Economy
SEC Nigeria to Tighten Market Regulations for Efficiency
By Dipo Olowookere
The new Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Lamido Yuguda, has vowed to work towards improving the capital market regulations, surveillance and general development.
A statement issued by the Head of Corporate Communication at SEC, Mrs Efe Ebelo, stated that Mr Yuguda gave this assurance when he assumed office on Monday in Abuja.
According to her, the new SEC boss also promised to continue the implementation of the 10-year Capital Market Master Plan launched in 2014.
The policy document has the objective of positioning the capital market for the accelerated development of the national economy.
He assured that the new management team will seek possible ways of strengthening the masterplan for enhanced impact, noting that efforts would be made to build on some policies of the past managements with the support of the staff of the commission.
“In order to do this effectively, we will need to develop relevant capacities. This we shall do by first learning from existing internal efforts and also from other available innovative approaches.
“We would also foster collaboration with relevant stakeholders, be they private, public or international in achieving our mandates,” Mr Yuguda was quoted as saying in the statement.
He expressed sincere gratitude to the immediate past management team of the SEC led by Ms Mary Uduk for a great job in the last two years.
He stated that Ms Uduk and her team put in a huge effort to ensure the stability and development of the market, stressing that the capital market masterplan “has definitely contributed to the development of the Nigerian capital market and the economy in line with its objectives.”
“Many of the plan’s initiatives have been successfully implemented while many others are work in progress,” he averred.
According to him, “In the last one year, I have served on the board of the commission. This has afforded me the opportunity to gain insight into the activities of the SEC and developments in the capital market.
“But I know that much more will be revealed as we study the handover notes and interact with the staff.”
Mr Yuguda also said, “One thing I can assure you is that we will work to the best of our abilities to uphold the good things we met on ground and consciously seek ways to improve them to the benefit of all stakeholders.”
“My colleagues in the new management and I should see our appointment as an opportunity to serve.
“Together we must set our sights on achieving those milestones that are capable of making the capital market a powerful engine of growth for the Nigerian economy,” the SEC DG said.
While commenting on the Capital Market Support Committee on COVID-19, the new Sheriff in town commended the outgone management for the initiative, assuring that it would be continued.
The commission set up the panel in April 2020 to coordinate the market’s contribution to fighting the pandemic.
Mr Yuguda resumed on Monday, July 6 alongside the Executive Commissioners namely: Reginald Karawusa, Ibrahim Boyi and Dayo Obisan.
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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