Economy
Shareholders Okays Delisting of 7up Bottling Company From NSE
**To Get N125 Per Share Payment
By Dipo Olowookere
The delisting of Seven Up Bottling Company Plc from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has been approved by shareholders of the firm.
As a result of the approval, shareholders of the company will now be paid N125 per share instead of the N112.70 kobo earlier proposed by the board to shareholders.
They will likely begin to get paid from next Monday.
The decision to delist 7up Bottling Company Plc from the stock exchange was reached at an Extra Ordinary Meeting (EGM) of the firm held yesterday at the Grand Ball Room of Eko Hotel & Suites, Lagos.
The meeting was ordered by a court sitting in Lagos.
On December 5, 2017, a Federal High Court in Lagos directed that a meeting of the holders of the fully paid-up ordinary shares of Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc (SBC) be convened for the purpose of considering and if thought fit, approving (with or without modification) a Scheme of Arrangement between Seven Up Bottling Company Plc and the holders of its fully paid ordinary shares (the Scheme).
It was gathered that the delisting process of the firm started when the majority shareholders of Seven Up Bottling Company Plc, Affelka S.A, proposed to acquire all the outstanding and issued shares of the soft drink company not currently owned by Affelka.
It involved the transfer of 171,542,574 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each, with a nominal value of N85,771,287 comprising of the company’s issued and paid up share capital representing the minority shares.
Through the scheme, the shares would be transferred to Sparkplexi Limited, a subsidiary of Affelka S.A the majority shareholder.
At the conclusion of the process, Affelka and Sparkplexi would be the remaining shareholders of Seven Up Bottling Company Plc, with Affelka owning 73.22 percent and Sparkplexi owning 26.78 percent.
Following the scheme, the company will be re-registered as a private limited liability company pursuant to the relevant provision of the Company and Allied Matters Acts (CAMA).
However the company noted in the scheme of arrangement to shareholders that the financial performance of the company over the last couple of years has been predominantly negative, as a result of the myriad of challenges imposed by the unfavourable macro-economic environment, such as sharp currency devaluation resulting in a massive escalation in the cost of raw materials, distribution and other operating costs including overheads, high debt servicing costs due to increases in interest rates and borrowing expenses.
The company added that this is further exacerbated by the extremely competitive environment from existing and new privately owned entrants, flooding the market with cheaper products which makes the company unable to pass on the increased costs to the end consumer.
Accordingly, the board said it believes that the operating dynamics of the company were unlikely to improve in the foreseeable future and that, in the absence of a comprehensive corporate and financial restructuring, the company’s shareholder book value of equity, which lost 47 percent year on year in full year 2017, would be further eroded by the continued losses.
Going forward, Seven Up Bottling Company board said it believes that the current arrangement should create considerable benefits and opportunities’ for the employees and other stakeholders of the company; for instance protection of minority shareholders who experienced 47 percent erosion in shareholder book value of equity in the last financial year.
The restructuring will enable Affelka to provide the support required for Seven Up Bottling Company to shore up the balance sheet and capital required for maintaining and expanding the business. Enhance product portfolio which will enable the company to better compete with its industry competitors, both existing and new entrants and be better positioned to address consumers changing needs. And reinforcement of Affelka’s long term commitment to Seven Up Bottling Company as one of the leading manufacturing companies in Nigeria.
With the final approval given yesterday, shareholders of Seven Up Bottling Company would be paid a cash consideration (as defined in the Scheme Document) by Affelka and/or Sparkplexi, a wholly owned subsidiary of Affelka for the transfer of the said Scheme Shares.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc and Geo-Fluids Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.12 per cent on Monday, March 16.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc lost N1.45 during the session to sell at N123.55 per share versus the previous price of N125.00 per share, and Geo Fluids Plc depreciated by 5 Kobo to N3.05 per unit from N3.10 per unit.
The losses recorded by the two securities lowered the market capitalisation by N8.88 billion to N2.480 trillion from N2.489 trillion, and crashed the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 14.86 points to 4,145.60 points from 4,160.46 points.
On the first trading day of the week, the value of securities transacted by investors went up by 10.8 per cent to N33.2 million from N29.9 million, but the volume of securities dipped 97.5 per cent to 265,610 units from 10.4 million units, and the number of deals decreased by 43.5 per cent to 26 deals from 46 deals.
At the close of trades, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc was the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 38.6 million units sold for N2.4 billion, followed by Okitipupa Plc with 6.4 million units traded for N1.2 billion, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 6.5 million units worth N609.6 million.
