Economy
We Plan to Improve Capital Market’s Contribution to Economic Growth—SEC DG
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Lamido Yuguda, has said his team plans to improve the capital market’s contribution to economic growth through the implementation of the Capital Market Master Plan, which is currently under review.
Mr Yuguda said this during a meeting with the management team of Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa in Abuja over the weekend.
He informed the team that the master plan review has been concluded by PwC and expressed confidence that it will be beneficial to the capital market and the nation at large.
“We are glad about all the assistance we have received, the Master plan review has been concluded by PWC and we hope that the implementation of the Capital Market Master Plan will deepen our market and improve the capital market’s contribution to our economic growth and national development.
“To this end, the review of the Capital Market Master Plan better positions the SEC to deliver on these objectives in these very challenging times.
“The FSD Africa and SEC Nigeria’s laudable partnership underscores our mutual goals to build financial markets that are robust, efficient and above all-inclusive,” he said.
The DG also restated the commitment of the agency to ensuring that technology plays a major role in ensuring that the nation’s capital market attains its full potential, expressing the commission’s delight with the support from FSD Africa in the areas of human resource transformation and information technology strategy.
“I cannot but express my support to FSD Africa for the various supports they have given to the commission in various areas. We are very excited about the human resource transformation exercise as the report will assist the commission in profound ways that will lead to optimal productivity of staff.
“What you are doing is commendable, you are looking at African financial markets and trying to assist to ensure that productivity and development are enhanced. We, therefore, assure you that these investments are well placed and we will continue to work to earn the confidence that you have in us,” he stated.
The SEC DG disclosed that the current management is also looking at other sources of support so that the march towards that agency that everyone wants to see in the future is very fast and very efficient.
“The commission has also been doing a number of things to ensure that the aim of these supports is not defeated. Since we came in we have prioritised the issue of human resource management, we want to leave behind a culture of excellence.
“Thank you for the considerable assistance on IT. What we have done too is to explore domestic sources of funding for our IT infrastructure and thankfully, we are making tremendous progress in that regard,” he added.
In his remarks, Chief Executive Officer of FDS Africa, Mr Mike Napier, expressed excitement that the SEC decided to embark on the various initiatives in a bid to have a stronger and better capital market regulator which translates into a well-regulated market.
Mr Napier said well-functioning capital markets can play a vital role in support of inclusive economic growth by channelling long term finance into infrastructure and other large-scale projects that create jobs and improve access to markets, adding that strengthening regulatory capacity in capital markets is an essential pre-condition for building investor confidence.
He said, “We are very happy that you have taken these challenges to embark on these various initiatives to ensure that your processes are better which will ultimately lead to a better regulator for the capital market.
“In FSD Africa we are embracing innovation and that is why we are providing support for these various projects, it is a long journey but we know we will get there at the end of it all.”
Mr Napier expressed satisfaction with the SEC for embracing innovation in a bid to become a progressive regulator stating that across Africa there are not many organisations that are able to do this especially given the issues of the paucity of funds.
“The big one would be when the market players note the changes in the SEC and the transformations that have taken place. We are glad you are on that journey and we hope it will end well,” he added.
FSD Africa’s support is centred around the development of capital markets master plans, conducting institutional capacity assessments, and creating capacity for sustainable finance such as green bonds, helping markets to adapt to their operating climate.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has defended its decision to allow Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) to invest in the parent companies of their custodians, insisting that adequate safeguards are in place to protect contributors’ funds.
The director-general of the pension regulator, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, speaking on Tuesday during the Meet the Press Briefing at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said the commission’s decision to relax the investment restriction followed a comprehensive risk assessment that found minimal conflict of interest.
She explained that under PenCom’s investment regulations, PFAs are only permitted to invest pension assets in carefully selected instruments that meet stringent criteria, including profitability, strong credit ratings and proven track records.
According to her, the commission regularly reviews its investment regulations, conducts routine examinations and spot checks on PFAs to ensure strict compliance with established risk management guidelines.
“PFAs cannot just go into the stock market and buy any kind of stock. There are strict guidelines. Companies must demonstrate profitability, have a proven track record and satisfy other criteria before pension funds can invest,” she said.
Ms Oloworaran noted that each PFA also operates under the oversight of a board, an investment committee and a risk management committee, providing additional layers of governance to safeguard contributors’ funds.
She said PenCom recently issued a circular allowing PFAs to invest in the parent companies of their custodians after determining that the potential conflict of interest was negligible.
The PenCom boss explained that the parent companies involved are largely Tier-1 banks, including First Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Zenith Bank, which she described as A-rated institutions with strong financial foundations.
She said the policy was intended to widen investment opportunities for pension funds without compromising safety.
Using Stanbic IBTC as an example, Ms Oloworaran explained that if its custodian is Zenith Bank, the previous restriction prevented the pension administrator from investing in Zenith Bank shares despite the bank’s strong performance.
“We reviewed the risks and any potential conflict of interest and found the risks to be very low. That is why we opened that investment window,” she said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Analysts at Meristem Research have predicted that the inflation rate for June 2026 in Nigeria should marginally rise to 15.95 per cent on a year-on-year basis from the 15.93 per cent reported in May 2026.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is expected to release inflation numbers for last month later today, Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
In its report sighted by Business Post, Meristem Research said it expects inflationary pressures to re-emerge across key economies in the near term, as the re-escalation of the US-Iran conflict has reignited upward pressure on global oil prices.
It disclosed that this marks a sharp reversal from most of June, when the ceasefire between the two countries helped drive oil prices lower, raising expectations of some relief on the inflation front.
With conflicts now flaring up again, oil prices are likely to increase again, and the anticipated easing in energy-driven inflation may not materialise as broadly as earlier envisaged.
“Nonetheless, some relief is likely from the food segment, where robust supply conditions across major producing regions and softening demand should continue to ease food price pressures,” it stated.
The team also explained that it projected a 15.95 per cent inflation rate because of the lingering effects of persistent food price pressures.
“However, we expect core inflation to moderate as the sharp reversal in energy prices begins to filter through to transportation, distribution, and other energy-related costs, easing underlying price pressures.
“On a month-on-month basis, the combined effect of lower petrol prices, a relatively stable Naira, and the gradual pass-through of reduced energy costs across the supply chain should exert further downward pressure on inflation.
“Based on our assessment, food inflation is expected to remain the key swing factor, as seasonal pre-harvest supply constraints are likely to offset some of the gains from lower logistics costs,” it said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The duo of Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and Afriland Properties Plc weakened the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 1.61 per cent on Tuesday, July 14.
CSCS Plc saw its stock value drop N9.08 to close at N82.40 per share compared with the preceding session’s N91.48 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc slid by 17 Kobo to sell at N15.00 per unit versus N15.70 per unit.
The losses recorded by the two securities pulled back the market capitalisation by N41.64 billion to N2.546 trillion from N2.587 trillion, and cracked the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 69.36 points to 4,242.31 points from 4,311.67 points.
It was observed that the exchange witnessed two price advancers during the session, led by FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc, which gained N1.37 to end at N151.37 per share compared with the previous day’s N150.00 per share, and Food Concepts Plc chalked up 5 Kobo to settle at N2.50 per unit versus N2.45 per unit.
The volume of securities traded by market participants surged by 50.7 per cent to 13.7 million units from the previous 9.1 million units, while the value of securities went down by 79.7 per cent to N65.2 million from N320.4 million, and the number of deals crashed by 3.6 per cent to 27 deals from the previous session’s 28 deals.
At the close of transactions, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most traded stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 3.4 billion units for N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc, which exchanged 2.3 billion units valued at N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units transacted for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the trading 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 traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million.
