SEC reorganises operations, targets increased efficiency
The Securities and Exchange Commission says the current reorganisation of its operations is aimed at building a better commission and further drive efficiency.
SEC said this in a letter to capital market operators, which was posted on its website. The commission said it had relocated its inspectorate division to the commission’s Lagos zonal office, which it noted, was targeted at ensuring a successful implementation of risk-based supervision model and regulation of systematically important financial institutions in the capital market.
Osinbajo in Davos for World Economic Forum
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has left Nigeria for Davos, Switzerland, to attend this year’s World Economic Forum.
Osinbajo, who is leading the country’s delegation, is accompanied by Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Okey Enelamah, Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh and Minister for Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu as well as Special Adviser on Economic Matters to the President, Dr Adeyemi Dipeolu.
UBA Explores Investment Opportunities at World Economic Forum
The United Bank for Africa (UBA) has said it will be strongly represented at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), which began in Davos, Switzerland tuesday. The bank’s CEO, Kennedy Uzoka, is expected to lead a senior executive team, at one of the most important events on the global economic calendar.
The UBA delegation, according to a statement, would interact with global business and political leaders during the event. The delegation will also include Group Head of Correspondent Banking Sola Yomi-Ajayi and Head of Embassies and Development Organisations( EMDOs), Dupe K. Olusola, responsible for relationships with multilateral and development organisations.
CBN bars banks from transactions in virtual currencies
THE Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, yesterday, banned banks from any transactions in virtual currencies. Director, Financial Policy and Regulation department, CBN, Mr. Kelvin Amugo, who announced the ban said it was necessitated by money laundering and terrorism financing risks inherent in operations of virtual currencies.
In a circular to banks and other financial institutions on virtual currency operations in Nigeria, Amogu stated: “The emergence of Virtual Currencies (VCs) has attracted investments in payments infrastructure that provides new methods of transmitting value over the internet.
We have developed the right energy mix for Nigeria, says Fashola
We started from a very difficult place. The difficulty of where we started from was embodied by a palpable desire for a change in administration. We also started at a time when not only were expectations high, there was also a global slowdown economically.
For all of those dynamics, there were things we could not control because we do not control global affairs. All of those global dynamics have local consequences. The local consequences are the things we are dealing with. I can tell you that this administration has spent a lot of time planning and this is very important because planning takes time. We are in a result business as I continue to remind myself and everybody around me.
CBN must close naira exchange rates’ gap, says Osinbajo
The Central Bank of Nigeria needs to close the gap between the official and black market exchange rates for the naira against the United States dollar “very soon”, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has said.
The VP told reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday that as part of the country’s economic recovery and growth plan, the Federal Government was talking to the CBN on the need to ‘’unify’’ the two exchange rates, Reuters reported.
ARFESPON Kicks against Delisting of 15,128 Pensioners from FG Pay Roll
The Association of Retired Senior Public Officers of Nigeria (ARFESPON) has expressed its dissatisfaction with the recent delisting of about 15,128 pensioners including some of its members from federal government’s pay roll late last year.
ARFESPON, made up of retired management level officers from salary grade level 14 to permanent secretaries, comptrollers-generals of Customs, Immigration and Prisons and career ambassadors, lamented that because of the delisting, some of its members have not received their pension benefits since November last year.
W’Bank, AfDB withhold Nigeria’s $4bn loan request over non-submission of reform plan
Nigeria’s efforts to secure funds from international lenders to lift economy out of recession have suffered a huge setback following the Federal Government’s failure to submit a comprehensive reform plan demanded by World Bank.
The government has been in loan talks with the World Bank for a year where promised to present its proposed reforms to make the economy more resilient and attractive to investment by the end of December, according to Western diplomats and a Nigerian official who preferred anonymity.
Nigeria’ll regain world’s largest cocoa producer position — FG
THE Federal Government has declared that Nigeria will regain her lost position as the world’s largest cocoa producer and exporter soon. Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, disclosed this during the inauguration of the Cocoa Relaunch Committee at the headquarters of the Ministry in Abuja.
