Economy
Nigerian Stock Exchange Fines 11 Companies N48m for Infractions
By Dipo Olowookere
A total of 11 companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) have been sanctioned and asked to pay fines to the tune of N48 million in the first eight months of this year.
Most of the infractions committed by the affected firms were on the late submission of their financial statements to the exchange for the use of the investing public.
According to data obtained by Business Post from the NSE over the weekend, the first company to get into the book of wrongdoers was Access Bank Plc.
The lender was slammed with a fine of N2.2 million for N2.2 million for unauthorised publication of notice of board meeting and closed period. The issue involved the bank announcing a closed period and later cancelled it. When the closed period was reversed, its group managing director, Mr Herbert Wigwe, traded some of his shares in the company and this created rancour in the market.
Another company fined by the stock exchange was Greif Nigeria and this was for submitting its audited 2019 results for the year ended October 2019 in February 2020. The firm received a fine of N500,000 for this action.
Also, Deap Capital Management & Trust, which has its fiscal year ending in September, failed to file its audited 2019 reports on time and it was fined N3.8 million after doing the right thing in February, which the NSE believed was the wrong time. In addition, it received another N1.7 million fine for releasing its Q2 2020 results in July 2020, amounting to a total fine of N5.5 million.
Furthermore, Thomas Wyatt Nigeria received a fine of N700,000 for filing its third-quarter results for 2019 in February 2020, while Ellah Lakes was knocked with a N200,000 hammer for submitting its 2020 second-quarter results in March 2020.
In the period under review, African Alliance Insurance was punished by the NSE for filing its 2019 audited reports in July and this came with a N3.2 million fine. The underwriting firm was further fined N2.5 million for late submission of its first-quarter results for 2020, which it eventually did in July and another N400,000 for filing its Q2 2020 earnings in August.
Also, Conoil was hit with a sanction worth N400,000 for filing its Q2 2020 results in August.
Business Post reports that the NSE fined Universal Insurance N3.2 million for submitting its Q1 2020 earnings in July, another N3.2 million for submitting its Q1 2020 earnings in July and N400,000 for filing the Q2 2020 results in August.
Another company in the bad books of the NSE in the first eight months of 2020 was LASACO Assurance, which was fined N4.4 million for late submission of its audited 2019 reports. it got an additional N4.4 million fine for late filing of its first quarter of 2020 earnings and N1.7 million for filing the second quarter of 2020 earnings late. All the three results were submitted by the firm to the exchange in August.
Also, eTranzact International was slapped with a N1.9 million fine in the period under consideration for releasing its Q2 2020 earnings in August, while Royal Exchange was fined N5.4 million for filing its audited 2019 results in February, another N5.4 million for submitting its Q1 2020 earnings in February and N2.6 million for releasing its Q2 2020 results in August, amounting to a total of N13.4 million fine.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Market bellwethers, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, lifted the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 2.08 per cent on Monday, August 3.
CSCS Plc, the Nigerian securities depository company, gained N10.00 to close at N112.00 per share compared with the previous session’s N102.00 per share, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc advanced by N4.71 to quote at N152.64 per unit versus last Friday’s N147.93 per unit.
As a result, the NASD Security Index (NSI) added 92.14 points to finish at 4,523.85 points compared with the preceding session’s 4,431.71 points, and the market capitalisation appreciated by N55.31 billion to N2.715 trillion from N2.659 trillion.
Business Post reports that the price of MRS Oil Plc crashed during the trading day by N12.00 to N120.00 per share from N132.00 per share, and UBN Property Plc dipped by 3 Kobo to N1.90 per unit from N1.93 per unit.
Trading data showed that the volume of securities exchanged rose by 113.1 per cent to 1.5 million units from 690,990 units, and the number of deals climbed by 19.2 per cent to 31 deals from 26 deals, while the value of securities slid by 13.1 per cent to N65.2 million from N75.0 million.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded 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 sold for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 76.8 million units traded for N5.5 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units exchanged for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has introduced a 1.5 per cent stamp duty on eligible virtual asset transactions, with the tax deducted directly from the cryptocurrency purchased before it is credited to the buyer’s wallet.
