigeria. Her passion for journalism is amazing. She is willing to learn more with a view to becoming one of the best pen-pushers in Nigeria. Her role models are the duo of CNN's Richard Quest and Christiane Amanpour.

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Economy

Crypto.com to Delist Tether’s USDT, Others January 31

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

On January 31, 2025, the stablecoin of Tether, USDT, will be delisted from one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, Crypto.com

Business Post gathered that eight other tokens would also be yanked off the platform by Friday, with deposits for the affected digital coins disabled after the delisting.

The other tokens are Crypto.com Staked ETH, Crypto.com Staked SOL, PayPal USD, Wrapped Bitcoin, PAX Gold, PAX Dollar, XSGD, and DAI.

The decision to remove these coins from its trading platform is to comply with the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulations (MiCA).

On January 17, 2025, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) asked exchanges to drop non-compliant tokens, stressing the need for crypto asset service providers (CASPs) to align their services in compliance with the MiCA regulations.

However, holders of these affected coins will have until March 31 to convert their assets to MiCA-compliant alternatives.

If this is not done, the crypto exchange will automatically convert assets to MiCA-approved stablecoins or assets.

Tether’s USDT is one of the most popular stablecoins in the world but in recent times, it has started to lose its market share because of the regulatory uncertainty in Europe, particularly due to MiCA, going from about $150 billion to $139 billion.

The new regulations in the EU require 60 per cent of stablecoin reserves in the region to be in Euros, which Tether’s chief executive, Mr Paolo Ardoino, said threatens the future of stablecoins.

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Economy

NGX RegCo, EFCC, to Strengthen Partnership on Market Integrity

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By Aduragbemi Omiyale

To boost market surveillance and combat financial crimes in Nigeria’s increasingly digitalized capital market, the NGX Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have called for enhanced partnership.

This call was made during a meeting between the two organisations at the EFCC’s headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday, January 28, 2025.

The chief executive of NGX RegCo, the independent regulation subsidiary of NGX Group Plc, Mr Olufemi Shobanjo, informed the head of the EFCC, Mr Ola Olukoyede, that, “The digitalization of our markets has brought new challenges, necessitating a more robust collaborative approach.”

“While our 2013 MoU established initial cooperation parameters, the substantial market growth in 2024 demands an enhanced partnership framework.

“As a frontline regulator, we recognize the EFCC’s crucial role in providing enforcement support and specialized expertise to combat market abuse and protect investor interests,” he added.

Mr Shobanjo emphasized NGX RegCo’s dedication to maintaining market integrity and expressed confidence that reinforced collaboration with the EFCC would strengthen investor protection mechanisms.

Responding, Mr Olukoyede commended the desire to strengthen the existing relationship between the two agencies and assured that the commission was ready and willing to collaborate.

“I know you are also concerned with regulatory compliance because the issue of compliance is a key issue. It is part of our mandate to enforce compliance.

“Under my administration, we have strengthened our bond with different regulatory bodies. Let’s see how we can have a desk where we can work better and attend to you. I have a special interest in the capital market in respect of the abuse of assets and trades.

“We will try to review the MoU, make our observations in line with the relevant laws and regulations, and communicate our views to you. We pledge our commitment to this,” he said.

The strategic dialogue highlighted both organizations’ shared commitment to fostering a secure, transparent, and globally competitive Nigerian capital market that instils investor confidence and promotes sustainable economic growth.

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Risevest Reaffirms Operational Compliance as SEC Raises Fresh Alarm

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Risevest Technologies

By Adedapo Adesanya

Risevest, a digital investment platform, has once again reaffirmed its committment to regulatory transparency and compliance as the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) raised another red flag about the activities of the firm.

The SEC in another statement on Tuesday notified the public that Risevest Technologies Limited is not registered by it to operate in any capacity in the Nigerian capital market.

“Accordingly, the public is advised to refrain from engaging with Risevest Technologies Limited or any of its representatives in respect of any business pertaining or relating to the Nigerian capital market,” the regulator shared on its X platform.

This follows an earlier caution on Sunday, warning Nigerians against engaging in investment transactions with two unregistered platforms—Risevest Cooperative Multipurpose Society Limited and Stecs Multipurpose Cooperative Society, commonly referred to as Stecs.

SEC warned that engaging with unregistered and unregulated entities in the capital market exposes investors to significant risks, including fraud and the potential loss of funds.

Risevest following the initial warning said it was engaging with the regulator to straighten out the issue.

Now, Risevest in its latest communication, admitted that some of the regulatory frameworks it adopted, particularly for its cooperative subsidiary, needed to evolve to meet the expectations of the commission.

“As we’ve grown, we’ve realized that some of the regulatory frameworks we initially adopted, particularly for our Risevest Cooperative subsidiary, need to evolve to meet the expectations of the SEC. This is a natural part of our journey as we scale, and we are taking additional action steps to close any remaining compliance gaps across all our subsidiaries,” the company said.

The firm reiterated its commitment to supporting the SEC in its efforts to protect investors and ensure innovation aligns with robust investor safeguards.

“We want to reassure you that our investments and operations remain secure and unaffected by this process, as they are delivered through regulated third parties. Your trust is of utmost importance to us, and we see this as an opportunity to raise the bar even higher for compliance and operational excellence,” it added.

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