Author: Ogochukwu Ndubuisi

Bearish Sentiment Squeezes Global Equities, Markets Close in Red With bears on the rampage, the global equities delivered a broadly negative performance last week as investors navigated a sharp deterioration in U.S.- Europe geopolitical relations. The market temperature became tense after President Donald Trump announced plans for new 10% tariffs on eight European countries beginning Feb. 1 – potentially rising to 25% in June. According to Lagos-based investment firm Anchoria Securities Limited, equity benchmarks in the US ended slightly lower as geopolitical headwinds intersected with already cooling sentiment after recent gains. Stock market analysts said the Nasdaq declined by -0.04%…

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has debunked widespread reports suggesting that beneficiaries of the federal government’s student loan scheme

WHO Says U.S. Withdrawal Makes “The World Less Safe” The World Health Organization (WHO) has expressed regrets over the United States’ notification of withdrawal from the organization, saying the decision makes “the world less safe”. WHO, in a statement acknowledged several significant contributions of the U.S. to the organization since its founding. The U.S. formally withdrew from the WHO on Thursday, making good on an executive order that President Donald Trump issued on Jan. 20, 2025, his first day in office. “As a founding member of the World Health Organization (WHO), the United States of America has contributed significantly to…

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Kenya’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency (LTFC) Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘B-‘ with a stable outlook.

Anambra Plans Pro-Rata Pay to Stop Monday Sit-at-Home The Anambra Government has announced plans to commence pro-rata payment of salaries to civil servants from February 2026 as part of measures to end the lingering Monday sit-at-home. The decision was reached at the end of the tenure retreat of the State Executive Council (SEC) held on Friday in Awka. During the retreat, members reviewed the activities of Gov. Chukwuma Soludo administration over the last four years and outlined priorities for the new term beginning March 17, 2026. The Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, disclosed this while briefing journalists on Saturday…

Unified Identity Data will Eliminate Predatory Loan Sharks – eTranzact CEO eTranzact Plc has called for the adoption of a unified and tokenised national identity system to expand access to affordable credit and curb the exploitation of Nigerians by loan sharks. The Chief Executive Officer of eTranzact Plc, Mr Niyi Toluwalope, made the call at a stakeholders’ engagement themed “Shaping the Future of Payments: Balancing Regulation and Innovation.” This was disclosed in a statement issued on Saturday in Lagos by the company’s media unit. Toluwalope identified gaps in the nation’s credit and identity ecosystem as a major driver of the…

NGX Transactions Decline by 23.6% in Weekly Trading Investors traded a total of 3.748 billion shares valued at N99.865 billion in 237,179 deals on the floor of the Exchange during the week. This represented a decline from the 4.607 billion shares worth N130.636 billion exchanged in 263,439 deals in the previous week. As a result, transaction value on the Exchange fell by 23.6 per cent, with the market recording two sessions of gains and three sessions of losses during the week. Meanwhile, the Financial Services Industry led the activity chart with 1.742 billion shares valued at N44.893 billion traded in…

Naira Settles at N1,421 Per U.S. Dollar as FX Pressures Ease The naira settled at N1,421 per dollar at the Nigerian foreign exchange market on Friday as FX pressures eased slightly amidst growing international payments. The official rate peaked at an intraday high of N1,423.5000, according to data released by the Central Bank of Nigeria, suggesting fresh market intervention saved the day. FX data movements over the week revealed that the official spot fx rate weakened by about N4 week on week due to a slowdown in FX inflows. The market anticipates that the local currency will remain stable at…

NMDPRA to Accelerate Gas Distribution for Industrialisation The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) says it will enforce strict compliance while accelerating gas distribution to drive industrialisation and lower production costs nationwide. Mr Saidu Mohammed, Authority Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, made the disclosure on Friday in Port Harcourt during an inspection of petroleum and gas facilities in Rivers. Mohammed said the authority was committed to engaging operators across the midstream and downstream segments while providing the necessary regulatory support to achieve desired outcomes. He said the inspection of facilities formed part of the Federal Government’s commitment to…

CBN Promotes Inclusive Cash, Digital Payments System The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says Nigeria must strike a balance between cash and digital payments to ensure rural communities, informal traders and small businesses are not left behind. CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, made this known on Friday at the 2026 Committee of Heads of Bank Operations (CHBO) Conference in Lagos. He also said cash remained essential to economic inclusion in spite of the rapid growth in electronic transactions. Cardoso, who was represented by his Special Adviser on Operational Risk Management, Mr Fatai Karim, spoke at the conference with ttheme, “Reimagining…