Economy
UK, Canada, Others Back New Cashew Nut Processing Plant Construction in Ogun
By Adedapo Adesanya
GuarantCo, part of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), has provided a 100 per cent guarantee to support a $75 million debt facility for Robust International Pte Ltd (Robust) to construct a new cashew nut processing plant in Ogun State, Nigeria.
GuarantCo, under the PIDG is funded by the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Australia, Sweden and Canada, mobilises private sector local currency investment for infrastructure projects and supports the development of financial markets in lower-income countries across Africa and Asia.
Nigeria is one of Africa’s largest cashew producers of 300,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts annually, yet currently less than 10 per cent are processed domestically. Most raw nuts are exported unprocessed to Asian and other countries, forfeiting up to 80 per cent of their potential export value and adding exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations.
According to GuarantCo, this additional plant will more than double Robust’s existing cashew processing capacity from 100 metric tonnes per day to 220 metric tonnes per day to help reduce this structural gap.
The new plant will be of extensive benefit to the local economy, with the procurement of cashew nuts from around 10,000 primarily low-income smallholder farmers.
There is an expected increase in export revenue of up to $335 million and procurement from the local supply chain over the lifetime of the guarantee.
Furthermore, the new plant will incorporate functionality to convert waste by-products into value-added biomass and biofuel inputs to enhance the environmental impact of the transaction.
It is anticipated that up to 900 jobs will be created, with as many as 78 per cent to be held by women. Robust also has a target to gradually increase the share of procurement from women farmers, from 15 per cent to 25 per cent by 2028, as it reaches new regions in Nigeria and extends its ongoing gender-responsive outreach programme for farmers.
Terms of the deal showed that the debt facility was provided by a Symbiotics-arranged bond platform, which in turn issued notes with the benefit of the GuarantCo guarantee. These notes have been subscribed to in full by M&G Investments. The transaction was executed in record time due to the successful replication of two recent transactions in Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, again in collaboration with M&G Investments and Symbiotics.
Speaking on the development, the British Deputy High Commissioner, Mr Jonny Baxter, said: “The UK is proud to support innovative financing that mobilises private capital into Nigeria’s productive economy through UK-backed institutions such as PIDG. By backing investment into local processing and value addition, this transaction supports jobs, exports and more resilient agricultural supply chains. Complementing this, through the UK-Nigeria Enhanced Trade and Investment Partnerships and the Developing Countries Trading Scheme, the UK is supporting Nigerian businesses to scale exports to the UK and beyond, demonstrating how UK-backed partnerships help firms grow and compete internationally.”
Mr Dave Chalila, Head of Africa and Middle East Investments at GuarantCo, said: “This transaction marks GuarantCo’s third collaboration with M&G Investments and Symbiotics, emphasising our efforts to bring replicability to everything we do so that we accelerate socio-economic development where it matters most. The transaction is consistent with PIDG’s mandate to mobilise private capital into high-impact, underfinanced sectors. In this case, crowding in institutional investors in the African agri-processing value chain.
“As with the two recent similarly structured transactions, funding is channelled through the Symbiotics institutional investor platform, with the notes externally rated by Fitch and benefiting from a rating uplift due to the GuarantCo guarantee.”
Adding his input, Mr Vishanth Narayan, Group Executive Director at Robust International Group, said: “As a global leader in agricultural commodities, Robust International remains steadfast in its commitment to building resilient, ethical and value-adding supply chains across origin and destination markets. This transaction represents an important step in advancing our long-term strategy of strengthening processing capabilities, deepening engagement with farmers and enhancing local value addition in the regions where we operate. Through sustained investment, disciplined execution and decades of operating experience, we continue to focus on delivering reliable, high-quality products while fostering inclusive and sustainable economic growth.”
For Ms María Redondo, director at M&G Investments, “The guarantee gives us the assurance to invest in hard currency, emerging market debt, while supporting Robust’s new cashew processing plant in Nigeria. It’s a clear example of how smart credit enhancement can unlock institutional capital for high-impact development and manage currency and credit risks effectively. This is another strong step in channelling institutional capital into meaningful, on‑the‑ground growth.”
Also, Ms Valeria Berzunza, Structuring & Arranging at Symbiotics, said: “We are pleased to continue our collaboration with M&G Investments, GuarantCo, and now with Robust through a transaction with a strong social and gender focus, demonstrating that well-structured products can boost commercially attractive, viable, and impactful investments.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The submission of the second quarter of 2026 Ownership Structure and Capital Flows Returns by capital market operators in Nigeria closes today, Friday, July 10, 2026.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave all registrars, brokers/dealers, fund managers and other relevant capital market operators this deadline via a statement on Wednesday, July 8, 2026.
