T-Bills Market Bullish as Overnight Rate Rises to 20.25% on Liquidity Squeeze

By Adedapo Adesanya Appreciation in the prices of three stocks saw the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed with a 1.36 per cent rise on Friday, November 24 despite efforts by two equities to bring down the market. Aradel Holdings Plc recorded a N79.20 appreciation to sell at N871.20 per share compared to the previous day’s N792.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc increased by N2.82 to close the day at N74.00 per unit versus Thursday’s closing price of N71.14 per unit, and UBN Property Plc jumped by 15 Kobo to finish at N1.65 per share, in contrast to the

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The sum of N75 million has been disbursed to 15 small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in Nigeria to support their expansion drive. The funding package was given by Google’s Hustle Academy, with beneficiaries drawn from various industries, including agriculture, and fashion, among others. The 15 Nigerian small business owners were among the 5,300 entrepreneurs who graduated from the academy, designed by the tech giant to provide an avenue for participants to enhance their business skills and knowledge, and contribute to the growth of the continent’s economy. The recipients of the funding support are Ifeoma Augusta Anselem of

By Adedapo Adesanya The duo of Aradel Holdings Plc and 11 Plc landed the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange in the green territory by 0.84 per cent on Monday, November 27. The two energy stocks overpowered losses posted by two other securities admitted to the alternative stock exchange, leaving the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) closing higher by 7.22 points to 864.51 basis points from 857/29 points, as the market capitalisation of the exchange increased by N9.78 billion to N1.171 trillion from N1.162 trillion. Aradel Holdings Plc saw its share price continue to soar as it rose by N28.80 to

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The federal government has said it has saved at least N540 billion annually in interest payments at N45 billion per month since the treasury single account (TSA) was implemented. The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, which speaking in Abuja on Monday, said this TSA policy has brought huge benefits to the country, allowing the government to have more funds to meet some critical needs of the nation. “On the monetary policy side, we have better control over money supply and, therefore, able to rein in inflation and undue pressure on the Naira.

By Adedapo Adesanya Transcorp Hotels Plc has released its half year report for the year 2019 (January – June) and indications show that the net profit plummeted by 60 percent as the group made N556.9 million profit after tax against last year’s PAT of N1.4 billion. Despite the group’s increased revenue from contracts with customers totaling N9.3 billion against N8.0 billion in H1 2018, the leading hospitality brand saw an increase in the cost of sales, closing at N2.3 billion as at June 30, 2019 against N2.1 billion as at June 30, 2018 as further analysis showed that there was

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Federal Government has sanctions about 313 mining companies in Nigeria for not fulfilling environmental obligations. Disclosing this on Tuesday in Abuja, the Director of Mines Environmental Compliance Department in the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Salim Salaam, said the mining operators were issued sanction letters on March 20 for failing to conduct Environmental Impact Assessment, Environmental Protection and Rehabilitation Programme and the Community Development Agreement. He said four of the mining companies affected were given ‘stop work’ order, adding that the ministry had warned them severally but they refused to comply with the environmental obligations.

By Adedapo Adesanya The Naira performed badly against the United States Dollar in the black market, the Peer-to-Peer (P2P), and the Investors and Exporters (I&E) windows of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday, August 23. The Nigerian currency was suffocated by the persistent forex demand pressure during the session, as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) makes efforts to ease the tension. In the parallel market, the domestic currency depreciated against the Dollar yesterday by N5 to sell at N905/$1 compared with the previous day’s value of N900/$1. Also, in the I&E segment of the market, the local currency

By Jerome-Mario Utomi ‘The easy accessibility individuals have to publish ideas on the Internet has led to the emergence of a new meritocracy of ideas that is similar in some ways to the public forum that existed during the time of America’s founding. It has several structural characteristics that make it particularly useful and powerful as a tool for reinvigorating representative democracy,’ AL-Gore, former Vice President in the United States, once said. If there is a single factor/occurrence that has redefined information management and promoted citizen Journalism across the globe, it is the dawn of Internet/social media. As citizens participate

By Dipo Olowookere Sterling Bank and the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) have both been accused of illegally selling portions of Victory Park Estate belonging to an indigenous real estate development company, Grant Properties Limited (GPL). The portion of land allegedly sold by the Bank was 10 hectares, which was valued at N5 billion at the time of the sale from the 50-hectare land in Lekki, Lagos, where the estate is to be built. The bank allegedly secretly sold the land to one of its Directors for a fraction of its valued price. New Telegraph reliably gathered that GPL

By Modupe Gbadeyanka This November, the West African Power Industry Convention (WAPIC) will hold its long-running, regional conference and exhibition in Lagos. The interactive conference will reflect the dynamic energy landscape of the region. Over 2000 power professionals, high-level experts and industry stalwarts are expected to grace the 13th edition of the event, which holds at the Eko Hotel & Suites from November 22 to 25. The programme will kick off with a pre-conference Masterclass on November 22, and would be followed with the documentary screening tagged ‘Nowhere to run’ same day. The conference and exhibition will take place on

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Naira maintained its sterling performance against the United States Dollar at the various segments of the foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday. Business Post reports that the Nigerian currency gained weight against its American counterpart at the black market, the Peer-to-Peer (P2P), and the Investors and Exporters (I&E) windows of the forex market. In the final trading session at the spot market, the domestic currency appreciated against the greenback by 8 Kobo or 0.02 per cent to trade at N445.67/$1 compared with the preceding session’s N445.75/$1. This was helped by an 18.4 per cent or