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PEOPLES DAILY, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2022 BU$IN€SS
Nigeria Exchange set for startup boom as SEC approves listing rules for tech board
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By ABUBAKAR YUNUS Abuja
The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the rules for listing on Nigeria Exchange’s new Technology Board, the NGX announced Monday.
The technology board is a specialised platform for technology-based companies to list and raise capital on The Exchange. Through the board, NGX aims to encourage investments in indigenous technologically inclined companies and others across Africa, provide greater visibility to these companies and ultimately deepen the Nigerian capital market. Securities listed on NGX Technology Board will be accessible to qualified institutional investors, retail investors, and high-net-worth investors.
The approval has come as the Nigerian Exchange psotions itself to get its bite from Nigeria’s growing startup market that has produced five unicorns (companies at early stage of business but each of whose valuation is already $1 billion and above) and made it the tech capital of Africa.
From major players like Jumia, OPay, Interswitch and Flutterwave to Andela, the newest of the five, the country’s tech-based companies are closely examining digital gaps in the way businesses serve consumers. They are doing so with turnkey solutions with the kind of promise and charm that investors from places like Sweden and U.S. cities of Silicon Valley and San Francisco are unable to resist.
But NGX’s vision is even bigger than Nigeria, where startups hauled in one out of every three dollars of fintech funding that accrued to Africa, the Middle East and Pakistan for last year.
The push will carve a path to additional capital for startups with some years in business desiring to raise cash to scale their operations further.
It is at this level of capitalraising intervention that the NGX hopes to be a continental major player, as Africa’s fintech revenue warms up to jump by 800 per cent to $30.3 billion by 2025, according a study by McKinsey & Co released in August.
“This is a landmark achievement that will position the Exchange as an attractive destination for capital formation by companies within the Technology Sector,” said the CEO of NGX, Temi Popoola. “We are confident that NGX Technology Board will encourage start-ups, both Nigerian-founded and from other African countries, to list on
There’s plot to frame Emefiele for terrorism, CSOs raise the alarm
By ABUBAKAR YUNUS Abuja
Acoalition of civil society organisations (CSOs) says there a plot to oust Godwin Emefiele, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), from office on trumped-up terrorism charges. Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Monday, Tochukwu Ohazuruike, convener of the coalition, alleged that the Department of State Services (DSS) has “secretly” filed terrorism charges against the CBN governor.
Ohazuruike said in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/2255/2022, the secret police is praying the court for an order to remand Emefiele for at least 60 days.
“There is a suit at the high court with the major target of getting the CBN governor out of office that motion has the number 294/M/294/2022,” the convener said.
“On the 7th of December another ex parte motion was secretly filed at the federal high court Abuja, this time, directly by the State Security Service (SSS). The suit is between the State Security Service and Godwin Emefiele.
“Our intelligence which discovered this shocking development showed that the suit was filed at the court without disclosing the full identity of the defendant, Mr Emefiele, to the court.
“They are working on the premise that the court will grant an order to arrest Mr Emefiele who is the defendant for a meaning of 60 days hiding under Section 66 of the terrorism prevention and prohibition act 2022.
Peter Afunnaya, spokesman of the DSS, is yet to comment on the allegation.
Calls put through to his phone did not go through and a text message sent to him has not been responded to.
Tek Experts Wins IT Support Company of the Year Award
By ABUBAKAR Y OJIMA,Abuja
Tek Experts was nominated and clinched the coveted awards for the success of its suite of managed IT and tech staffing solutions, which has contributed immensely to deepening capacity building in digital skills and the overall growth of the IT industry in Nigeria.
Started in 2019 to celebrate influential non-listed companies in the real sector of the Nigerian economy, the Nigeria Business Leadership Award has become a coveted prestigious platform that draws attention to remarkable accomplishments by operators across several industries. The award, therefore, underscores Tek Experts’ contributions to the Nigerian economy through innovative solutions that have shaped the IT industry.