According to the new guidelines issued on Monday, anyone buying Bitcoin (BTC), USDT or other cryptocurrencies in Nigeria will receive fewer digital assets due to the deduction.
This requires registered crypto exchanges and other Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs) to withhold the levy in the digital asset being traded and remit it to the government, marking Nigeria’s most comprehensive move yet to bring cryptocurrency transactions into the country’s tax net.
Unlike traditional taxes deducted from a customer’s bank account, the 1.5 per cent charge will be taken from the cryptocurrency itself, meaning buyers will receive less Bitcoin, USDT or other tokens than they paid for.
The tax body stated that “income tax deducted at source and stamp duty shall be remitted to the service in the originating token of the transaction.”
Besides the new stamp duty, the guidelines also clarify how income tax, Value Added Tax (VAT) and other tax obligations will apply to virtual asset activities such as trading, staking, mining and other crypto-related transactions.
To illustrate the new rule, the tax authority said a buyer who pays N1 million for one Bitcoin will receive only 0.985 BTC after 0.015 BTC is deducted as stamp duty and remitted to the government. When that Bitcoin is later sold, the next buyer will also have 1.5 per cent deducted from the cryptocurrency credited to their wallet.
The NRS said the guidelines are intended to provide clarity for taxpayers, crypto exchanges, peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplace operators, financial institutions, tax consultants and all participants in Nigeria’s virtual asset ecosystem.
According to the guidelines, the 1.5 per cent duty applies to eligible virtual asset transactions facilitated through registered exchanges and other recognised intermediaries. Where a cryptocurrency is used to complete a transaction that already attracts stamp duty under the law, the applicable duty on the underlying instrument will also be payable.
For crypto users, the implication is higher transaction costs, as eligible purchases will attract the 1.5 per cent stamp duty, while VAT on exchange service fees and income tax on taxable gains may also apply, depending on the nature of the transaction.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira opened the week on a positive note, as it appreciated against the US Dollar by N3.39 or 0.25 per cent in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, August 3, to N1,364.83/$1 from N1,368.22/$1 last Friday.
However, it suffered a marginal decline against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by 10 Kobo to close at N1,837.89/£1 compared with the preceding session’s N1,837.79/£1, and lost 6 Kobo on the Euro to sell at N1,573.93/€1, in contrast to the previous trading day’s N1,573.87/€1.
At the black market segment, the Nigerian currency traded flat against the Dollar yesterday at N1,405/$1, and at the GTBank forex counter, it was unchanged at N1,374/$1.
Interbank FX transactions increased sharply as market makers’ activities raised total Dollar volume exchanged to $137.048 million, more than 132 per cent above $58.990 million in turnover at the previous close. The surge in turnover was driven by increased deals at the NFEM window. The central bank reported that deal count at the interbank FX window rose to 138 from 67 on Friday.
As for the cryptocurrency market, major tokens advanced despite ongoing uncertainty around unresolved Coldcard wallet sweeps that have drained hundreds of Bitcoin (BTC), while traders are watching whether bitcoin can hold above $63,000 through the US session. BTC rose by 1.70 per cent to $63,765.88.
Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy disclosed Monday it sold 1,638 bitcoin for about $105 million between July 27 and Aug. 2, its third sale of 2026, per an SEC filing.
Also, an attacker has moved about 1,816 bitcoins, or roughly $114 million, from more than 5,200 addresses since July 30 in a fourth wave of sweeps targeting BTC in Coldcard-generated addresses.
Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 6.7 per cent to $0.1959, Binance Coin (BNB) gained 1.5 per cent to sell for $590.82, Solana (SOL) jumped by 1.3 per cent to $73.72, TRON (TRX) soared by 0.9 per cent to $0.3286, Dogecoin (DOGE) also grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0703, Ripple (XRP) advanced by 0.5 per cent to $1.07, and Ethereum (ETH) rose by 0.4 per cent to $1,863.33, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
2 Comments