Economy
SME.NG, Two Others to Get Visa’s Grant Funding from AWIF
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Three women fund managers from Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa have been selected to receive Visa’s grant funding from the African Women Impact Fund Initiative (AWIF), a collaboration between Standard Bank and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).
Last year, Visa announced a grant to the AWIF as an extension of the She’s Next program, a global advocacy program for women-owned businesses that have been expanded to Sub-Saharan Africa to further champion and strengthen African women business owners as they build, sustain, and advance their businesses.
The beneficiaries for this year are SME.NG from Nigeria, Altree Capital from Kenya and Maia Capital from South Africa.
They are expected to use the grants for their warehousing capital needs to invest in women-owned entrepreneurs across a range of sectors.
The selection of the grant recipients was through a due diligence process managed by the appointed investment manager of the AWIF Initiative, Riscura.
The rigorous selection criteria were in alignment with the objectives of Visa’s She’s Next programme and AWIF, which are to help women-owned businesses thrive and to support and develop women fund managers, respectively.
The co-founder of SME.NG, Thelma Ekiyor, stated that her investment platform is driven by a gender lens investment philosophy focussing on the bottom of the pyramid.
On her part, the chief executive of Altree Capital Kenya, Jenni Chamberlain, said her firm invests with a gender-lens and climate-smart approach in sub-Saharan Africa, with a strong East African presence.
As for the Managing Partner of Maia Capital, Dinao Lerutla, the organisation is the nexus between private capital and inclusive growth.
“We are proud to extend our efforts to empower women entrepreneurs to the fund management space. Women fund managers in Africa continue to face numerous challenges in building sustainable businesses.
“Their progress continues to be slow due to systematic barriers and investor bias. Our collaboration with AWIF will accelerate the multiplier effect of funding across the entire value chain where women-owned businesses exist,” the Senior Vice President & Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at Visa, Aida Diarra, said.
Women fund managers in Africa continue to face numerous challenges in building sustainable businesses. Research shows slow-moving progress in the visibility and inclusion of women fund managers due to systematic barriers and investor bias.
With African women accounting for just 7.6 per cent of private equity and women-led businesses receiving only 7 per cent of Private Equity (PE) and Venture Capital (VC) in emerging markets, this highlights the opportunities that exist to reduce the current gender gaps.
“When you invest in women, you also invest in their communities. Investments that go into the hands of women fund managers not only go towards the growth and sustainability of the companies they invest in, but the women who are part of the value chain of these companies.
“We are proud to have selected managers who have demonstrated their ability to support the growth and development of their communities, and through the grant, these managers will now be in a better position to scale up their efforts and impact the lives of many more women-led businesses,” the Global Markets Head of Strategic Partnership at Standard Bank Group, Lindeka Dzedze, commented.
By Dipo Olowookere
The trio of Wema Bank, FBN Holdings, and Universal Insurance topped the activity chart of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last week with a turnover of 1.679 billion shares worth N20.838 billion transacted in 4,922 deals, contributing 35.74 per cent and 24.50 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
Data from Customs Street showed that in the five-day trading week, investors bought and sold 4.698 billion stocks valued at N85.043 billion in 72,562 deals versus the 2.618 billion stocks sold for N69.742 billion in 47,953 deals in the preceding week.
The financial services industry attracted the attention of the market participants with 3.470 billion equities worth N40.791 billion traded in 34,364 deals, contributing 73.86 per cent and 47.97 per cent to the total trading volume and value, respectively.
The services sector followed with 407.032 million shares worth N2.226 billion in 4,996 deals, and the ICT space transacted 237.680 million stocks valued at N3.628 billion in 5,280 deals.
Business Post reports that 51 shares appreciated in the week versus 82 shares in the previous week, 39 equities depreciated compared with 18 equities a week earlier, and 62 stocks closed flat versus 52 stocks in the preceding week.
Multiverse was the best-performing stock with a a price appreciation of 53.42 per cent to N12.35, Honeywell Flour gained 31.67 per cent to close at N10.02, DAAR Communication expanded by 25.71 per cent to 88 Kobo, MTN Nigeria leapt by 21.00 per cent to N242.00, and NCR Nigeria soared by 20.66 per cent to N7.30.
