Economy
Nigerian Stock Market Bleeds as NASS Saga Scares Investors
By Dipo Olowookere
The invasion of the National Assembly (NASS) by security operatives on Tuesday morning took its toll on the Nigerian stock market today.
The situation dominated the blogosphere and polity today as some lawmakers were prevented from gaining access into the complex because officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) mounted the main gate to the parliament.
Later in the day, the Director General of the DSS, Mr Lawal Daura, was fired by the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, over the issue.
Business Post reports that at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), it was all red from when the market opened for business till when it closed for the day.
During the day’s trading, some investors, who were keeping tabs on happenings in Abuja, were selling off their stocks for cash, while few were stocking up their portfolio, taking advantage of the very low price they were getting the shares from panicking sellers.
At the close of transactions, the stock market suffered a 0.40 percent loss, leaving the Year-to-Date (YtD) gain to -4.99 percent.
Business Post reports further that the banking sector as well as the oil and gas sector suffered huge losses today. While the banking index declined by 1.08 percent, the oil and gas index depreciated by 4.69 percent.
Overall, the All-Share Index (ASI) lost 145.62 points to close at 36,333.80 points, while the market capitalization reduced by N53 billion to settle at N13.262 trillion.
However, the market breadth ended positive today with the stock market closing with 23 price gainers and 21 price losers.
The price gainers’ chart was led on Tuesday by Nigerian Breweries after its shares rose by N2.10k to settle at N103 per share.
It was followed by Flour Mills, which increased by 90 kobo to finish at N25.50k per share, and Newrest ASL Nigeria, which grew by 45 kobo to end at N4.95k per share.
Cadbury Nigeria also garnered 45 kobo to close at N9.95k per share, while United Capital appreciated by 28 kobo to settle at N3.08k per share.
On the flip side, Seplat recorded the highest price depreciation today with N60 of its share value lost to close at N650 per share.
CAP declined by N3.15k to finish at N28.35k per share, while GTBank lost 85 kobo to settle at N39.15k per share.
Lafarge fell by 60 kobo to end at N29.90k per share, while Forte Oil went down by 55 kobo to close at N23 per share.
Business Post reports that the volume of shares transacted by investors today increased by 36.07 percent, while the value of trades rose by 10.43 percent.
At the close of business, a total of 248.1 million shares were sold for N2.3 billion compared with the 182.3 million equities traded yesterday for N2 billion.
A further look at the transactions showed that the Financial Services sector led the activity chart with 207.2 million shares traded for N1.6 billion, while the Healthcare sector followed with 14.7 million equities sold for N7 million.
A deeper look at the activity chart showed that Wema Bank shares emerged the most traded, selling a total of 53.5 million units worth N37.5 million.
It was followed by GTBank, which transacted 23.4 million units for N925.1 million, and United Bank for Africa, which exchanged 22.2 million shares worth N214 million.
Diamond Bank traded 16.9 million equities valued at N21.2 million, while United Capital sold 14.2 million shares worth N43.2 million.
Investors will only hope that a calmer atmosphere tomorrow will have a positive effect on the market. Also, investors will hope that GTBank and other three other lenders release their half year earnings to lift the stock market.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the leading local energy firms, Oando Plc, delivered an impressive financial performance in the first six months of 2026, according to details of its results filed to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
Between January and June 2026, revenue surged by 20 per cent to N2.1 trillion from N1.7 trillion in the same period of 2025, driven by growth in the Exploration & Production and Trading segments of the business.
Also, the net profit grew by 8 per cent year-on-year to N68.6 billion from N63.3 billion, supported by improved operating profits and tax credits.
It was observed that the organisation deepened its domestic gas monetisation portfolio with the commencement of long-term gas supply of 11.2 MMscfd to the newly commissioned 60 MW Bayelsa Independent Power Plant.
“The first half of 2026 marks an important inflexion point in Oando’s journey. Over the past two years, our priority has been to successfully integrate one of the most significant upstream acquisitions in Africa and unlock the full value of our expanded portfolio. The progress achieved during the period demonstrates that we are now delivering the operational and financial outcomes expected from that transformation,” the chief executive of Oando, Mr Adewale Tinubu, stated.
Commenting further on the results, Mr Tinubu said, “Operational efficiency underpinned our performance during the period as we strengthened asset integrity, improved facility reliability and reinforced security across our operating areas, resulting in average facility uptime of 92 per cent while reducing production operating costs by 18 per cent to $16.83 per boe.”
