Economy
Proposed 7.5% VAT Won’t Affect Poor Nigerians—FG
By Dipo Olowookere
Nigerians have been informed by the federal government that the proposed hike of the Value Added Tax (VAT) next year will not affect the poor as being feared by many.
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, said this on Monday at the opening of the 25th Nigerian Economic Summit (NES#25) taking place at Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.
She said at the yearly gathering that the raising of VAT to 7.5 percent from the present 5 percent would affect the wealthy in the society more than the poor in the country.
“The proposed VAT increase is likely to impact more on consumption by the urban communities and the wealthier sections of the population, than on the poor,” Mrs Ahmed said at the event, which was declared open by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The Minister said the 7.5 percent VAT increase proposal was in line with the recommendations of the Presidential Committee on the Funding Options for the Minimum Wage Increase.
According to her, “This administration remains committed to increasing finance for investment health and education, to improve our human capital development indices.”
“However, our target is also to increase funding for capital expenditure such that this constitutes at least 30 percent of federal budgeted expenditures. Given these aspirations, the government has been compelled to review our fiscal policies including the proposed VAT rate increase,” she declared.
She noted that Nigeria’s VAT as a share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has declined in the last four years (2015 – 2018), adding that the present level was below the median of 5 percent of GDP in other comparable African countries.
She attributed Nigeria’s low VAT-to-GDP to the low nominal VAT rate, which at 5 percent is the lowest in the African region (which averages at about 16 percent).
NES#25
Speaking on theme of this year’s summit, Nigeria 2050: Shifting Gears, the Minister emphasised the imperatives for the country to move to a more robust competitive private sector economy with focus on the implications of the projected population of the country hitting over 400 million, making Nigeria the third most populous country in the world by 2050.
According to her, the structure of this population shows that majority will be under the age of 35, representing a large percentage of Africa’s young working-age population. The opportunities are endless, as are the risks, however, if we do not accelerate our efforts towards sustainable and inclusive growth, and improved human capital.
Based on these, the Minister said, “There is an urgent need to design policies that will not only address the rising population but ensure paradigm shift to a competitive private sector led economic growth and development.”
“The agenda for this summit is therefore, to provide strategic and innovative ways of getting the maximum benefits from the expected demographic dividends,” she further declared.
Mrs Ahmed noted that as you are aware, the summit organised by the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning and the Nigeria Economic Summit Group has indeed remained the foremost platform for the public and private sector stakeholders to discuss issues and challenges facing the nation with a view to evolving common strategy and policy frameworks for addressing them.
“This summit, though a celebration of 25 years of its commencement, is a testament to a successful partnership between the public and private sectors.
“These 25 years of collaborative engagement has helped in shaping the policies of government. Let me briefly state that past summit outcomes have contributed to policies on Power sector reforms, Agriculture sector reform, and the Pension Reform among others,” she said.
Minister Envisages Her Future Nigeria
The Minister said she sees a future where the majority of Nigerians have been sustainably lifted out of poverty, and have access to fundamental services including education, health care, water supply and sanitation. A future where all are financially included, with affordable access to financial products and services. A future where no one is left behind.
“I see a future Nigeria with a thriving and booming private sector led economy that can translate into domestic revenues for governments to reinvest in sustainable growth levers.
“I see a future where our young and vibrant population is well educated (particularly in STEAM [Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics] education) – creating a workforce with the skills that well position our youth to be gainfully employed. This includes high value digital jobs that will not only tap into but also drive the limitless global digital economy.
“I see an advanced high-tech manufacturing sector that is globally competitive, and can ensure value addition for our natural endowments in raw materials.
“I see a safe and secure environment where people and businesses move freely and fearlessly to go about their trade, work and other daily activities.
“This future we crave for will not be created by luck, neither will it be created by the Federal Government nor by State Governments alone. It will require collective action by all stakeholders including citizens and the private sector.
“As we all know the private sector has a crucial role to play. This future will require comprehensive targeted reforms, tough decisions, a radical shift in the current culture, including attitudes towards taxes and public finance. Just as the saying goes ‘no pain no gain’- I must say, the journey will be a painstakingly tough and will require sacrifices on all sides- including Government, the private sector, citizens and other stakeholders,” the Minister stated.
Speaking further, Mrs Ahmed said the future requires huge financial investments on multi-faceted physical and social areas by both the federal, state and local governments to be able to provide quality, useful, accessible and affordable education, healthcare, transportation, housing, electricity, water.
“Additionally, we must be in a position to provide digital connectivity and innovation, and rise above the tide of disruption that the Fourth Industrial Revolution will bring.
“The outputs of this 25th Anniversary Summit will be critical as we work towards co-creating the Nigeria we envision and we deserve. They will aid Government in developing and implementing the next generation of National Plans, and towards implementing policies and programmes,” she said.
Concluding, the Minister said, “As representatives of government, the private sector, civil society, and most importantly as Nigerians, [we must] join hands to co-create a future Nigeria in which: (a) no one is left behind; (b) growth is not only competitive but is also inclusive and sustainable; (c) and in which we as the Giant of Africa will lead the way in terms of innovation, industrialization, and human capital on the continent and beyond.”
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.
