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.

SEC Deepens Investor Protection Drive with Nationwide Campaign on Unclaimed Funds

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SEC Deepens Investor Protection Drive with Nationwide Campaign on Unclaimed Funds The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to strengthening investor confidence and safeguarding shareholders’ wealth through sustained market education, transparency, and enhanced regulatory oversight. This commitment came to the fore during the Commission’s one-day Nationwide Market Outreach Programme on Unclaimed Funds, held on Thursday, July 16, 2026, where shareholders, market operators, registrars, shareholder associations, and other stakeholders converged to address the persistent challenge of unclaimed dividends and investment-related fraud within Nigeria’s capital market. The sensitisation programme underscored the urgent need for shareholders to proactively claim…

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Rand Firmer on Improved Investors’ Appetite for EM Currencies

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Rand Firmer on Improved Investors’ Appetite for EM Currencies South African rand is trading slightly firmer on Thursday as softer-than-expected US producer price inflation reinforced expectations that the Federal Reserve may delay further interest rate hikes. Lower inflation has weighed on the US dollar and improved investor appetite for emerging-market currencies, supporting demand for the rand, said First National Bank (FNB) in a brief. The bank said the South African rand is changing hands at R16.34 to the US dollar, R18.73 to the euro and R22.10 to the British pound. Geopolitical tension has shifted global market dynamics. The energy crisis…

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Naira Rises Against US Dollar as Interbank FX Trades Ease

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Naira Rises Against US Dollar as Interbank FX Trades Ease The naira appreciated against the US dollar in the currency market on Wednesday, amid a lack of significant FX pressure from corporate demand. The local unit saw a moderate gain against crosses as FX activity eased, with an improved US dollar volume on the supply side. The official data indicated that the spot FX rate settled at N1,382.1841 per US dollar, down from N1,383.0755 the previous day. Transactions at the Nigerian foreign exchange market were consummated between N1379.5000 and N1384.5000, the rates which signal an improvement in FX liquidity from…

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First Holdco Fires Up, Market Value Tops N3.6 Trillion  

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First Holdco Fires Up, Market Value Tops N3.6 Trillion First Holdco Plc is seeing a significant price surge as investors anticipate strong earnings performance for the first half of the financial year 2026. The banking group’s share price increased by about 10% to N79.35 on Wednesday as improved sentiment continues to fuel its re-rating. Trading at less than 3% below its 52-week high, the financial services company’s price push was driven by strong transaction value led by buy-side investors in the Nigerian bourse. Data from the Nigerian Exchange showed that First Holdco gained 9.98% on a trading volume of…

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