Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Equities Investors See N66bn Gain as NGX Rebounds Equities investors saw about N66 billion gain at the Nigerian Exchange, NGX, after persistent sell pressures lower market capitalisation of all listed stock for four out of five trading sessions this week. For the first time this week, trading on the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) rebounded on Friday, reversing a four-day bearish trend with a gain of N65 billion. Specifically, the NGX market capitalisation rose by N65 billion, or 0.09 per cent, closing at N65.819 trillion, up from N65.754 trillion recorded on Thursday. Similarly, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 104.19 points…

FG Unveils Electric Vehicle Charging Station in Abuja The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, has unveiled sustainable energy with Electric Vehicle Charging Station in the country. The charging station was unveiled at the headquarters of Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN) on Thursday in Abuja. It was done in collaboration with Electric Motor Vehicle Company (EMVC). The Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, said that it was a pivotal step in advancing Nigeria’s transition to sustainable energy solutions. Nnaji said that the project was an infrastructure milestone and a testament to the nation’s resolve…

Nigerian Exchange Shrinks as Equities Investors Lose N35bn Equities market capitalisation of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) declined further due to sustained sell pressures, and this time financial stocks were the main target. The local bourse closed today’s trading session in negative territory, as key market performance indicators dropped by 0.05% apiece while year-to-date returns moderated. The overall market downturn was primarily driven by persistent sell pressure in key stocks, such as UNILEVER, ACCESSCORP, AFRIPRUD, and others. In its market update, Atlass Portfolios Limited told investors that the continuous sell-offs over the past five trading sessions have resulted in a cumulative…

Ecobank Named Africa’s Best Bank for Trade Finance Ecobank Group, the leading private pan-African financial services group with unrivalled African expertise, is proud to be named as the Best Trade Finance Provider Bank in Africa, at the Global Finance Trade Finance & Supply Chain Finance Awards 2025. Additionally, our affiliates in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and Rwanda have also been recognised as the Best Trade Finance Provider in their respective markets. Commenting on the award, Michael Larbie, Group Executive Corporate and Investment Banking, said, “We are focused on delivering a wide range of trade finance solutions and excellent trade services…

BOI Announces N10bn GLOW Fund to Support Female Entrepreneurs The Bank of Industry (BOI) has launched a special intervention programme, Project Guaranteed Loans for Women (GLOW), valued at ₦10 billion to support female entrepreneurs across the country. The bank’s Managing Director, Dr Olasupo Olusi, announced the initiative on Thursday in Lagos, stating that the funding “aims to bridge the financial inclusion gap for women in Nigeria.” According to him, Nigeria leads the world in women’s entrepreneurial activity, with 23 million female entrepreneurs accounting for 41 per cent of the country’s micro-businesses. Olusi decried that access to finance remained a major…

Dangote Cement Appoints Fapohunda as Group Financial Officer Dangote Cement has confirmed the appointment of Dr Gbenga Fapohunda as its substantive Group Financial Officer, effective from Jan. 1, 2025. The company confirmed this in a corporate filing released through the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. on Wednesday. Arvind Pathak, Group Managing Director of Dangote Cement, said Fapohunda is a skilled finance professional with over 22 years of relevant experience. His expertise spans Financial Control, Risk Management, Treasury Management, Investment Management, Strategy Development, Corporate Governance, and Corporate Finance. Fapohunda holds a Doctorate in Strategic Management from Rome Business School, and an MBA in…

Air Peace Reduces London Fare By N600,000 Air Peace Ltd. has reduced its Nigeria-London airfare by N600,000 for all travellers emanating from Nigeria. This is contained in a statement signed by the airline’s Head of Corporate Communications, Dr Ejike Ndiulo, on Wednesday in Lagos. According to Ndiulo, the offer is in the airline’s latest promo. He said that the airline’s passengers could enjoy up to N600,000 in savings when the connect London from any Nigerian city. Ndiulo said that the airline was also making an exclusive one free extra luggage offer. He said that the promo would last until March…

Over 90% of Nigerian Lands Unregistered, Minister Says The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, says over 90 per cent of land in Nigeria remains unregistered. He said this has resulted to over 300 billion dollars loss due to longstanding land registration challenges. Dangiwa disclosed this on Tuesday at the National Land Registration and Documentation Programme (NLRDP), a National Workshop, organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in Abuja. He said that since the inception of formal land registration in Nigeria in 1883, the processes have been conducted under a non-compulsory sporadic system. “This process was…

Unity Bank Names Ebenezer Kolawole as Acting CEO The Board of Unity Bank Plc has announced the appointment of Mr. Ebenezer Kolawole (FCA) as the acting managing director/chief executive officer following the retirement of Mrs. Oluwatomi Somefun, who has completed her tenure as MD/CEO. The appointment was announced at the bank’s 18th Annual General Meeting (AGM), held in Lagos on Wednesday, after securing necessary approval from its primary regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Mr. Kolawole is a seasoned and consummate banker with over three decades of industry experience. He began his financial services career at Caribbean Finance Limited…

CBN Sells $55 million to Banks to Boost FX Supply With more than $55 million channelled to banks by the Central Bank (CBN), the naira still lost about N5 per US dollar in the official window by eligible FX market players due to an imbalance between demand and supply. This suggests a deeper than expected US dollar demand and supply gap in the official window, with direct impacts on local banks ability to service Bureau de Change (BDC) operators with $25,000 weekly FX requests. The exchange rate closed at N1,532 to a greenback, a country that is facing pressures against…