Playfre Launches Music Distribution Business SongRoute

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Twenty talents have been shortlisted to battle for the grand prizes of the second edition of the Headies Mic Check competition sponsored by Airtel Nigeria. The almost two dozen music acts picked by the organisers were from the over 2,000 entries received from across the country. Several aspiring Nigerian musical talents were in Lagos from different states across the country, singing songs that suited the texture of their voice, written either by them or their favourite artists. However, only 20 persons were selected, and they will now have to impress the judges through the live show stage

By Aduragbemi Omiyale A veteran Yoruba actor, Mr Musiliu Olaitan Ajikanle, also known as Bufallo, has died after a prolonged illness. Musiliu Ajikanle was said to have died on Monday after suffering from a stroke for about seven years. A cleric, Agbala Gabriel Foundation, brought his plight to the public a few months ago. The actor, before his demise, has acted in several movies and has also produced some flicks. Details later.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Eight nightclubs and event centres within Ikeja and Victoria Island have been sealed by the Lagos State government over safety violations. A statement by the Lagos State Safety Commission disclosed that the affected facilities were shut down to ensure the safety of lives and properties in the metropolis. A few facilities accused of contravening the state’s safety laws were Hot Box Night Club, Shades Night Club, Buzzbar, and CCX Lounge. The Director General of the agency, Mr Lanre Mojola, said the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has zero tolerance for violation of safety laws and will continually

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A popular Nigerian actor, Bolanle Ninolowo, has announced an end to his marriage, citing “an irreconcilable marriage dissolution” as the reason for the action. The actor, who asked for privacy and prayers from his fans “during this process as we heal and move on with our independent lives,” said he made efforts to keep the union intact, particularly because of his children.” However, he said since the centre could no longer hold, “my wife and I decided to go our separate ways,” though they will “jointly” take care of their children, who said they both “love most.”

By Dipo Olowookere The financial statements of Guinness Nigeria Plc, one of the leading brewery companies in the country, were released on Wednesday to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Highlight of the results showed that the firm declared a 4 percent drop in its revenue for the first half of its financial year ended December 31, 2018. The revenue generated by the company in the period under review was N67.8 billion against N70.6 billion it raked a year ago. Also, the cost of sales skyrocketed by 1.59 percent to N47.3 billion from N46.6 billion, while the gross profit fell by

By Adedapo Adesanya The Lekki Concession Company Limited (LCC), which manages the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge in Lagos State, has given notice to users of the facility that it will no longer accept cash payment at the toll plaza from 2020. According a banner displayed at the bridge, “No more cash payment @ Lekki-Ikoyi Bridge Toll Plaza, Wednesday 1st January 2020”. Despite placing the banner, there has been no official statement released by the company about the planned migration to electronic payment. Earlier this year, during a visit to the plaza, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had said that the tolling system would

By FSDH Research There are indications that the Nigerian equity market is ready for a recovery in the year 2017 after three consecutive years of decline. The equity market, as measured by The Nigerian Stock Exchange All Share Index (NSEASI), depreciated by 16.14%, 17.36% and 6.17% in 2014, 2015 and 2016 respectively. As at April 28, 2017 the NSEASI had lost 4.15% of its value. The major factors responsible for the poor performance of the equity market in the last three years are: weak macroeconomic performance, inconsistent policies, weak corporate earnings and portfolio realignment from equities to fixed income securities.

By Dipo Olowookere The online trading platform of a popular stockbroking company in Nigeria, Morgan Capital Securities Limited, is down. The platform, fondly called itrade, has not been accessible to investors since Wednesday morning. As at the time of filing this report shortly before noon, it was still down but Business Post gathered that the management was working to get the trading system back online. This was confirmed in a message the company sent to its clients. “We are currently having temporary downtime on our itrade platform and our technical team is currently working on resolving it,” the notice seen

By Dipo Olowookere As a financial institution committed to wealth creation, Wema Bank Plc, pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank ALAT, has sponsored a number of small and medium scale businesses to a capacity-building training on building sustainable wealth which was organized by PwC in Lagos. The Nigerian economy is driven significantly by a vast number of SMEs. Research showed that as of October 2017, the country had in excess of 30 million small businesses operating within its borders. However, in the face of increased competition and heightened economic headwinds, the need to secure the right knowledge and expertise

By Dipo Olowookere After closing lower on Wednesday, Nigerian stocks rebounded by 0.29 per cent on Thursday on the back of bargain hunting in consumer goods equities, especially Dangote Sugar, NASCON and others. Business Post reports that despite the growth posted by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited yesterday, investor sentiment was weak as the bourse finished with 25 price losers and 17 price gainers, indicating a negative market breadth. The consumer goods sector was the saviour of the exchange on Thursday as it gained 0.58 per cent, while the banking, energy, and insurance counters depreciated by 1.11 per cent, 0.25

By Adedapo Adesanya In a recent study published in the journal Drug Discovery Today, a team of scientists at Ritsumeikan University in Japan analysed the changing trends in pharmaceutical industries to spotlight the role of interorganisational collaborations in promoting drug discovery and innovation. Discovering new drugs has become increasingly rare for independent large pharmaceutical companies in recent times. With numbers showing that almost 60 per cent of new drugs are discovered through mergers and acquisitions and drug licensing. Now, the university researchers shed light on the recent trends of spinouts from academia and investments in the US and Europe, foreshadowing a

By Dipo Olowookere The Presidency has confirmed the sale of two Presidential aircraft, a Falcon 7x executive jet and Hawker 4000. A statement issued on Tuesday night in Abuja by spokesman of President Muhammadu Buhari, Mr Garba Shehu, disclosed that the newspaper advertisements for the sale of the two jets were duly authorized by the Presidency. “This is in line with the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari that aircraft in the Presidential air fleet be reduced to cut down on waste,” Mr Shehu explained. Mr Shehu said further that, “When he campaigned to be President, the then APC candidate Muhammadu