Author: Julius Alagbe

CBN Cuts Interest Rates on Nigerian Treasury Bills The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cut interest rates on Nigerian Treasury bills as demand for the naira assets soared at the primary market auction on Wednesday. MarketForces Africa reported that the Debt Management Office (DMO) on behalf of the CBN auctioned N400 billion worth of bills across standard maturities midweek. Results of the auction revealed that investors demand came strong, with total subscriptions reaching N1.54 trillion against the N400 billion offered. The DMO ultimately sold N714.38 billion, with stop rates declining across tenors – reversing previous auction trend. Treasury bills with…

Infinity MFB Opens N2bn Commercial Paper for Subscription at 22.85% Infinity Microfinance Bank (MfB) Limited has opened up its N2 billion Series 4 Commercial Paper for investors’ subscription at a 22.8514% discount rate, FSDH Capital Limited has announced. The 270-day tenor commercial paper is opened today and is scheduled to close on 30 April 2025, and Infinity said the notes will be listed on the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited. Infinity MfB is a leading Lagos-based microfinance bank licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria to operate as a state microfinance bank. The bank provides banking services, including loans, leases, savings,…

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) crossed N66 trillion in market capitalisation as investors saw more than N338 billion in gains

Naira Depreciates Despite $50m FX Injection by CBN The naira declined against the US dollar in the official foreign exchange market despite the Central Bank of Nigeria’s FX sales to banks to boost the supply side. According to data from the Central Bank, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market closed at N1602.63 per greenback, down from N1599.93 opening spot rate. FX traders reported that the naira-US dollar pair fluctuated between N1,598.50 and N1,610 in the official FX market on Tuesday. However, by the close of trading, the naira weakened slightly by 17 basis points to settle at N1,602.6318 per US dollar.…

Zenith Bank, GTCO, UBA Set to Pay Dividends Ahead of Q1 Earnings Zenith Bank, GTCO, and other top Nigerian banks, including their tier-2 challengers, are warming up to pay their shareholders their final dividend in April and May as the market also eyes their first-quarter earnings release. According to details from its regulatory filing, Zenith Bank Plc will pay shareholders N4 as a final dividend on April 29 following its shareholders approval at the annual general meeting. Zenith Bank, the second most valuable on the Nigerian Exchange in the banking category, was valued at N1.848 trillion following a moderate rally…

NGX Index Rises as GTCO, ZENITH, ACCESS See Intraday Rally The stock market index is climbing during the intraday trading session on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) trading platform as Nigerian Breweries, Zenith Bank, GTCO, and Access Holdings Plc rally. The market is on a gaining track at midday, with investors showing interest in banking names and top-leading brewers stocks on the exchange. Nigerian Breweries Plc is gaining equities investors’ attention after the company halted loss-making with an impressive first quarter earnings release. International Breweries is also making a strong uptrend. At midday, the NGX All Share Index experienced a bullish…

Kano Eyes $10bn Energy Investment from Morocco The Kano state government says it will attract over 10 billion dollars in investment in renewable energy and solid minerals development from its partnership with prestigious Moroccan companies in the next five years. The state government also said the stage was set for the signing of a series of investment Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with the Kingdom of Morocco. This is contained in a statement on Sunday in Kano by Sunusi Bature Dawakin-Tofa, the media aide to Gov. Abba Kabir-Yusuf. He said the agreements would focus on renewable energy, agriculture and commerce, as…

Naira Rises against EUR, USD as GBP Rally—CBN FX Data The Nigerian local currency, the naira, depreciated against the Great Britain pound (GBP) and South African rand (ZAR) in the official foreign exchange market, according to data obtained from the Central Bank. The British pound, or sterling, ended the week at N2,120 as payment obligations to trading partners in the United Kingdom increased from N2,106 spot rate at the beginning of the week. Meanwhile, demand for the euro (EUR) moderated versus the volume of foreign currency supplied as government trade relations and corporate business activities with partners in the European…

Taking the top seat as the largest single shareholder, Femi Otedola, First Holdco chairman, has raised his direct interest in the group by 4121% in 12 months to 1.689 billion units, according to audited financial statements released. Indirect shares credited to Otedola also increased by about 28% to 2.543 billion units.

Oil Prices Close Positive as China, US Moves to Talk Oil prices are set for a slight weekly gain in the week ending April 18, ahead of the Easter holidays, supported by renewed optimism over US trade talks as both benchmarks rebounded from last week’s four-year lows. The international oil benchmark of Brent crude increased by 4.2% to $66.96 per barrel on Thursday, up from the closing price of $64,26 a barrel last Friday. The US benchmark West Texas Intermediate also rose by 2.8% to $63.72 per barrel, compared to $61.96 at last week’s closing price. Oil markets are closed…