CBN
BUA donates N200 million, ambulances to Rivers, Kwara
BUA Group, through its philanthropic arm, BUA Foundation, has donated six ambulances, food supplies and N100 million each to Rivers and Kwara states. In March, BUA’s chairperson, AbdulSamad Rabiu, announced N1 billion donation to the private sector basket being coordinated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in response to the pandemic. A month later, the group announced a fresh donation of N3.3 billion to help the most hit states of Lagos and Kano respond to the rising figures in their states. Speaking while presenting the ambulances to Nyesome Wike, the Rivers State governor, in Port Harcourt, and to his Kwara State counterpart, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, in Ilorin, representatives of BUA Foundation said the donations are intended to assist both governments in fighting the pandemic. Govern...
Nigerian stocks down by N1.14 trillion in first half
Nigerian stocks closed the first half down with average loss of 8.80 per cent, equivalent to net capital depreciation of N1.14 trillion as investors struggled with a threesome of domestic macroeconomic uncertainties, global decline in crude oil price and trade wars and the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic. Benchmark indices at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), which are generally regarded as sovereign equity indices for Nigeria, showed that Nigerian stocks swiveled through steep decline in first quarter and a major recovery in early months of the second quarter, closing the six-month period with net loss of N1.14 trillion. The All Share Index (ASI), a common value-based index that tracks all share prices at the Exchange, closed first half at 24,479.22 points as against 26,842.07 points recorded...
FIRS generates N66 billion from stamp duties
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has generated the sum of N66 billion from stamp duties between January and May. The FIRS Director, Communications and Liaison Department, Abdullahi Ahmad, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday. Ahmad said the Executive Chairman of FIRS, Muhammad Nami, disclosed this at the inauguration of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Audit and Recovery of Back Years Stamp Duties and the unveiling of the FIRS Adhesive Stamp in Abuja. Mr Nami said the money realised in the first five months of the year from stamp duties represented about 1,000 per cent increase. He stated that the increment was unprecedented when compared to six billion naira collected from January to May 2019. The FIRS boss attributed this increase to the dynamism triggered by Fin...
CBN: We’ll steer Nigeria away from recession
The Central Bank of Nigeria on Wednesday said it would not be deterred in its effort to steer the Nigerian economy away from the looming recession due to the impact of COVID-19. It said this was in spite of the push by some vested interests to impugn the integrity of the bank. The Bank’s Director, Corporate Communications Department, Isaac Okorafor, said the bank had uncovered sinister plans by some persons in Nigeria’s economic and socio-political space to distract the CBN. He said such persons want to discredit the institution through deliberate misinformation, complete fabrications and outright lies. He, however, noted that the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, and his team at the bank would not be deterred by the actions of such persons. Okoroafor said the bank, in pursuit of its mandate ...
Central bank reschedules MPC meeting over holidays
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has rescheduled it’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting from Monday and Tuesday May 25 and 26 to Thursday, May 28. The CBN Director, Corporate Communications Department, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Thursday. Okorafor explained that the rescheduling of the meeting was due to the declaration of May 25 and May 26 as public holidays by the Federal Government to commemorate the Eid-el Fitr. He said for the avoidance of doubt, CBN had put necessary machinery in place for the meeting to now hold for only one day on account of the ongoing COVID-19 national lockdown. He added that this step taken was also to align this meeting with the extant rules of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 and advisories from other rel...
Nigeria begins sale of N150 billion sovereign Sukuk at 11.2 percent
The Federal Government on Thursday began the sale of its third tranche 7-year N150 billion Sovereign Sukuk, the Debt Management Office (DMO) said. The offer circular, which was obtained from its website, said the seven year Islamic Sukuk, referred to as Ijarah, was at a rental rate of 11.2 per cent and would be due in June 2027. The bond, which was aimed at funding key road infrastructure across the six geo-political zones, was payable semi-annually. Subscription for the bond, guaranteed by the government, would close on June 2. The circular said subscribers could purchase N1,000 per unit subject to a minimum subscription of N10,000 and in multiples of N1,000 thereafter with First Bank and Islamic wealth manager, Lotus Capital managing the sale. The DMO said it qualified as securities in w...
Presidency: Nothing wrong with taking more loans
There is nothing wrong in taking more loans to finance specific projects, the Presidency said on Sunday. It urged those criticising efforts in borrowing to develop the country, to desist. Presidential spokesman Femi Adesina said Nigeria has more capacity to accommodate loans. He spoke while featuring on Southwest Political Circuit, a popular political interview programme on Ibadan-based radio station, Fresh F.M. Adesina called from his Aso Rock office to take questions on aspects of COVID-19 management and economic issues. He said that there was no need for Nigerians to raise concern about the country’s rising debt profile because the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is applying loans to the specific projects they are meant for. Although he pointed out that the huge debt, which th...
Godwin Emefiele: Central bank ready to support home grown vaccine
Bloomberg Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN,), Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has announced that the apex bank is ready to support researchers, science-based institutions and biotechnology firms with N100 billion grant in the quest for a homegrown vaccine to fight COVID-19 in Nigeria. Emefiele, who spoke at the commissioning of ThisDay Dome Testing, Treating, Tracing and Isolation Centre in Abuja, said the pandemic has had an unprecedented effect on the global economy, impacting all nations big and small. According to him, so far, the Coalition Against COVID-19, (CACOVID) has raised over N27billion to fund this initiative. He said the donation received so far are being used to build well-equipped isolation centres across the 36 states of the federation. ”’The ThisDay Dome Testing, Treating, Tra...
