Economy
SEC Targets Trillions of Naira from Non-Interest Capital Market
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has said it plans to enhance the non-interest capital market because of its capability to boost liquidity in the financial markets by trillions of Naira.
The Director-General of SEC, Mr Lamido Yuguda, while speaking with the executives of the Non-Interest Financial Institutions Association of Nigeria (NIFIAN) in Abuja over the weekend, said the market segment was given attention in the 10-year Capital Market Master Plan.
According to him, in the next three years, the plan is to ensure that 25 per cent of the total value of the Nigerian capital market is from the non-interest sector.
“We are talking of trillions, which means that we are not scratching the surface right now. Both the market and the commission need to do more. We are working on ensuring that we have a framework that looks at issues relating to the non-interest capital market and ensures we tackle them.
“There are many opportunities in the market right now for non-interest products. The biggest players right now are the pension fund. PenCom is interested that whatever product is there have some basic risk management features in them, but I think there is a lot that we can do.
“You talk about the Sukuk market and the move towards complexities, I would say that even the simple Sukuk, we have not had enough of it.
“When we came in 2020, it was only the sovereign Sukuk and the subnational Sukuk from Osun State. We have tried to attract interest to the product by doing many seminars and rejoining IFSB fully. We also tried to encourage private issuers and show the potential of the Sukuk to other players in the market. This is a simple product but a very powerful one,” he said.
Mr Yuguda stated that Nigeria needs to adopt the normal Sukuk forms where money is raised via Sukuk, assets are built and then cash flows are generated from the assets which then flow back to the Sukuk holders.
“That’s the traditional way, which happened in countries like Malaysia. Malaysia has a lot of hotels and resorts, and the key financing tool they have used is the Sukuk. They understand the power of this Sukuk instrument. It’s a collateralised form of lending; the asset is built and belongs to the people who have contributed money.
“You can see the cash flows coming back. These hotels are increasing in output in the economy in which it is located. People are working, earning more income. The investors are happy because they are receiving the cash flows, and the country is getting more prosperous as people from other parts of the world go there to have a good life,” the SEC chief stated.
The DG emphasised the need for all stakeholders to create more awareness, as there is a lot of ignorance and misconceptions among others about Sukuk, and they all need to be addressed.
“A lot of countries have made tremendous progress which I think we can learn from. Once people see it and it works, we will get many interested in the sector.
“The commission is ready to commit human and material resources to ensure that the market grows to the level we want. We are interested in the market’s growth as that will positively affect the country’s economy,” Mr Yuguda stated.
He disclosed that the agency has just exposed the rules for Shariah advisors in its drive to grow this market segment, noting that Shariah governance is crucial, considering that compliance with Shariah rules and principles is important in non-interest capital market operations/transactions.
“The market is developing fast, and there is a need for the proper regulation of those that will drive the process. The provision of the rules is in line with local and international best practices. The regulatory organization in the Nigerian Financial System, such as CBN and NAICOM, had issued such guidelines to provide clear and good Shariah governance in their respective sectors.
“Making the Shariah Advisory service a registrable function in the market will assist in effective implementation of the proposed consolidation of the Shariah governance rules and will also be an additional source of revenue to the Commission,” the commission stated.
Speaking earlier, The President of NIFIAN, Mr Hassan Usman, urged SEC to provide a framework for non-interest finance to avoid operators’ misuse of the platform.
Mr Usman stated that Nigerians need more awareness of the non-interest capital market. He stated that the association is interested in programmes that will increase the enlightenment of the product and boost its contributions to market capitalisation.
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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