Economy
Why Warren Buffett Made a U-turn Towards the Crypto Market
Back in the day, billionaire Warren Buffett said that cryptocurrencies were ‘rat poison’ because he saw that the asset had ‘no unique value at all’. He has turned around from this opinion because he has dumped his stocks in VISA and Mastercard and he invested $1 billion in Nubank which is a crypto-friendly bank.
This is a huge U-turn for Buffett because he is known as one of the biggest critics of the crypto market. Now that he has made some business moves to that point, you can expect that he will continue to invest in crypto-related projects soon. This was a surprising development but it looks like the new trend for the richest businessmen to join the hype.
They would want to invest in the crypto market because there are many possibilities here. You can use it as an investment tool but you can also use them for everyday functions like paying for goods and services and playing slot games at any online bitcoin casino.
The crypto industry is thriving at the moment
When you look at the crypto industry from top to bottom, you can see that it is thriving, especially with big names like Buffett proving that the industry works.
You can see that even if there are some value dips from time to time, the crypto market is thriving especially with the potential that it has shown over the years. You should look into the crypto market as well if you want to have solid value for yourself.
With assets like Bitcoin and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the market, you should expect that the crypto industry as a whole will continue to make waves in the financial world. The NFTs themselves are probably the biggest development over the past few years as they can be a bridge for multiple industries to connect with each other and the crypto market.
Financial technology has been a huge concept that has risen in popularity over the past few years. You should expect that people like Buffett will be sceptical about this at first but when they see the viability of them being used, they will turn into the biggest fans of the concept. Now, fintech is proven to be a success.
This is the right time to invest in crypto
In early 2022, the crypto market took a big dip. Despite that, people should know that this is the right time to invest in crypto. You can buy low and have the potential to grow further in the future. The crypto market is ripe for the picking now. People should try and invest in crypto now because the value will go up soon and it will be a bad move to ignore it given that there are so many possibilities now.
You should look into investing in crypto-based firms because they are ready to make some big moves. These large strides might sound too adventurous for you but you should expect that this will be the best time for you to invest. Buy low and sell high is a big tactic for a business and that plays a role in the rise of cryptocurrencies around the world.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies have become popular enough to warrant investments and that should be a normal occurrence for people.
He saw the potential
Over the years, crypto has shown that there is potential there for growth. There have been various projects for digital currency and it is also being used for payments in services and activities like betting on a online bitcoin casino game. While Buffett has not explicitly said that he likes crypto, the potential is there and businessmen like him are saying that this is the future.
You should expect that the big corporations will pick up crypto as well. This U-turn from Buffett is encouraging because it will be exciting to see if his Nubank move will pay off in the crypto market’s growth sometime soon.
Economy
PenCom Assures Strong Risk Controls for PFA Investments in Custodians’ Parent Companies
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.
Economy
Meristem Forecasts 15.95% Inflation Rate for June 2026
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.
Economy
NASD Index Drops 1.61%
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.


