Economy
Shareholders Laud GTCO’s Consistent Dividend Policy, Okay N91.2bn Payout
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) Plc has been commended by shareholders for its “consistent dividend policy,” as the board recommended the payment of N3.10 per share for the 2022 fiscal year.
At the Annual General Meeting (AGM) held last Thursday, the board sought shareholders’ approval to pay N2.80 as a final dividend, having earlier paid 30 Kobo as an interim dividend.
At the gathering, the company’s investors approved the payment, praising the board for the financial performance in the year despite the challenging operating environment.
The immediate past President of Nigeria Shareholders Solidarity Association, Mr Timothy Adesiyan, while speaking on behalf of shareholders, said GTCO has contributed to the growth of the economy in its lending to agriculture, SMEs, real sector, among others, as seen in the award obtained in the year.
Earlier, in his presentation to shareholders at the AGM, the Chairman of GTCO, Mr Hezekiah Oyinlola, said, “As I reflect on 2022, I recall the challenges we faced at every turn and the prospects that became significant milestones in our journey towards creating a robust yet agile institution.”
“As we look across our burgeoning GTCO Universe, we take pride in the concrete outcomes of our diligent efforts and unyielding dedication towards expanding our influence and strengthening our position as a leading provider of financial services in Africa,” he added.
“In 2022, our ambition was crystal clear, and we set out to achieve it with unwavering focus. We completed the setup of our holding company and acquired full ownership of Investment One Pension Managers and Investment One Fund Managers, now named Guaranty Trust Pension Managers and Guaranty Trust Fund Managers, respectively.
“Our payment subsidiary, HabariPay Limited, also launched in 2022 and almost immediately introduced its flagship product, Squad, to the market with outstanding reviews.
“The highlight for me is that these newly created businesses – in payments, fund managers, and pensions ran successfully and were profit before tax positive by the end of the year,” Mr Adesiyan said.
The chief executive of GTCO, Mr Segun Agbaje, said in spite of the varying challenges and headwinds that weighed on growth in 2022, the group delivered a decent performance posting a pre-tax profit of N214.2 billion representing a dip of 3.0 per cent from N221.5 billion posted in full year, 2022.
“PBT contribution from West Africa decreased from 21.0 per cent in December 2021 to 12.3 per cent in December 2022 due to the significant impairment sum of N35.6 billion recognised on the Ghanaian sovereign securities,” he said.
Mr Agbaje also noted that during the same period, the size of the Nigerian banking subsidiary increased to 84.3 per cent from 79.5 per cent, while East Africa’s contribution to the group grew marginally to 3.4 per cent from 3.0 per cent.
“The group also benefited from a 0.9 per cent contribution from the Non-Banking Subsidiaries which compensated for the negative 0.8 per cent contribution from the United Kingdom in FY-2022.
“Gross earnings increased by 20.4 per cent to N539.2 billion in full-year 2022 from N447.8 billion in 2021,” he noted.
Mr Agbaje explained, “2022 was a year that tested our resilience and our determination. As we face the future, we do so with the confidence that we will maximize all opportunities and deal with challenges as they come.
“I strongly believe that the new holding structure of our organisation will prove to be a propeller in our journey towards sustained growth and success.”
According to GTCO CEO, the firm is not a conglomerate but a structure of complementary businesses which helps to remain agile, innovative, and adaptable to changing market dynamics whilst ensuring that it continues to deliver superior returns to shareholders.
“We will also continue to dominate the financial services sector, not just because we will continue to pursue technological advancements and digital capabilities that keep us ahead of the curve, but because we will always stay true to the values of hard work, transparency, integrity and putting our customers at the heart of everything that we do,” he said.
Since commencing operations in February 1991, Guaranty Trust has maintained an unbroken streak of year-on-year growth and a consistent lead in driving the digitization of financial services in Nigeria thanks to its strong service culture, efficient management, world-class corporate governance standards and bias for innovation.
In April 2021, the reorganization of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc to a financial holding company, Guaranty Trust Group Holding Company, was completed as part of the company’s strategy to position for future growth and deliver benefits beyond banking to the people, communities and businesses who depend on the value we create to thrive.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The additional shares sold by Morison Industries Plc through private placement have been listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The additional equities were brought to Customs Street last week, according to a circular issued by the Head of Issuer Regulation Department of the NGX, Mr Godstime Iwenekhai.