The Country Manager of Tek Experts, Olugbolahan Olusanya, who received the award in the company of Adewale Adeyemi, Tek Experts’ Head of Executive Business Development, and Abolaji Abubakar, Sales Manager, expressed delight at the recognition and promised to sustain the momentum through quality, excellent IT support services delivery.
He said, “We’re excited about this. This is a recognition of the impact we are making in the Tech/ IT ecosystem in Nigeria. For us, this is dedicated to the over 2000 employees in Nigeria committed to maintaining our position as a global provider of technical talent solutions and trusted partner to some of the world’s largest and most-respected organizations. We also dedicate this to our counterparts in Africa, and everyone on the global scene. Thank you all and thank you BusinessDay.”
Speaking further, the elated Olusanya said, “Over the past few years, Tek Experts has remained at the forefront of technical talent innovation and this recognition attests to its impact in the ecosystem as well as an acknowledgement that the industry has paid attention. There is a technological evolution that is driving the fourth industrial revolution and what Tek Experts is doing will secure a place for all those willing to play an active part in it.
“We have a lot of confidence in the potential of this market and we do not take for granted the expectations of the market on us. This recognition inspires us to do more and I assure all our stakeholders that we will not drop the ball. We remain committed to discovering and developing technical talents needed to support the growth of the ecosystem and the economy at large.”
With over 2,000 employees in Nigeria alone, Tek Experts has grown to become one of the fastest-growing tech talent solutions companies in the country. Since launching in 2018, the company has made a significant impact in the Nigerian IT industry offering strategic technical support to top players across various industries.
Oil price falls below $80 a barrel as central banks hike interest rates
Oil prices, on Friday, fell as the market assessed the aftermath of interest rate hikes at central banks.
Brent crude futures fell 2.28 percent to $78.87 per barrel while West Texas Intermediate futures slipped 2.76 percent to $74.01 per barrel.
The development comes as central banks in Europe raised interest rates.
Commenting on the downward trend of the commodity, analysts from ANZ Research told Reuters that tighter monetary policy is already having an impact on industrial activity.
“The prospect of further tightening following hawkish comments from policy makers weighed on sentiments,” the analysts said.
On Thursday, the US Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to a targeted range between 4.25 percent and 4.5 percent, indicating it will raise interest rates further next year.
The Bank of England and the European Central Bank raised interest rates (the same day) to 3.5 percent and 2.5 percent respectively, to fight inflation.
Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency (IEA) raised its 2023 global oil demand growth estimate to 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd).
Analysts from J.P Morgan Commodity Research also expect the United States to start restocking its strategic petroleum reserves in the first quarter of 2023.
“Based on our quarterly projections, this window (for repurchase) will open in first quarter of 2023 with initial purchase of around 60 million barrels over first half of 2023,” they said.
For Nigeria, plummeting crude oil prices means more woes for a country whose oil sector is already battered by theft, sabotage as well as poor production.
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) said the country lost 619.7 million barrels of crude oil valued at N16.25 trillion ($46.16 billion) from 2009 to 2020.
Temitope Omosuyi, investment strategist, Afrinvest Securities Ltd, told TheCable that it is expected that countries will witness economic slowdown in 2023.
“A major driver is the recent all-round increase in interest rate. It is expected that it will take a full toll on the economy in 2023 in terms of growth,” he said.
Omosuyi said a unique challenge Nigeria’s oil industry was faced with in 2022 was its failure to meet the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) qouta when oil prices were high.
“For next year, what it actually means is that if we are now ramping up oil production, there may be a bit of challenge in terms of maximising oil revenue because oil prices are expected to decline and if we are looking at increasing production so as to maximise revenue, we may not be able to get the best from oil,” he said.
As such, he said oil exports will affected and “it won’t be good for foreign reserves and it will have an effect on the foreign exchange (FX) market”.
Another twist to the issue is that if oil prices are low in 2023, he said OPEC and its allies may want to cut its quota.
