Economy
Nigeria to Phase Out Obsolete Pioneer Tax Exemptions
By Dipo Olowookere
The federal government has disclosed that it plans to phase out some old pioneer tax exemptions granted to some companies as it looks to bolster its revenue to cut its fiscal deficits.
The government has expressed concern over the country’s debt burden, and with earnings from crude oil sales not improving, it is looking toward taxes to generate more funds.
Last month, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said the total debt profile of Nigeria increased by 2.98 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis to N42.84 trillion in June 2022 from N41.60 trillion in March 2022.
It explained that the total public debt stock of N42.84 trillion comprises the funds borrowed by the federal government, the 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
In Dollar terms, the money owed by Nigeria stood at $103.31 billion as of June 30, 2022, in contrast to $100.07 billion as of March 31, 2022.
Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expressed concerns over the debt burden of Nigeria, advising the government to use proceeds from oil sales to reduce the fiscal deficit.
The federal government, through the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, agrees that something must be done to slice the debt burden, but this can be done by increasing taxes and not earnings from crude oil.
At a workshop on tax expenditure in Abuja, she said that the government would commence the rationalisation of tax exemptions by phasing out antiquated pioneers and other tax incentives for matured industries.
According to her, contrary to what was obtained in the past, the country is reaping the benefits of tax exemptions and concessions given to small businesses.
“A lot has changed, the system is more transparent, and tax expenditure that government has given which is a tax for a bond, is to encourage ailing and infant industries to do more and employ more youths,” the Minister, represented by the Director, Technical Services in the Ministry, Ms Fatima Hayatu, said.
Mrs Ahmed further said the government would introduce some taxes to generate more funds to repay the loans from various sources, including China, the World Bank, and the IMF.
Mrs Ahmed expressed confidence that if the government introduces more taxes or expands the current tax base and block revenue leakages, the nation would have more funds to ease the debt burden.
“The debt is not something that cannot be surmounted. The programme is to block leakages where the taxes are being diverted.
“So, if we block leakages, and if it is transparent, Nigeria will borrow less, and we will have more money to finance other sectors,” the Minister said at the programme organised by the ECOWAS Commission under the Context of the Implementation of the Support Programme for Tax Transition in West Africa (PATF).
She reemphasised that, “If we have more taxes and redirect the taxes to the right fiscal sectors of our economy, we will reduce our debt burden.
“It is not as if the debt is beyond what the government can handle. If you look at the debt to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio, I think the government is doing well.”
Business Post reports that the workshop was put together to examine directives on the harmonisation of tax expenditure management practices and the monitoring and evaluation of tax transition in ECOWAS member states.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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