Economy
NSE, Others Celebrate Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The former Group Managing Director of Access Bank Plc, Mr Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, could not hide his excitement when he was celebrated at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Wednesday, March 31, 2021.
The respected banker was hosted to a digital closing gong ceremony today in celebration of his years of meritorious service and contributions to the growth of the exchange.
He retired as the ex-officio of the National Council of the NSE. He was the president of the council between 2014 and 2017 when he exited the position. However, he remained in the council as an ex-officio.
“It is my deep pleasure to celebrate Mr Aig-Imoukhuede today for his exemplary stewardship as first vice president, president and ex-officio of the national council for over seven years.
“The transformational groundwork he laid made it easier to succeed him as Council President and avidly pursue the vision to build a world-class exchange.
“Furthermore, I would like to thank him for his wise and valuable counsel to the NSE over the years which were instrumental in the attainment of demutualisation and will continue to guide the entire group in this new era.
“I speak on behalf of the management and staff of the NGX Group Plc and its subsidiaries in commending him for his exceptional service and wishing him well in his future endeavours,” the chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX Group) Plc, Mr Abimbola Ogunbanjo, stated.
On his part, the Group CEO of the NGX Group, Mr Oscar Onyema, thanked Mr Aig-Imoukhuede for the hands-on experience and business expertise with which he has contributed to the growth of the NSE over the years.
“During his time as president of the national council, he provided unique insights that saw to the development of the exchange despite the harsh economic and policy environments that often characterised his tenure.
“As ex-officio, Mr Aig-Imoukhuede continued to provide invaluable support to the exchange. We are honoured to celebrate his achievements and are excited that he did indeed enter the ‘promised land’ with us as he said he would when he retired as president of the national council in 2017,” he said.
The stockbroking community, speaking through their representative, Mr Rasheed Yusuf, applauded the founder of Coronation Merchant Bank for his contribution to the capital market and wished him success in his future endeavours.
In his remarks, Mr Aig-Imoukhuede said, “It has been a wonderful journey over the past seven years as first vice-president, president and ex-officio of the national council of the NSE.
“Serving in this prestigious role will always be a highlight in my career and I feel greatly privileged to have worked with amazing colleagues at the national council, the executive committee and staff of the exchange.
“I must also thank the dealing member community, issuers, the investing public, regulatory bodies and all other stakeholders who contributed in one way or the other to our progress over the years, particularly our aspiration to demutualise.
“I also thank my wife (Mrs Ofovwe Aig-Imoukhuede) for her support, especially during the demutualisation process. She was with me even when my spirit was down. I also thank God for his mercies over me.
“Let me assure you that the boards and management of the NGX Group and its subsidiaries remain committed to the course of action and will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that we achieve even more notable feats in this new era.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The prices of the crude oil grades rose Friday, as fighting between the US and Iran continued in the Middle East, leading to further attacks in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Syria.
Brent crude futures advanced by about 4.6 per cent to $88.10 per barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures gained about 4.5 per cent to settle at $82.49 per barrel.
US forces stepped up attacks on Iranian sites, reportedly striking key bridges, railways, and an airport, prompting retaliatory action by Iran.
US Central Command said that it had completed its sixth consecutive night of strikes against Iran, hitting dozens of military targets such as military logistics infrastructure and maritime capabilities.
Centcom said more than 50,000 service members were operating across the Middle East, adding that they “remain vigilant, lethal, and ready.”
Iran said it attacked the US targets in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Syria in retaliation for the latest round of strikes by the Americans.
Kuwait said Iran attacked a power and water desalination plant as fighting escalated in the Persian Gulf, saying that the attack damaged the facility that sparked a fire that affected a large number of its electricity-generating units, according to The Kuwait Times.
Kuwait is heavily dependent on desalination plants for potable water. Analysts have long feared that Iran would strike infrastructure that is critical to supporting civilian life in the Middle East.