“It means even if Nigeria has the leeway to ramp up and address local challenges that have impeded production, but because in 2023, OPEC would want prices to stay somewhat high, they will want to review quota downwards — meaning Nigeria’s capacity will now be limited because of lower oil prices,” he added.
Still, in 2023, the country hopes to see less oil theft and more crude oil production.
By mid-2023, Timipre Sylva, minister of petroleum resources, believes the country should be positioned to meet the production quota set by OPEC, as the new Dangote refinery is expected to come on stream in the first quarter of next year.
Stock Watch: Monday, December 19, 2022
Low OPEN VolumeClose High Symbol CHANGE Trades Low OPEN VolumeClose High Symbol CHANGE Trades 2.80 3.15 0 5.80 6.00 ACCESS -0.35 0 0.11 0.21 0 0.21 0.21 MBENEFIT 0.00 1.94 3.94 0 3.94 3.94 AFRIPRUD 0.00 0.27 0.27 0 0.27 0.27 AGLEVENT 0.00 0 0 0.43 0.43 0 0.43 0.43 MCNICHOLS 0.00 1.05 2.05 261 2.05 2.05 MEDVIEWAIR 0.00
0.64 0.64 0 0.64 0.64 AIICO 0.00 4.60 8.60 0 8.60 8.60 BERGER 0.00 37.00 68.30 0 67.00 67.00 BETAGLAS -1.30 0 0 0 124.80 184.80 0 184.80 184.80 MOBIL0.00 0.20 0.20 970 0.20 0.20 MULTIVERSE 0.00 3.50 3.50 0 3.50 3.50 NAHCO 0.00
9.65 10.05 0 9.65 10.05 CADBURY -0.40 31.50 34.00 0 31.50 31.50 CAP -2.50 1.90 1.92 0 1.90 1.90 CAVERTON -0.02 0 0 0 78.50 78.70 0 79.50 79.50 NB 0.80 0.78 0.78 0 0.78 0.78 NEIMETH 0.00 2.60 2.60 0 2.60 2.60 NEM 0.00
1.72 1.84 0 1.72 1.72 CHAMPION -0.12 23.25 23.25 0 23.25 23.25 CONOIL 0.00 0.20 0.20 0 0.20 0.20 CORNERST 0.00 0.20 0.20 0 0.20 0.20 COURTVILLE 0.00 6.10 6.10 0 6.10 6.10 CUSTODIAN 0.00 1.75 1.75 0 1.75 1.75 CUTIX 0.00 186.00 186.00 0 186.00 186.00 DANGCEM 0.00 6.00 6.65 0 6.00 6.25 DANGFLOUR -0.65
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14.60 14.55 0 14.60 14.60 DANGSUGAR 0.05 0 1.80 2.00 0 1.80 2.00 DIAMONDBNK -0.20 0 3.37 3.37 0 3.37 3.37 EKOCORP 0.00 0 4.30 4.70 0 4.30 4.30 ETERNA -0.40 0 14.00 14.00 0 14.00 14.00 ETI 0.00 0 7.35 7.80 0 7.45 7.60 FBNH -0.35 0 1.62 1.65 0 1.62 1.67 FCMB -0.03 0 1.91 1.96 0 1.92 1.98 FIDELITYBK -0.04 0 4.95 4.95 99 4.95 4.95 FIDSON 0.00 0 0.33 0.33 0 0.33 0.33 FIRSTALUM 0.00 0 21.85 21.85 0 21.85 21.85 FLOURMILL 0.00 0 29.60 30.70 0 29.60 29.60 FO -1.10 0 0.20 0.20 0 0.20 0.20 