Author: Julius Alagbe
Julius Alagbe is a senior financial journalist and Editor at MarketForces Africa with nearly two decades of experience in finance, accounting, and economics reporting.He is one of Nigeria's most prolific financial market reporters, covering capital markets, monetary policy, corporate earnings, banking, telecoms, and macroeconomic developments across Africa.Julius has built a strong footprint reporting on Nigeria's leading corporates and financial services sector, including coverage of the Nigerian Exchange Group, Central Bank of Nigeria monetary operations, MTN Nigeria, GTCO, and major investment banking transactions.He regularly monitors the CBN’s open market operations, interbank FX markets, and equity market movements, providing readers with real-time intelligence on Nigeria’s financial landscape.His reporting draws on direct access to institutional research from firms including Moody’s Ratings, CardinalStone Securities, Fitch, and other leading African investment houses.Julius brings analytical depth and editorial rigour to every story, making complex financial data accessible to professionals, investors, and policymakers across Africa.Julius Alagbe is based in Lagos, Nigeria.
XRP price stabilises around $1.38 on optimism after Ripple Chief Executive Brad Garlinghouse reiterated that the token remains the company’s guiding “North Star.”
The global crypto market cap rose to $2.57 trillion on Wednesday as the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and HSBC flagged fake stablecoins, prompting capital to rotate towards the top digital assets.
Guaranty Trust Holding Company’s (GTCO) net profit slipped more than 15% to N218 billion at the end of the first quarter of 2026, from N259.9 billion posted in the equivalent period in 2025.
The South African rand is relatively weaker overnight, trading at R16.55 to the dollar, R19.38 to the euro, and R22.36 to the pound, First National Bank said in a morning brief.
Wall Street Slips Amidst AI Investment Returns Concerns Wall Street came under pressure overnight as ongoing geopolitical concerns and weakness in the tech sector led to a sell-off across the major indices. The S&P 500 closed down 0.49%, the NASDAQ fell 0.90%, and the Dow Jones slipped 0.05%, with concerns over AI investment returns intensifying after OpenAI missed key targets ahead of major earnings releases. In its morning brief, First National Bank (FNB) said investors will now look ahead to several earnings releases from Meta, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon later today for further insight into the tech sector and future…
Reflecting an uncertain outlook, oil prices rose on Wednesday, driven by expectations that ongoing uncertainty in the Strait of Hormuz could further tighten global supply.
Jaiz Bank plc. dropped an additional 9% of its market value as concerns about the Islamic lender’s delayed audited financial statements stoked sell pressure in the local bourse.
XRP rebounded in the crypto market as the US SEC reaffirmed the token as a digital commodity in a new guideline. Details from the crypto exchange showed XRP trading around $1.40 on Wednesday, following a sharp price depreciation in the previous session.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold OMO bills to investors at the open market operation conducted on Tuesday, amidst robust liquidity in the financial…
The newly inaugurated board of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) resumed on April 28, 2026 with a pledge to boost the capacity of the NUPRC in meeting its statutory mandate.