Resourcery Plc closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.6 million, trailed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 130.8 million units transacted for N504.5 million, and CSCS Plc with 38.6 million units exchanged for N2.4 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira opened the week stronger against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, March 16, by N8.46 or 0.62 per cent to trade at N1,357.77/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366.23/$1.
In the same vein, the local currency appreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market segment yesterday by N23.45 to quote at N1,789.54/£1 compared with last Friday’s value of N1,812.99/£1, and improved its value against the Euro by N9.72 to N1,558.31/€1 from N1,568.03/€1.
Similarly, the Naira gained N5 against the greenback in the parallel market during the trading session to sell for N1,395/$1 compared with the previous rate of N1,400/$1, and closed flat at the GTBank FX desk at N1,385/$1.
The pressure that piled on the domestic currency appeared to have eased, buoyed by higher oil prices, which have continued to bolster market sentiment.
A report by Coronation Merchant Bank Research said Brent crude prices advanced by 11.16 per cent week-on-week, rising from $91.00 per barrel to close at $101.16 per barrel amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
The bank noted that developments in the region heightened concerns about potential disruptions to global oil supply, increasing volatility in energy markets.
Nigeria recorded modest portfolio inflows as investors sought higher-yielding opportunities, but the inflows helped support liquidity in the FX market and contributed to the Naira’s recovery during the past week.
Also, Nigeria’s inflation cooled to 15.06 per cent in February 2026 from 15.10 per cent in January 2026, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed.
As for the cryptocurrency market, prices continued to weigh the tensions around the Strait of Hormuz — a critical oil shipping route between the Persian Gulf and global markets — appeared to ease slightly.
US President Donald Trump called on other nations to help secure the waterway, while some tankers reportedly have crossed the Strait, suggesting that traffic through the corridor has not been fully disrupted.
This weakened some coins, including Dogecoin (DOGE), which slumped by 1.7 per cent to $0.0998, and Cardano (ADA), which depreciated 1.6 per cent to $0.2832. Binance Coin (BNB) lost 1.5 per cent to sell for $674.25, TRON (TRX) declined by 0.6 per cent to $0.2964, and Solana (SOL) dropped 0.2 per cent to $93.66.
On the flip side, Ripple (XRP) jumped 2.2 per cent to $1.51, Ethereum (ETH) grew by 1.5 per cent to $2,302.08, and Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated by 0.1 per cent to $73,951.40, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
By Dipo Olowookere
The All-Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited reached an all-time high of 201,474.89 points on Monday after adding 3,067.59 points or 1.55 per cent to its previous closing figures of 198,407.30 points.
Buying pressure in three of the five key sectors sustained the upward trend on Customs Street during the trading session, analysis of the market data revealed.
The industrial goods sector appreciated by 4.52 per cent, the banking index improved by 2.20 per cent, and the consumer goods space rose by 0.03 per cent.
However, the insurance sector experienced profit-taking, which crashed it by 0.43 per cent, and the energy counter lost 0.08 per cent due to sell-offs.
When the bourse ended for the day, the market capitalisation chalked up N1.969 trillion to settle at N129.330 trillion compared with last Friday’s M127.361 trillion.
BUA Cement led the advancers’ group yesterday after growing by 10.00 per cent to N297.00, Premier Paints jumped 9.79 per cent to N21.30, John Holt expanded by 9.52 per cent to N10.35, Guinea Insurance soared by 9.38 per cent to N1.40, and Fortis Global Insurance grew by 9.32 per cent to N1.29.
On the flip side, VFD Group led the laggards’ gang after it gave up 10.00 per cent to close at N11.25, Royal Exchange shed 9.63 per cent to settle at N1.69, Omatek depreciated by 9.62 per cent to N2.35, Sovereign Trust Insurance lost 9.00 per cent to quote at N1.92, and Regency Alliance slipped by 8.94 per cent to N1.12.
Yesterday, a total of 948.2 million stocks valued at N49.2 billion were traded in 72,735 deals compared with 591.0 million stocks worth N35.0 billion transacted in 53,066 deals in the preceding session, representing an improvement in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 60.44 per cent, 40.57 per cent, and 37.07 per cent apiece.
The activity log was led by Sovereign Trust Insurance, which traded 72.6 million equities valued at N147.1 million, Access Holdings sold 69.9 million shares for N1.8 billion, First Holdco exchanged 67.0 million stocks worth N3.4 billion, Zenith Bank transacted 60.0 million equities valued at N6.0 billion, and Nigerian Breweries exchanged 55.0 million shares worth N4.0 billion.
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