FTNCOCOA 0.00 0 12.20 13.05 0 12.20 12.20 GLAXOSMITH-0.85 0 32.60 32.95 0 33.50 33.50 GUARANTY 0.55 0 72.00 72.00 0 72.00 72.00 GUINNESS 0.00 0 1.18 1.18 0 1.18 1.18 HONYFLOUR 0.00 0 1.53 1.53 0 1.53 1.53 IKEJAHOTEL 0.00 0 31.50 31.50 0 31.50 31.50 INTBREW 0.00 0 0.51 0.54 0 0.53 0.53 JAIZBANK -0.01 0 0.20 0.20 0 0.20 0.21 JAPAULOIL 0.00 0 23.25 23.25 0 23.25 23.25 JBERGER 0.00 0 0.44 0.44 0 0.44 0.44 JOHNHOLT 0.00 0 0.30 0.30 0 0.30 0.30 LASACO 0.00 0 1.36 1.36 0 1.36 1.36 LEARNAFRCA 0.00 0 0.72 0.72 0 0.72 0.72 LINKASSURE 0.00 0 0.52 0.49 0 0.52 0.52 LIVESTOCK 0.03 0 1.83 1.83 0 1.83 1.83 MANSARD 0.00 0 2.45 2.45 0 2.45 2.45 MAYBAKER 0.00 0 1,475.00 1,475.00 0 1,475.00 NESTLE 0.00 1.60 1.65 0 1.60 1.60 NPFMCRFBK -0.05 4.60 4.80 0 4.60 4.75 OANDO -0.20 80.00 76.20 0 80.00 80.00 OKOMUOIL 3.80 64.00 64.00 0 64.00 64.00 PRESCO 0.00 0.50 0.50 0 0.50 0.50 PRESTIGE 0.00 12.30 12.30 0 12.30 12.30 PZ 0.00 4.20 4.20 0 4.20 4.20 REDSTAREX 0.00 0.20 0.21 0 0.20 0.21 REGALINS -0.01 0.50 0.50 0 0.50 0.50 RESORTSAL 0.00 0.21 0.23 0 0.21 0.22 ROYALEX -0.02 640.00 640.00 405 640.00 640.00 SEPLAT 0.00 1,475.00
0.20 0.20 0 0.21 0.21 SOVRENINS 0.01
0 46.50 46.00 0 46.50 46.50 STANBIC 0.50 0 102.00 102.00 122 102.00 102.00 STANBICETF30 0.00 0 1.97 1.96 0 1.97 1.97 STERLNBANK 0.01 0 203.00 203.00 0 203.00 203.00 TOTAL0.00 0 6.10 6.10 632 6.10 6.10 TRANSCOHOT 0.00 0 1.15 1.21 0 1.16 1.18 TRANSCORP -0.05 0 9.60 9.60 0 9.60 9.60 UACN 0.00 0 1.74 1.92 0 1.74 1.74 UAC-PROP -0.18 0 7.60 7.80 0 7.90 7.95 UBA 0.10 0 6.00 6.05 0 6.00 6.05 UBN -0.05 0 2.89 2.94 0 2.89 2.91 UCAP -0.05 0 36.30 37.00 0 36.30 36.30 UNILEVER -0.70 0 0.27 0.27 0 0.27 0.27 UNIONDAC 0.00 0 1.00 0.99 0 1.00 1.00 UNITYBNK 0.01 0 2.04 1.97 0 2.14 2.14 UPL 0.17 0 0.23 0.23 0 0.23 0.23 VERITASKAP 0.00 0 4.50 4.99 0 4.50 4.50 VITAFOAM -0.49 0 11.30 11.50 0 11.30 11.65 WAPCO -0.20 0 0.40 0.40 0 0.40 0.40 WAPIC0.00 0 0.59 0.61 0 0.59 0.61 WEMABANK -0.02 0 21.20 22.70 0 21.70 22.50 ZENITHBANK -1.00 0
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Top Gainers
Stock Close Gain UPL 1.14 0.13 LIVESTOCK 0.52 0.01 SOVRENINS 0.21 0.03 OKOMUOIL 60.00 1.80 GUARANTY 23.50 0.55 Top Losers
Stock Close Loss DIAMONDBNK 1.30 -0.10 BOCGAS 2.59 -0.22 VITAFOAM 3.50 -0.39 DANGFLOUR 6.00 -0.45 UAC-PROP 1.74 -0.18