On the flip side, Sunu Assurances was the worst-performing stock after it went down by 36.52 per cent to N7.30, Caverton shed 15.00 per cent to N2.38, Consolidated Hallmark slumped by 15.00 per cent to N3.40, RT Briscoe slipped by 14.33 per cent to N2.57, and Jaiz Bank depreciated by 10.77 per cent to N2.90.
At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation gained 1.80 per cent to close the week at 105,451.06 points and N64.303 trillion, respectively.
Also, all other indices closed higher apart from the insurance, AFR Bank Value, AFR Div Yield, MERI Value, consumer goods, energy, and industrial goods, which depreciated by 6.91 per cent, 0.08 per cent, 1.11 per cent, 0.17 per cent, 0.34 per cent, 0.34 per cent and 0.26 per cent, respectively, as the ASeM closed flat.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Owners of companies operating in Lagos State have been reminded of the statutory filing of their annual tax returns for the 2024 financial year on or before Friday, January 31, 2025.
This reminder was issued by the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) through its Deputy Director for Corporate Communications, Mrs Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude.
The agency emphasized that employers are required to adhere to this in line with the Personal Income Tax Act (PITA) Cap P8 LFN 2004 (as amended).
The statement quoted the Chairman of LIRS, Mr Ayodele Subair, as stressing that the filing of the tax returns is a legal obligation, warning that failure to comply will result in statutory sanctions, including penalties, as prescribed by law.
Section 81 of PITA mandates employers to submit comprehensive annual returns detailing all emoluments paid to employees, including taxes deducted and remitted to relevant tax authorities. These returns must be filed no later than January 31 each year and cover the income and taxes paid during the preceding year (2024).
“Employers must prioritize the timely filing of their annual income tax returns to avoid penalties.
“Submitting returns on or before the deadline ensures compliance with the law and supports accurate revenue tracking, which is essential for Lagos State’s fiscal planning and sustainability,” the LIRS chief stated.
To simplify the process, the agency has transitioned to a fully digital filing system, allowing employers to file their annual tax returns exclusively through the LIRS e-Tax portal, as manual submissions are no longer accepted.
Mr Subair described the e-Tax platform as secure, user-friendly, and designed to provide employers with a convenient way to manage their tax obligations.
Employers are reminded to include the Payer ID of all employees in their returns, advising employees without a Taxpayer ID to generate one immediately on the e-Tax platform to prevent disruptions during the filing process.
To assist employers, LIRS has deployed staff across its offices to provide guidance on using the e-Tax portal and addressing related concerns.
By Adedapo Adesanya
For almost a month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) website has been down, blocking access to crucial information about the Nigerian economy.
The nation’s statistics agency shut down its website after it claims it had been hacked on December 18, 2024.
Since then, important information such as capital flows into the Nigerian economy in the third quarter of 2024, as well as an update on outstanding local and foreign debt for the same period, have become inaccessible.
The website blackout occurred a day after the NBS published its Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey on December 17. According to the report, Nigerians paid a total of N2.23 trillion in ransom within one year, from May 2023 to April 2024.
There was a widespread report (excluding Business Post) that the Department of State Services (DSS) summoned the Statistician-General of the Federation, Mr Adeniran Adeyemi, based on the report.
This was later denied by the secret police.
The agency then closed the site on December 18, further warning against using any information posted on it until it was fully restored.
In its last update on X, formerly Twitter, the stats office said, “This is to inform the public that the NBS Website has been hacked and we are working to recover it. Please disregard any message or report posted until the website is fully restored. Thank you.”
This lack of information has raised worry about inflation report for December, which is usually due on January 15 as per recent trends.
The inflation numbers set the tone for decisions of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which should hold its first policy meeting for 2025 on January 27-28.
Analysts told this newspaper that the continued blackout on the NBS website raises concerns about credibility and trust on data that will be provided in the future.
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