“Our development programme also gathered significant momentum during the period as we successfully drilled and completed two land development wells, with an additional land well currently being drilled, while mobilising a second drilling rig to accelerate activity across our operated portfolio.
“In parallel, we continued an extensive programme of rig-less well interventions designed to restore production, sustain plateau output and mitigate natural field decline. Together, these activities increased average production to 42,789 boepd, representing 16 per cent year-on-year growth.
“This translated into a stronger financial performance, with revenue increasing by 20 per cent to N2.1 trillion, while the business generated N179.5 billion in operating cash, improving liquidity. Profit after tax also increased by 8 per cent to N68.6 billion, reflecting the overall improvement in operating performance during the period,” he pointed out.
The Oando chief also said, “Looking ahead in 2026, our priorities remain firmly centred on completing our seven-well drilling programme and portfolio-wide well intervention campaign while delivering production of circa 50,000 boepd.
“Beyond 2026, our identified inventory of 62 development wells, supported by 55 planned well interventions, provides a clear pathway towards our medium-term production ambition of approximately 100,000 boepd.
“Furthermore, we shall execute an intensive fundraising and balance sheet restructuring programme to optimise our capital structure, strengthen our financial position, improve working capital, enhance financial flexibility and ensure the business is appropriately funded to accelerate growth and maximise long-term shareholder value.
“We have built a resilient operating platform and established a clear roadmap for growth. Our focus is now on translating our significant opportunities into higher production, a stronger balance sheet and superior long-term returns for our shareholders.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
Africa-focused fintech company PalmPay has joined the ranks of unicorn startups after attaining a valuation of more than $1 billion, as the digital payment platform prepares for a potential initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong.
According to a report by Bloomberg on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter, the Hong Kong-headquartered company is in advanced discussions to raise about $200 million in a new funding round that would cement its unicorn status and support its next phase of expansion.
The planned fundraising comes as PalmPay accelerates its growth strategy across Africa and Asia, while positioning itself for a public listing that could become one of the most significant fintech IPOs involving an Africa-focused company in recent years.
PalmPay’s move follows a period of rapid growth in Nigeria, where it has become one of the country’s largest digital financial services providers. Alongside OPay and Moniepoint, the company forms the trio that dominates Nigeria’s retail digital payments and agency banking market, a segment driven by millions of point-of-sale (POS) transactions processed daily.
With PalmPay’s latest valuation milestone, all three leading Nigerian fintechs have now achieved unicorn status. While OPay has previously disclosed plans to pursue a listing in the United States, Moniepoint has remained focused on expanding its banking and business services without publicly indicating IPO ambitions.
Founded in 2019 after securing a Mobile Money Operator (MMO) licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), PalmPay has built one of the country’s fastest-growing fintech ecosystems. The company says it now serves more than 35 million registered users and over 600,000 merchants, supported by an extensive network of more than 500,000 mobile money agents nationwide.
The platform offers a broad suite of financial services, including peer-to-peer transfers, bill payments, airtime purchases, savings, credit products, merchant payment solutions and agency banking services. PalmPay says it processes as many as 15 million transactions daily, reflecting the increasing adoption of digital payments across Nigeria.
Beyond its home market, the fintech has expanded into Tanzania, Ghana, and Bangladesh, underscoring its ambition to become a leading emerging-market digital bank. Industry analysts view the expansion as part of a broader strategy to diversify revenue streams while replicating its Nigerian success in other underbanked markets.
PalmPay has attracted backing from prominent global investors, including Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer MediaTek and smartphone maker Transsion Holdings, whose Tecno, Infinix and itel brands command significant market share across Africa. Their support has helped PalmPay leverage smartphone penetration to drive financial inclusion through mobile-first banking services.
As part of efforts to strengthen its leadership ahead of its next growth phase, PalmPay recently appointed Mr Samuel Oluyemi as Chief Operating Officer (COO) for its Nigerian business. Mr Oluyemi joined the company after more than two decades at the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), where he played key roles in developing the country’s digital payments infrastructure.
If completed, the fundraising and eventual Hong Kong listing would further underscore growing international investor confidence in African fintech companies despite a more cautious global venture capital environment. The proceeds are expected to support PalmPay’s geographical expansion, deepen its product offerings, invest in technology infrastructure and strengthen its competitive position in Africa’s rapidly evolving digital financial services industry.
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.