The company listed a total of 266,838,125 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N1.50 per unit, amounting to N400.3 million, Business Post reports.
The listing of these new stocks of Morison Industries has increased the fully paid-up shares of the organisation to 1,256,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 989,161,875 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
“Trading licence holders are hereby notified that additional 266,838,125 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Morison Industries Plc were (on) Tuesday, January 13, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
The additional shares listed on NGX arose from the company’s private placement of 266,838,125 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N1.50 per share.
“With the listing of the additional shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Morison Industries Plc have now increased from 989,161,875 to 1,256,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each,” the disclosure disclosed.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has projected a single-digit inflation rate for Nigeria at 9.84 per cent in its wider optimistic forecast for this year.
In its 12th National Economic Outlook and Its Implication for Businesses in 2026, the bankers group saw a better metric compared to those of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The CBN and the IMF respectively see Nigeria’s economy growing at 4.49 per cent and 4.2 per cent, and the inflation rate dropping to 14.45 per cent and 18 per cent while the foreign reserves rise to N45.78 billion and $43 billion respectively this year.
However, in the outlook presentation by Professor Biodun Adedipe, the CIBN projects a 4.51 per cent GDP growth rate and a 9.84 per cent inflation rate. It forecast the exchange rate stabilizing at N1,420/$1 and the foreign reserves hitting $50.8 billion.
Business Post reports that Professor Adedipe, corporate finance scholar and founder of B. Adedipe Associates Ltd, has been presenting the national economic outlook since 12 years ago, with the firm claiming to initiate the trend in Nigeria, before even the CBN and others caught on with it.
Last week, after a revised approach Nigeria’s headline inflation eased to 15.5 per cent year-on-year in December 2025, down from 17.33 per cent in the preceding month. On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation slowed to 0.54 per cent in December, compared to 1.22 per cent in November.
Ahead of the data release, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) had cautioned that the rebasing exercise could result in a temporary “artificial spike” in the December inflation figures.
Mr Adeyemi Adeniran, the statistician-general of the federation, said the adjustment in the reference period, known as the base year, would affect the headline number.
“This artificial spike is a result of the base effect of December 2024, which is equated to 100, following the rebasing exercise,” Mr Adeniran said.
By Dipo Olowookere
Eighty equities appreciated on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week compared with the 84 equities recorded in the previous week, as 17 equities depreciated versus 22 equities in the preceding week, while 50 equities remained unchanged versus 42 equities of the earlier week.
NCR Nigeria gained 60.79 per cent to finish at N128.55, SCOA Nigeria grew by 59.36 per cent to N14.90, Deap Capital expanded by 48.67 per cent to N4.46, Jaiz Bank soared by 45.73 per cent to N8.19, and Omatek surged by 38.28 per cent to N1.77.
At the other end, Ikeja Hotel lost 12.38 per cent to settle at N35.05, Austin Laz declined by 9.20 per cent to N3.75, Eterna crashed by 7.71 per cent to N32.30, Universal Insurance went down by 7.69 per cent to N1.20, and Eunisell retreated by 7.57 per cent to N156.95.
The bourse remained bullish in the week, with the All-Share Index (ASI) up by 2.36 per cent to 166,129.50, and the market capitalisation up by 2.48 per cent to N106.354 trillion.
Similarly, all other indices finished higher apart from the AFR Div Yield index, which depreciated by 0.15 per cent.
In the five-day trading week, investors traded 4.607 billion shares worth N130.636 billion in 263,439 deals, in contrast to the 4.164 billion shares valued at N94.026 billion transacted in 248,254 deals a week earlier.
Further analysis showed that financial stocks led the activity chart with 3.126 billion units worth N47.225 billion traded in 94,186 deals, contributing 67.84 per cent and 36.15 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Services equities followed with 353.436 million units sold for N5.096 billion in 17,764 deals, while ICT shares exchanged 277.263 million equities valued at N18.009 billion in 28,525 deals.
Sovereign Trust Insurance, Access Holdings, and Linkage Assurance were the busiest stocks last week, trading 1.406 billion units valued at N9.735 billion in 11,732 deals, contributing 30.52 per cent and 7.45 per cent to the total trading volume and value apiece.
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