Ogbeh said the government’s move to realise the lofty ambition was possible with the inauguration of Dr Olayiwola Oluwole-led committee for the country to attain the top spot from its current seventh position in world cocoa producing countries’ ranking.
Optimism Spikes for Stock Market Recovery
Globally, the year 2016 was a year many nations’ economies were challenged. According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), global economy fell short of projections as the year ended with a gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast 3.1 per cent compared to 3.4 per cent originally projected, and 3.2 per cent achieved in 2015. The global capital markets felt the impact of the economic challenges.
The markets experienced their slowest start to the year in over a decade in 2016, as the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) reported that value traded in cash equity markets declined by 24 per cent in the first half of 2016.
Government moves to tackle corruption at Nigerian ports
Plans are in the pipeline by the Federal Government to deploy its anti-corruption mechanisms to significantly reduce the menace of fraudulent and criminal activities at the Nigerian ports.
This comes as the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), is currently studying the various tariffs across ports in West Africa, with a view to determining how competitive Nigerian ports are compared to its neighbours. An October 2016 report identified corruption, which is closely linked to the inefficiencies at the ports, as costing Nigeria the loss of about N1trillion annually.
Govt releases N965.2m to 79,852 SIWES beneficiaries
The Federal Government has commenced moves to clear the backlog of the Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme with the release of N965.2m to 79,852 students from 136 tertiary institutions across the country.
The Director-General, Industrial Training Fund, Mr. Joseph Ari, gave the figure in Abuja while speaking on the activities of the agency since his assumption of office in September last year.
Seven power plants restarted, three others down
Following the total electricity grid collapse of January 15, seven power plants have been restarted, while three others are still down. According to the daily operational report for the industry obtained by our correspondent in Abuja on Tuesday, three generation plants are experiencing limited supply of gas due to condensate evacuation challenges.
Industry data earlier made available to our correspondent on Monday had indicated that a total system collapse occurred on January 15, 2017, as the Ugwuaji/Makurdi 330kV line 1 (cct U1A) CB tripped at the Ugwuaji transmission station on distance protection 3-phases.
‘Digital finance to add $3.7tr to emerging economies’ GDPs’
It is estimated that digital finance could add about $3.7 trillion to emerging countries’ gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025, if is widely adopted, and represents a six per cent increase above business as usual.
In low-income countries with very low financial inclusion rates, such as Nigeria, Ethiopia, and India, GDP could increase by as much as 12 per cent. Financial inclusion facilitates the delivery of financial services at affordable costs to sections of disadvantaged and low-income segments of society.
Crude proceeds rose by N22.84bn in Nov – NNPC
Latest figures from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation have revealed that the country’s crude oil sales proceeds increased by $74.9m or N22.84bn (using the official exchange rate of N305 to a dollar) in November 2016.
This, however, was despite the 8.4 per cent drop in the international market price of Brent crude in the month under review. Nigeria produces and exports Brent crude.
NAICOM to punish practitioners over offshore risk placement
THE National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, has directed all insurance institutions to ensure that Nigerian insurers, reinsurers and pools be offered and allowed to willingly decide the proportion of the risk they wish to accept, subject to their respective capacities, before any application for approval of offshore placement of the excess.
NAICOM warned that failure to adhere to the directive would result in the imposition of appropriate regulatory sanctions as well as declinature/rejection of such requests.
Global business leaders to promote $12tr economic development target
The Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics base (LADOL), has joined world business promoters in developing a sustainable business outlook that is expected to unlock over $12 trillion in new market value within the next decade.
At a crucial confab in London, the United Kingdom (U.K.) at the weekend, the group under the aegis of Business and Sustainable Development Commission (BSDC), expressed optimism that sustainable business models could open economic opportunities of such high value while at the same time creating over 380 million jobs annually by 2030.
NCC to sanction telecom operators over DNB
The Nigerian Communications Commission has said it will impose on mobile operators a fine of N5m per subscriber who continues to receive unsolicited text messages despite opting for ‘Do Not Disturb’ scheme provided by mobile service providers.
The Executive Vice Chairman, NCC, Prof. Umar Danbatta, said this in Abuja on Tuesday at the opening of a training for academics on the procedures and opportunities available at the International Telecommunications Union.
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