Nigeria’s FX Reserves Swell to $35.4bn Amid Oil Production Shortfall

By Adedapo Adesanya Nigeria has repaid a total of $12.56 billion in external debt as of 2022, data from Intelpoint showed. According to the latest debt figures, Nigeria’s total public debt rose by 75.3 per cent to N87.38 trillion at the end of the second quarter of 2023 against N49.85 trillion recorded in the first quarter of the year. The rise came as the country securitised the N22.71 trillion Ways and Means Advances of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to the federal government. The overdraft is a loan facility through which the CBN finances the shortfalls in the government’s

eToro is like a big global marketplace for people who want to trade. It has been around since 2007 and serves folks in over 140 countries. It’s great for both the pros who know their stuff and newcomers who are just starting out. They even have a practice account for beginners and ways for people to earn without doing much. Sometimes, though, things don’t work out, or people just change their minds. Traders Union has got you covered with a guide on how to close eToro account the right way. Comparing eToro account options eToro offers trading conditions that many

By Adedapo Adesanya The Minister of Power, Mr Adebayo Adelabu, has called for collective efforts to shape the energy sector in Nigeria, noting that no meaningful economic growth can be achieved without it. Mr Adelabu said this at the Nigeria Energy 2023 leadership summit recently held in Lagos, with the theme Unlocking new value with reforms, investments, and technology which saw in attendance industry leaders. The Minister said, “Energy is the lifeblood of any modern economy of which Nigeria is no exception. No meaningful economic growth or industrial development can be achieved without energy. “We can be talking of potential

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian government is targeting an estimated $55.2 billion in oil and gas investments by 2030, according to the Special Adviser to the President Bola Tinubu on Energy, Mrs Olu Verheijen. She said the government has wrapped up a series of strategic engagements with 15 leading international and independent oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria. The President’s aide recently organised sessions in Lagos and Abuja in partnership with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to review ways to improve the sector and address the nation’s revenue emergency whilst contributing to stabilising Nigeria’s economy. Involved in

By Dipo Olowookere Acting Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Nigeria, Ms Mary Uduk, has disclosed that plans are underway to come up with a framework for financial technology (fintech) for the nation’s capital market. The SEC chief made this disclosure on Friday while addressing newsmen on outcome of the two-day quarterly Capital Market Committee (CMC) meeting held in Lagos. Business Post reports that the meeting was well attended by stakeholders in the market, including Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market and Institutions, Mr Tajudeen Yusuf, amongst others. The event, according to Ms

By Aduragbemi Omiyale Despite the harsh operating environment and the unexpected policies of the government that affected businesses in Nigeria, Unity Bank Plc showed resilience in the first six months of 2023. In its half-year unaudited financial statements filed to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited over the weekend, the bank marginally improved its gross earnings by 0.37 per cent to N27.5 billion from N27.4 billion in the first half of last year. It was observed that 10 per cent growth in the fees and income commission to N3.5 billion from N3.2 billion helped the lender jerk up its income in

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The chief executive of the Nigerian Exchange Regulation Limited (NGX RegCo), Ms Tinuade Awe, has disclosed that about 50 per cent of listed companies on the bourse have fully integrated sustainability reporting into their annual reports or have released dedicated standalone reports. She said this during a roundtable themed ESG Activity Reporting and Sustainable Investing at the Africa Social Impact Summit 2023, hosted by Sterling One Foundation and the United Nations Nigeria in Lagos recently. At the event, she advised organisations to incorporate Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) considerations into their overarching business strategies, emphasising the importance

By Dipo Olowookere Three new directors have been appointed into the board of directors of UAC of Nigeria Plc. The new appointees are Mr Folasope Babasola Aiyesimoju and Mrs Olufunke Ighodaro, who are Non-Executive Directors; and Mr Peter Benedikt Mombaur, who will serve as alternate Director to the new Directors. A statement issued by the firm disclosed that the three directors are expected to bring into the board their wealth of experience. A brief profile of the appointees shows that Mr Aiyesimoju is a finance professional with experience spanning corporate finance, principal investing and private equity. Over the course of

An official of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Mr Ola Oyeshina, has died after he was allegedly stoned to death by two individuals in the Apapa area of the state. A statement issued by the agency said Mr Oyeshina died in the early hours of Saturday following injury he suffered from the incident on Friday evening while he was carrying out his lawful duty. General Manager of LASTMA, Mr Olajide Oduyoye, in the statement, condemned the continued attack on the officers in the discharge of their official duties and responsibilities. “The officer was on duty at Iganmu-Sifax axis

By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government, through the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEDAN), has commenced the training of 5,365 youth entrepreneurs across the country. This was disclosed by Mr Dikko Radda, the Director-General of the body, at the inauguration of the programme tagged National Business Skills Development Initiative (NBSDI) on Monday in Sokoto. He said that 145 entrepreneurs were selected in each of the 36 states and the FCT for the programme which is focusing on harnessing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) towards the entrepreneurial revolution in the agriculture and commerce industries. He noted that the programme was

By Dipo Olowookere South African companies have been invited to stake a claim to the $45 billion that the World Bank Group has set aside for projects in Africa. Executive Director of the World Bank representing Angola, Nigeria and South Africa, Ms Bongi Kunene, made this call at a seminar on Doing Business with The World Bank Group that was co-hosted with the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) through its Trade Invest Africa Division in Sandton. The purpose of the seminar was to provide a platform for the Group to share information on how it works with the

By Quantitative Financial Analytics ACAP Canary Growth Fund returned 13.74 percent in 2016, 19.91 percentage points above its benchmark, the Nigeria All Share Index which closed the year with a negative return of -6.17 percent. The fund’s 2016 performance is an improvement over its 2015 return of 5.76 percent. The fund which charges a 1.5 percent management fee has therefore generated an inception (10/28/2011) to date (12/31/2016) return of 51.76 percent in total returns terms (including the dividend of N0.04 paid in 2013). The fund’s assets totalled N1.2billion as of December 30, 2016, up 3.34 percent from the end of