The documents are needed in support of the compilation of Nigeria’s Balance of Payments (BOP) and International Investment Position (IIP) statistics.
According to the SEC, the exercise forms part of ongoing efforts to improve the quality, coverage, and reliability of Nigeria’s external sector statistics.
Operators are required to provide quarterly data on new equity and debt investments by residents and non-residents; equity and debt holdings of non-residents in Nigerian entities and those of Nigerian residents in foreign entities; investments arising from mergers, acquisitions, and other business combinations involving resident and non-resident entities; and other cross-border capital market transactions.
Specifically, reporting entities are required to submit information on investments in newly issued equities and debt securities; foreign portfolio investment holdings in Nigerian companies; ownership interests arising from business combinations involving non-residents; investments by multinational corporations in the Nigerian capital market; equity investments held abroad by resident companies; and bond investments held abroad by resident companies.
The regulator reminded operators that accurate and timely reporting is critical to the compilation of reliable BOP and IIP statistics, directing all fund managers, brokers/dealers, registrars, and other relevant capital market operators to ensure full and timely compliance with this reporting requirement.
It thanked those who have consistently complied with this requirement and acknowledged their contribution to this important national assignment.
It noted that the submission of ownership structure and capital flows data is a continuous quarterly reporting obligation, advising them to carefully review the guidance accompanying each reporting template and ensure that all submissions are complete, accurate, and submitted within the stipulated timeline.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange was weakened by 1.19 per cent on Thursday, July 9, by three bellwether stocks on the platform.
Consequently, the NASD Security Index (NSI) lost 50.47 points to close at 4,199.73 compared with the previous day’s 4,250.20 points, and the market capitalisation gave up N30.29 billion to settle at N2.520 trillion versus Wednesday’s closing value of N2.551 trillion.
The price decliners were led by 11 Plc, which fell by N20.54 to sell at N200.01 per share compared with the preceding session’s N220.55 per share. FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc crashed by N11.48 to trade at N140.51 per unit compared with the N151.98 per unit it ended a day earlier, and UBN Property Plc depreciated by 19 Kobo to N1.80 per share from N1.99 per share.
Business Post reports that the sole gainer at the session was IPWA Plc, which added 88 Kobo to quote at N9.71 per unit, in contrast to the previous day’s closing price of N8.83 per unit.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by market participants surged by 14,965.4 per cent to 23.9 million units from the previous session’s 158,933 units, and the value of stocks rose by 528.1 per cent to N68.2 million from the preceding session’s N10.9 million, while the number of deals decreased by 3.2 per cent to 30 deals from Wednesday’s 31 deals.
Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc closed the trading day as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 70.7 million units exchanged for N4.9 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the day as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
A slowdown in the demand for foreign exchange (FX) strengthened the value of the Nigerian Naira against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Thursday, July 9.
At the official market, the Naira gained 64 Kobo or 0.05 per cent against the greenback yesterday to sell at N1,378.43/$1 compared with Wednesday’s exchange rate of N1,379.07/$1.
The market saw a sharp decrease in transaction volume and value, meaning that heavy demand for the Dollar eased.
Interbank FX turnover reduced sharply by more than 62 per cent to $78.708 million, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), from $208.094 million in the preceding day.
FX traders also noticed a sharp decline in the number of deals at the NFEM window in the absence of Dollar injection by the central bank. Deal counts shrank to 106 during the NFEM window, down from 150, reflecting a slowdown in FX activity among market makers.
However, the local currency depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the spot market during the session by N6.18 to N1,846.82/£1 from N1,840.64/£1, and declined against the Euro by N2.79 to close at N1,576.09/€1 versus the preceding session’s N1,573.30/€1.
At the GTBank FX desk, the Naira lost N4 against the US Dollar to quote at N1,385/$1, in contrast to the N1,381/$1 it was traded at midweek, and at the parallel market, it remained unchanged at N1,400/$1.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market soared after a moderation in oil prices and bond yields following the collapse of the Iran war ceasefire.
As has been the pattern for months, markets are looking past inflamed rhetoric and new airstrikes to likely conciliatory statements in the near future.
Bitcoin (BTC) gained 2.3 per cent to sell at $64,048.89, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 1.9 per cent to $0.0741, Ethereum (ETH) expanded by 1.6 per cent to $1,777.98, Solana (SOL) rose by 1.0 per cent to $79.13, Ripple (XRP) appreciated by 0.9 per cent to $1.10, Binance Coin (BNB) added 0.6 per cent to sell for $576.91, and TRON (TRX) also improved by 0.6 per cent to $0.3329.
However, Cardano (ADA) crashed by 0.9 per cent to $0.1669, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
