By Adedapo Adesanya

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange opened the week on a positive note after it appreciated by 0.84 per cent on Monday, March 23.

Trading activity returned yesterday after a two-day break last Thursday and Friday to celebrate the end of Ramadan.

The market capitalisation was up by N20.68 billion to N2.482 trillion from N2.461 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) increased by 34.68 points to 4,149.38 points from 4,114.75 points.

The bourse was bullish amid a 1.34 per cent decline in the share price of Geo-Fluids Plc at the close of transactions. The loss was offset by the 3.45 per cent surge in the value of FrieslandCampina Wamco Plc.

A look at the trading data indicated that the activity was weaker yesterday, as the trading volume, value, and number of deals all tumbled.

There was a 99.9 per cent slip in the volume of securities to 412,260 units from the 400.8 million units recorded in the preceding session. The value of securities fell by 99.4 per cent to N7.37 million from N1.2 billion, and the number of deals went down by 31.9 per cent to 32 deals from 47 deals.

Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 38.7 million units sold for N2.4 billion. Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc followed with 400 million units valued at N1.2 billion, and Okitipupa Plc occupied the third spot with 6.4 million units traded for N1.2 billion.

Resourcery Plc closed the trading session as the most active by volume on a year-to-date basis with 1.1 billion units worth N415.7 million, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Plc with 400 million units transacted for N1.2 billion, and Geo-Fluids Plc with 131.1 million units exchanged for N505.6 million.

By Aduragbemi Omiyale

The need for the continent to embrace shared ownership by scaling to remain competitive on the global market will be the focus of the Africa CEO Forum 2026, slated for May 14 and 15, in Kigali, Rwanda.

A statement from the organisers disclosed that the programme will task public and private leaders to commit capital, share risk and build transnational African ownership to secure the continent’s long-term prosperity.

This is because, as multilateralism is challenged, capital flows are reshaped, and leading economies leverage their corporate champions to project global influence.

The ability of Africa to rely on competitive, agile and internationally integrated corporate champions has become a defining corporate imperative. In this shifting global landscape, one lesson is clear: scale is no longer optional. It is the first line of defence.

To prepare the continent for this, the forum will bring together over 2,000 CEOs, investors, heads of state and public decision-makers from over 75 countries to discuss ways to achieve the scale necessary to compete, integrate and thrive in a fragmenting world.

This is because reaching the necessary scale will require more than removing physical and regulatory barriers. It will mean embracing a new mindset anchored in a new vision: shared ownership.

Business Post gathered that the event will explore three strategic levers to build continental scale: shared equity, shared infrastructure, and shared frameworks.

For the shared equity, the forum will look into how to unlock cross-border equity investment to create multinational African champions. Mobilise African institutional capital across markets to strengthen resilience and enhance long-term returns.

As for the shared infrastructure, participants will explore ways to design complementary infrastructure to integrate African value chains, champion transformative projects that serve regional, not merely national, needs and create truly connected markets.

Under the shared frameworks, they will brainstorm on how to harmonise standards, rules and regulations to boost investor confidence and enable the free flow of capital, goods and services. They will also discuss ways to build future-proof digital rails for health, education, agriculture and cross-border payments.

“If Africa wants to compete in a world defined by scale, it must move beyond economic patriotism and embrace a new model,” the president of Africa CEO Forum, Mr Amir Ben Yahmed, stated.

“Africa has the capital and the opportunity to grow and create quality jobs. What matters now is putting that capital to work at scale. That means building trust, sharing risk, and investing across borders,” the Managing Director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Makhtar Diop, stated.

The Africa CEO Forum is organised by Jeune Afrique Media Group and co-hosted by IFC to gather leaders to connect policy and private investment, and to help shape Africa’s next phase of growth.

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Naira returned from break with more pressure, losing 2.6 per cent or N35.38 against the Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Monday, March 23, to trade at N1,388.38/$1 compared with last Wednesday’s closing price of N1,353.00/$1.

It was the same outcome for the Nigerian Naira against the Pound Sterling in the official market, where it tumbled by N58.36 to sell for N1,860.29/£1 versus the preceding session’s N1,801.93/£1, and crashed against the Euro by N53.19 to N1,609.41/€1 from N1,556.22/€1.

Similarly, the domestic currency depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX counter by N8 yesterday to close at N1,371/$1 versus the previous rate of N1,363/$1, and in the black market, it depreciated by N5 to quote at N1,400/$1 versus N1,395/$1.

The projection for the Naira appears to be changing course as it edged towards consecutive weaknesses due to disruptions to global oil supply, which have increased volatility in energy markets, making investors jittery.

This is also causing outflow for international payments, as evidenced by Nigeria’s external reserves recording drops.

Regardless, Coronation Merchant Bank’s research subsidiary expects the Naira to trade within a relatively stable range in the near term, supported by sustained foreign portfolio inflows (FPI) and improved exporter participation in the FX market.

Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market saw the price of Bitcoin rise by 4.5 per cent to $70,827.12 after US President Donald Trump announced a five-day pause to airstrikes against Iranian energy infrastructure, citing “productive” diplomatic talks. Meanwhile, Iranian officials denied the existence of talks, but the crypto market largely brushed it off.

Solana (SOL) improved by 6.7 per cent to $91.66, Ethereum (ETH) expanded by 5.8 per cent to $2,157.56, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 5.7 per cent to $0.095, Cardano (ADA) jumped 5.2 per cent to $0.2630, Ripple (XRP) soared 4.2 per cent to $1.43, and Binance Coin (BNB) climbed 2.3 per cent to s$639.92.

However, TRON (TRX) dropped 2.8 per cent to $0.3049, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.