By Bliss Okperan
A news report filtering in indicates that a part of the Supreme Court complex in Abuja has been gutted by fire.
The incident, according to what Business Post gathered, happened on Monday morning.
It was said that offices of three justices were affected by the inferno, whose cause is yet unknown at the time of filing this report.
Details later…
By Adedapo Adesanya The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on National Planning and Economic Affairs, Mr Isiaka Ibrahim, has said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) must be insulated from political interference to perform more effectively. Mr Ibrahim said this at a Public Lecture to mark the 2023 African Statistics Day celebration in Abuja on Wednesday themed Modernising Data Ecosystems to Accelerate the Implementation of the AfCFTA: The Role of Official Statistics and Big Data in the Economic Transformation and Sustainable Development of Africa. He said the reliability of data from the stats office would be questioned if
By Adedapo Adesanya Fils has launched a platform to help global businesses turn intent into action when integrating sustainable values into the core of digital payments. The new innovation paves the way for trust and safety in carbon markets, bringing together buyers with capital, and suppliers with high-integrity carbon credits, at the rate and scale required to rebalance the planet. Designed as a holistic, enterprise-grade B2B2C product offering, Fils leverages the power of leading technologies for its end-to-end infrastructure to transform various industries, including financial services, hospitality, and e-commerce. This makes it easier for businesses to act on the core
By Adedapo Adesanya The management of Ikeja Electric Distribution Company (IKEDC) has cautioned customers not to load the energy tokens purchased during a recent upgrade glitch which left customers unable to buy and load much-needed electricity tokens on their prepaid meters. In a statement on Friday, the distribution company said, “We apologise for the inconvenience experienced when loading your energy token during the TID rollover upgrade. The issue has been resolved and we thank you for your patience and understanding.” The issue commenced when the company instructed customers to link their respective prepaid meters to the National Identification Number (NIN)
By Bliss Okperan The Deputy Governor of Edo State, Mr Philip Shaibu, has announced his interest in the governorship election slated for 2024. Mr Shaibu, who fell out with former Governor Adams Oshiomhole to pitch his tenth with Governor Godwin Obaseki, declared his interest in the number one office of the state on Monday. In a televised announcement, the former student union leader said he intends to govern the state because of his desire to transform the Heartbeat of the Nation. According to him, his past records will make it easy for him to clinch the sole ticket of the
By Modupe Gbadeyanka Acting Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms Mary Uduk, has advised retail investors in the nation’s capital market to consider embracing Collective Investment Schemes and Mutual Funds in order to minimise their risks. Speaking in an interview in Abuja, the SEC chief said her agency has put in place a number of initiatives to protect investors as well as boost confidence. “We advise investors to get their financial advisers to advise them properly on where to invest. In this area, we advise retail investors to invest in Collective Investment Schemes and Mutual Funds because
Nigeria has been rather slow to adopt the concept of mobile money, but with telecoms giants, MTN and Airtel formally commencing MoMo operations, the sector looks set to finally take off in this country. As the old saying goes, it’s better late than never. MTN’s mobile money service had been in the works for quite a while, with the company awaiting final approval for a Payment Service Bank (PSB) licence from the Central Bank. That licence has finally been granted, paving the way for the official beginning of MTN’s fintech arm in Nigeria. Airtel Africa also has obtained its operating
By Dipo Olowookere Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State has moved a step further in strengthening science education in the state with the establishment of a Mobile Science Academy. Recently, the state government sealed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with BASF West Africa to formalise their mutual commitment to the creation of the academy. It was learnt that the move was to further promote science education in the state because the Science and Technology Strategy for Lagos State (2016–2019) recognises Science, Research and Innovation as priority programmes under the Mega City Programme. At the signing ceremony, Governor Ambode stressed the
By Dipo Olowookere The Federal Government has pledged to invest in the necessary infrastructure to ensure the growth of the film industry and complement the efforts of the tireless professionals who built the industry from the scratch. The Minister of Information and Culture, Mr Lai Mohammed, made the pledge at the sixth Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) in Lagos on Sunday. “When we trusted in the almighty oil, we built refineries, pipelines, petrol marketing companies, petrol stations etc. Since we are now rightly shifting our focus to this sector, we must now make the necessary investments in the infrastructure that
By Dipo Olowookere The management of Nigerian Breweries Plc has said it may be impossible at the moment to specifically measure the financial impact of the COVID-19 on its business operations. This disclosure was made in reaction to the financial statements of the firm for the first three months of this year, which were released on Wednesday. However, the brewery giant said the management was paying special attention on strategies to minimise the impact on the company. “The COVID-19 crisis continues to impact all businesses, with the effect expected to be more pronounced in the future. “The priority for us
By Adedapo Adesanya President Muhammadu Buhari has claimed that his administration’s agricultural revolution has led to the creation of over 13 million direct and indirect jobs in the last seven and half years, insisting that Nigeria is self-sufficient in rice production, thanks to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The Nigerian leader made these remarks last Friday in Washington D.C. at an interactive session entitled, A conversation with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, co-hosted by the United State Institute of Peace (USIP), the International Republican Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems. He used