A tanker was hit by a projectile off the coast of Oman, causing minor damage, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said in an incident report Friday. Iran has repeatedly attacked tankers over the past week as it tries to force civilian ships to transit the Strait of Hormuz through its waters.
The escalating fighting comes as the fragile truce reached last month has collapsed, once again disrupting energy flows through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, which typically handles around 20% of the world’s oil traffic.
Earlier in the week, President Donald Trump said American forces would target Iran’s infrastructure next week unless the two sides reached a diplomatic breakthrough.
Iran has asked Yemen’s Houthis to close the Red Sea oil route if the US targets Iranian power infrastructure.
Market analysts noted that Iran and the US still have strong economic incentives to avoid a complete breakdown in talks, with the US seeking lower oil prices ahead of the November midterm elections and Iran reluctant to forgo economic incentives.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Despite signs that Nigeria’s headline inflation is easing, rising food prices continue to threaten the country’s inflation outlook, the chief executive of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Mr Muda Yusuf, has warned.
He noted that structural inflationary pressures in the real economy remain pronounced despite improving macroeconomic stability.
In a policy brief released following the inflation report, he noted that headline inflation eased marginally, while month-on-month change moderated from 1.75 per cent to 1.66 per cent, indicating that headline inflation has largely plateaued.
According to him, the dominant concern in the latest inflation report is the renewed acceleration in food inflation.
This growth, he said, suggested that food prices have resumed an upward trajectory after a brief period of moderation.
Warning that a renewed increase in food inflation has significant economic and social implications, he stressed that food inflation remained the biggest driver of Nigeria’s cost-of-living crisis, stressing that rising food prices continue to erode household purchasing power, worsen poverty and food insecurity while weakening the inclusiveness of the current reform programme.
He maintained that sustained moderation in food prices is critical to improving citizens’ welfare and strengthening public confidence in the ongoing economic reforms.
Acknowledging the easing of core inflation as encouraging, he drew attention to the persistence of urban inflation.
At 16.08 per cent, urban inflation exceeded the national headline inflation rate of 15.91 per cent, while month-on-month urban inflation increased from 1.99 per cent to 2.13 per cent.
According to Mr Yusuf, the figures indicated that inflationary pressures remained particularly intense across urban centres.
He attributed the rising urban inflation partly to increasing population displacement from rural communities affected by insecurity, expressing worry that as more households migrate to urban areas, demand for housing, transportation, utilities and other essential services would increase, adding to inflationary pressures and creating additional urbanisation challenges.
Addressing insecurity in farming communities, he said, was important not only for protecting lives and property and boosting agricultural output but also for easing cost pressures in urban centres, adding that the June CPI data reinforced the view that Nigeria’s inflation challenge is predominantly structural rather than monetary.
On the monetary policy outlook, he said the data do not justify further monetary tightening, arguing that headline inflation has largely stabilised.
The CPPE chief expected the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to retain the current monetary policy rate at its next meeting, adding that the priority is for monetary and fiscal authorities to work together to accelerate structural reforms to expand food supply, improve logistics, reduce energy and production costs, lower debt service costs, as well as strengthen domestic value chains.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Additional shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new equities were added to the company’s existing stocks on Customs Street on Thursday, July 16, 2026, a notice from the bourse confirmed.
Business Post reports the total new ordinary shares of Sterling Holdings listed yesterday were 13,812,239,000 units.
They were from the offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each sold for N7.00 per share, which was oversubscribed by investors.
The financial institution brought the new shares to the stock exchange to increase its total issued and fully paid-up shares to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 52,117,012,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
“Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 13,812,239,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc were on Thursday, July 16, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares listed on NGX arose from the company’s offer for subscription of 12,581,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N7.00 per share.
“With the listing of the additional shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Sterling Financial Holdings Company Plc have now increased from 52,117,012,414 to 65,929,251,414 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each,” the notice read.
