Author: Olu Anisere

N20trn Budget Deficit: Nigerian Bonds Selloffs Push Yields Up The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) bonds faced sell pressures in the secondary market as a spot rate hike on local treasury bills stoked a selloff. The market also anticipates an increase in local borrowing from the debt capital market in 2026 due to a huge budget deficit totalling N20.10 trillion. The sizeable budget deficit of more than N20 trillion continues to heighten uncertainty around the government’s near-term funding requirements and supply pressures. Bond supply via primary market auctions will increase in 2026 as some analysts begin to rule out another…

CBN to Open N750bn Ad hoc T-Bills Auction for Subscription The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will be conducting an ad hoc treasury bills auction sale midweek following the latest adjustment to its fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025 offer circular. The auction for next week was not in CBN’s original plan but was influenced by government demand for short-term borrowings amidst tight fiscal performance, some analysts said. The monetary authority seeks to raise about N1.09 trillion above its original plan following a recent spot rate hike on one-year treasury bills allotment at 17.50%. On Wednesday, CBN will float N750.00 billion…

Cardano Rises as Midnight Launch Triggers Rally Cardano (ADAUSD) climbed amidst tight trading activities in the crypto market, up by 1.05% in the past 24 hours, showing resilience near key support. The price ticked up on Sunday amidst negative movements in the global crypto market. The gain has reduced its negative movement in the week to 1%. Cardano is showing strength with a $70 million ADA treasury push and a bullish December setup, but it faces key resistance amidst competing traders.   The token is trading at $0.4165 at the time of filing the report on Sunday, gaining more than…

Naira Lost Despite CBN Intervention, Foreign Reserves Hit $45bn The naira recorded more than N3 weekly exchange rate depreciation despite sustained FX intervention sales by the Apex Bank. The official spot rate closed at N1450.4287 per dollar on Friday, depreciated from N1446.7421 at the end of November. The Nigerian forex market is in short supply of US dollars amid mounting demand for foreign payments by eligible market players. The market recorded inflows from Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) and occasional CBN intervention to improve supply but was unable to lower the demand pressure.  Overall, the naira weakened to close at ₦1,450.43,…

Bitcoin Sinks Below $90K Again in Fresh Crypto Selloffs Failing to break out the resistance level, Bitcoin has fallen sharply over the last 24 hours amidst amid macro uncertainty and significant Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) outflows. The crypto market rattled after the Bank of Japan announced plans to raise its policy rate to 0.75%, the highest since 1995, signalling an end to decades of ultra-loose monetary policy. Analysts said this risks unwinding the yen carry trade of more than $2 trillion strategy where investors borrow low-yield yen to fund riskier assets like Bitcoin. Analysts warn this could trigger forced selling…

FCMB Bolsters Earnings, Net Profit Grows by 52% to N125bn FCMB Plc profit grew by 52% year on year to N125.4 billion at the end of the 9-month period in financial year 2025, detailed from its unaudited financial statement released on Friday. Its unaudited results showed that the group’s gross revenue reached N828.1 billion for the period ended September 2025, a 40.9% year-on-year growth from N587.7 billion posted in the equivalent period in 2024. The top-line performance was driven by a 64.7% growth in interest income, FCMB said in its earnings release on Friday. According to the financial scorecard, non-interest…

BTCUSD Slumps on Spot ETF Outflows, Price Resistance Bitcoin (BTCUSD) fell due to significant outflow relating to EFT selloffs led by BlackRock at the time when several large US firms began to broaden access to native cryptocurrencies. Its negative price movement was driven by significant BTC exchange-traded fund-linked outflow and technical pricing rejection.  U.S. Bitcoin ETFs saw $194.64 million in net outflows on Dec 4, led by BlackRock with a -$112.96 million outflow, and Fidelity took out $54.2 million. These marked the 4th consecutive day of withdrawals that tightened BTC price movement. Trading data showed that BTCUSD faced rejection at…

KT-IRS Denies Direct Tax Deduction from Payers’ Bank Accounts The Katsina State Internal Revenue Service (KT-IRS) has dismissed a viral claim that starting from January 2026, tax authorities would begin automatically deducting taxes from the residents’ bank accounts. The KT-IRS Chairman, Alhaji Muhammad Isiyaku, denied this while briefing newsmen in Katsina on Friday, describing the information as misleading. Isiyaku highlighted the importance of Tax Identification Number (TIN) as emphasised in the new tax-law, clarifying that the registration for tax-payers is free. He explained that the TIN was linked to the National Identification Number (NIN), Bank Verification Number (BVM), and is…

Court Rules on Nestoil’s Application for Injunctive Relief Against 8 Banks The Federal High Court in Abuja, on Thursday, fixed Jan. 22, 2026, for ruling on Nestoil Limited’s request for injunctive relief against eight Nigerian banks and the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank). The eight banks include Access Bank Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Ltd, African Export-Import Bank, ECOBANK, First City Monument Bank, Union Bank, United Bank for Africa, Zenith Bank, FBN Quest Trustees Ltd and FBN Quest Merchant Bank Ltd. The ruling is on the release of the company’s account statements, as well as arguments surrounding receivership proceedings initiated against…

Repo, Overnight Rates Stead as Banks Increase SDF Placement Repo and overnight lending rates held steadied as deposit money banks (DMBs) increased their placement at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Standing Deposit Facility (SDF). After weighing their investment options amidst efforts to boost earnings, banks have accepted 22.50% SDF rate a better alternative compared with other money market instruments. The move has been supported by excess liquidity level in the financial system despite series of open market operations action and treasury bills sales. System liquidity expanded by +4.42% to N3.17 trillion on Thursday from N3.04 trillion in the previous…