Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Champion Breweries Secures SEC Approval for ₦42bn Public Offer Champion Breweries Plc has secured approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise ₦42 billion through a public offer of ordinary shares priced at ₦16 each. The company disclosed the approval in a corporate filing with the Nigerian Exchange Ltd., confirming regulatory clearance to proceed with the offer. Under the offer, Champion Breweries is issuing 2.625 billion ordinary shares at ₦16 per share to investors. The statement said the offer is open to both institutional and retail investors and is designed to strengthen the company’s capital base. Champion Breweries said…

Oyedele Addresses KPMG’s ‘Errors’ in Nigeria Tax Laws In reaction to KPMG’s major errors notifications, the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Taiwo Oyedele, has clarified the policy intent behind Nigeria’s newly gazetted tax laws. The clarification comes after KPMG Nigeria’s report, which flagged potential errors, gaps, and inconsistencies in the newly gazetted tax laws. The tax firm had raised concerns over taxation of shares, dividend treatment, non-resident obligations, and foreign exchange deductions, warning that these could affect businesses and taxpayers. In a statement issued on Saturday, Oyedele insisted that most issues highlighted were a significant…

Russia Deploys Nuclear-Capable Oreshnik Missile in Attack on Ukraine At least four people were killed and 19 others injured in Kiev after Russia pummelled Ukraine with missiles and drones overnight, using its nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile to target western Ukraine. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Friday that a doctor was among the dead, while four medical workers were injured. Critical infrastructure had been hit in the attack, and some parts of the city were without power or water, he wrote on Telegram. The Russian Defence Ministry said on Telegram that the strikes were carried out in response to an alleged…

Trump Says he Supports New Sanctions on Russia Over Ukraine War President Donald Trump said he supports a new package of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine, but hopes the measures will not have to be used. “I support it,” Trump told U.S. broadcaster Fox News in an interview published on Thursday, adding: “I hope we don’t have to use it.” Trump said the United States had already imposed “big sanctions on Russia” and claimed the Russian economy was “very bad,” while noting that Russia is larger and more influential than Ukraine. In recent months, Trump has introduced…

Naira Drops at Official Window as 2026 FX Projections Emerge The naira declined against the U.S. dollar at the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) on Friday as corporate foreign payments began to pick up again. The FX spot rate dropped by 0.24% to ₦1,423.17/$ after a four-day gaining streak, touching an intraday high of ₦1,430, suggesting market demand eclipsed supply significantly. The naira also dropped to ₦1,465/$ in the parallel market, reflecting renewed currency pressures and softening sentiment across both the regulated official segment and the informal foreign exchange market. In its outlook for 2026, AIICO Capital Limited said the…

Nigerian Exchange Expands as Equity Investors Gain N954bn The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) maintained its positive momentum on Friday, concluding the week with the All-Share Index advancing 0.93% to 162,298.08 points. Data from the local bourse revealed that the Nigerian bourse expanded to ₦103.78 trillion as investors gained about N934 billion due to sustained positive sentiment. Trading activities remained upbeat with 0.93% growth in key performance indicators at the end of the session. The surge was driven by buying interest in MTNN (+7.63%), DANGSUGAR (+9.23%), and WAPCO (+2.04%). Market breadth remained positive at 1.68x, with 47 gainers outstripping 28 losers. IMG…

MTN Nigeria Soars to New High Ahead of Q4 Earnings MTN Nigeria Plc’s market value increased by about 8% at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) during an intraday trading session on Friday as its share price reached its highest level in the last 52 weeks. The telecom stock pushed above the barrier ahead of the fourth-quarter earnings release in the coming weeks. A slew of analysts expect MTN Nigeria to pay a final dividend and are looking forward to a potential public offering pledge by the group for Nigerian shareholders. The ticker inched higher to N550 on Friday, gaining N39 on…

UN Regrets U.S. Withdrawal From Dozens of International Organisations UN Secretary-General António Guterres has expressed regrets over the decision of the White House to withdraw the United States from 35 international organisations and 31 UN entities. Guterres, in a statement by the UN Spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric on Thursday in New York, said the UN has a responsibility to deliver for those who depend on the organisation. President Donald Trump had directed the immediate withdrawal of the U.S. from some international organisations, Conventions, and Treaties that his administration considers as being contrary to the interests of the country. In a White…

Listed Companies: Nigerian Exchange Ranks Third Highest in Africa The Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) says Nigeria’s stock market ranks third-highest in Africa by the number of listed companies. According to the OECD Africa Markets Report 2025, the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) has 156 listed companies, ranking behind Egypt’s Stock Exchange with 245 listings and South Africa’s Johannesburg Stock Exchange with 204 and market capitalisation of about $33 billion. “South Africa has the most developed public equity market, accounting for 60 per cent of the region’s market capitalisation. “Its market capitalisation to GDP ratio (84 per cent) is…

Lagos Assembly Passes ₦4.44trn 2026 Budget The Lagos State House of Assembly has passed a ₦4.44 trillion budget for the 2026 fiscal year, adopting the House Committee on Economic Planning and Budget’s report. The Chairman of the committee, Mr Sa’ad Olumoh, presented the report during plenary on Thursday, outlining assumptions, projections and structure of the ‘Budget of Shared Prosperity’. Olumoh said the framework was guided by macroeconomic indices, including an exchange rate benchmark of ₦1,512 to the dollar. He added that assumptions included an inflation rate of 14.7 per cent, oil production of 2.06 million barrels daily, and a benchmark…