By Modupe Gbadeyanka The equities market in Nigeria has continued to prove many critics wrong with its recent upward trajectory. The market has seen the massive re-entry of foreign portfolio investors, who continue to take advantage of the low price of value stocks in anticipation of huge gains when they are ready to offload them. It is on this note that analysts at Meristem Research are asking investors to keep a close eye on these four stocks, which could fetch holders more money. The first on the list is Dangote Cement, which currently sells at N194 per unit and is
By Dipo Olowookere The proposed merger between Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN) Plc and Obu Cement Company Plc has received overwhelming approvals of shareholders of the two companies. On Wednesday, the board of CCNN organised a court-ordered meeting in Abuja to get authorisation to formalise talks with Obu Cement Company on the planned business combination. The event took place at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja and from results of the votes obtained by Business Post, 99.93 percent of the shareholders approved the marriage between the two cement millers. It was further gathered that only 0.07 percent of the shareholders
By Aduragbemi Omiyale The popular Ajose Adeogun Street and Roundabout on Victoria Island, Lagos, is wearing a new look, thanks to Zenith Bank Plc, which designed the areas with beautiful Christmas decorations. The yearly ritual of the financial institution is a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives aimed at setting the tone for the Christmas and Yuletide seasons. Performing the Light-Up ceremony, the 17th of its kind recently, the chief executive of Zenith Bank, Mr Ebenezer Onyeagwu, expressed his delight in heralding the 2023 Yuletide season by lighting up the iconic Ajose Adeogun Street and Roundabout. He urged everyone
By Adedapo Adesanya The federal government, through the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), has announced plans to invest $1.1 billion to fully rehabilitate decaying port infrastructure at TinCan, Apapa, Rivers, Delta, Calabar, and Onne ports as part of efforts to improve the efficiency of the nation’s existing ports. Out of the estimated 47,000 kilometres of coastline in Africa, Nigeria makes up about 853 kilometres, creating the perfect opportunity to get access to its much-needed revenue. This coastline and a 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone make up Nigeria’s coastline in the Gulf of Guinea. The coastline equals a maritime area of
By Adedapo Adesanya The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has alerted Nigerians of unauthorised bank withdrawals linked to Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card swap fraud. The commission issued the alert on Monday in a statement by the Head of Media and Publicity, Mr Dele Oyewale. According to the EFCC, fraudsters engaged in this activity typically keep a debit card from the same bank and, under the guise of assisting a confused bank customer at an ATM point, swiftly swap the card while memorising the PIN used with fake cards. “These cards get stuck in the machine due to a
By Aduragbemi Omiyale One of the wet-lease aircraft in the operations of United Nigeria Airlines has been suspended by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). A wet-leased is a leasing arrangement whereby one airline (the lessor) provides an aircraft, complete crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) to another airline or other type of business acting as a broker of air travel (the lessee), which pays by hours operated. The regulator decided to suspend the plane after one of the flights of the airline destined for Abuja from Lagos landed in Asaba, Delta State, over the weekend. While the company claimed the
By Modupe Gbadeyanka A cutting-edge German-Nigerian financial technology (fintech) firm, BFREE, plans to put down $40 million to acquire some distressed loan portfolios in Union Bank of Nigeria. A statement from the Nigerian lender said both parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in Berlin on November 21, 2023, at the German-Nigerian Business Forum. It was disclosed that BFREE would partner with its international financing partners to refinance bad loans from Union Bank, particularly those delayed in repayment or already written off. Union Bank expressed its optimism that this strategic partnership with BFREE would not only bolster the bank’s financial
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 Adedapo Adesanya The Naira depreciated in the opening session of the week in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) on Monday, November 27 against the Dollar by N19.71 or 2.5 per cent as the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Olayemi Cardoso, said the lender was committed to clearing a backlog of foreign exchange (forex). “We have initiated the payment of unsettled forward foreign exchange obligations, and these payments will continue until all obligations are cleared,” he told bankers last Friday during a dinner speech in Lagos. However, his assurance could not ease the pressure
By Adedapo Adesanya President Bola Tinubu has announced the reappointment of Mr Mele Kolo Kyari as the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited. This move comes as part of a larger reshuffle, where President Tinubu has unveiled a new board and management team for the NNPC Limited which will commence their duties from December 1, 2023. Mr Kyari’s reappointment comes after recent calls to have him sacked. Having spent four years under the immediate past administration of Mr Muhammadu, the renewed appointment shows the current government has confidence in his ability to steer the
By Dipo Olowookere The positive momentum witnessed at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited continued on Monday with a 0.17 per cent leap at the close of business. Buying pressure, particularly in a few blue-chip equities, kept the bulls at Customs Street during the trading session, though the consumer goods space succumbed to profit-taking by 0.99 per cent. But hope was kept alive by the gains reported by the other key sectors of the market, with the banking counter growing by 1.71 per cent, and the industrial goods index appreciating by 0.01 per cent, while the insurance and energy sectors remained
By Adedapo Adesanya Brent crude benchmark dipped below $80 a barrel on Monday, precisely losing 60 cents of 0.7 per cent to trade at $79.98 a barrel as investors await this week’s meeting of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies (OPEC+). The group is anticipated to maintain its ceiling on crude oil production by member countries into 2024. This affected the oil market, with the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures declining yesterday by 68 cents or 0.9 per cent to trade at $74.86 per barrel. Last week, the 23-man OPEC+ postponed its Sunday ministerial meeting