Category: Capital Market

FMDQ Group Plc yesterday joined the global community to commemorate the 2022 World Environment Day with a reaffirmation of its commitment to the preservation of the environment.

FMDQ Group stated that its strong commitment to the preservation of the environment is firmly entrenched in its sustainability agenda, which has the ‘environment’ as one of its five sustainability pillars and is hinged on the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 – Affordable and Clean Energy, Goal 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production, and Goal 13 – Climate Action.

The group noted that ‘Only One Earth’, the theme for the 2022 World Environment Day, championed by the United Nations Environment Programme, was a reminder of the duty to ensure the preservation of environment through sustainable environmental practices, as climate change remains an existential threat to humanity.

“FMDQ Group remains focused on implementing more sustainable-focused initiatives in support of the actualisation of Nigeria’s ambitious NDC commitment and is commemorating the 2022 World Environment Day with the launch of its recycling initiative – FMDQ Triple R Initiative – in support of a circular economy. FMDQ Group is also providing support to the Lagos State Government on the issuance of its maiden blue bond with proceeds aimed at tackling some of the issues with Lagos waterways and address attendant environmental challenges,” FMDQ Group stated.

According to the group, in recognition of the need for Nigeria to continuously stay at the forefront of the global sustainable finance drive, and acknowledgment of the potential of Nigerian financial markets to provide the requisite funding for climate-resilient investments, FMDQ Group has taken the lead in championing sustainable finance initiatives.

Notable amongst these initiatives include the launch and successful implementation of the Nigerian Green Bond Market Development Programme (NGBDP), with Financial Sector Deepening Africa, to accelerate the development of green bonds as a tool for Nigeria to broaden investments in green projects and assets. Now in its 5th year, the NGBDP has successfully impacted over 928 financial market stakeholders through over 34 capacity building meetings and supported the issuance of four corporate green bonds and two sovereign green bonds with a total value of N58.51 billion. The NGBDP also recently launched an Impact Report on its activities and how it has supported the use of green bonds in financing low carbon infrastructure in Nigeria.

FMDQ Group also facilitated the establishment of and serves as the secretariat to the Financial Centre for Sustainability (FC4S), Lagos, the 23rd member of the International Network of Financial Centres (FC4S Network) headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, whose sole aim is to accelerate the expansion of green and sustainable finance in Nigeria as well as promote the adoption of the UN 2030 SDGs.

In a bid to close the gap created by the absence of a dedicated platform for the listing of green and sustainable securities, FMDQ Group, through its wholly owned subsidiary, FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited, launched the premier Green Exchange in Africa – FMDQ Green Exchange. FMDQ Green Exchange is a virtual information repository platform dedicated to driving the growth of green and sustainable securities and providing reliable green data in the Nigerian financial markets – through promoting transparency, good governance, and compliance – by showcasing securities issuances that align with global Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles.

FMDQ Group’s recent admittance as an Observer Member of the ICMA Green Bond Principles is also pivotal to FMDQ Green Exchange’s ability to provide issuers the assurance of its compliance with globally acceptable standards.

Nigeria, in response to being listed among the top 10 most vulnerable countries to climate change globally, has, through its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), as stated in the NDC Interim Report, pledged a 20 per cent reduction of emissions below business as usual and a further 45 per cent reduction conditional on receiving financial support, capacity building and technology transfer. Globally, financial markets are assuming a more significant role in the drive to curb the impact of climate change through advocacy and increased investment in sustainability-linked financial instruments, such as green and blue bonds, as the long-term financial benefits of integrating ESG principles in investments far outweigh any immediate cost.

FMDQ Group is a vertically integrated financial market infrastructure (FMI) group, positioned to provide registration, listing, quotation and noting services; integrated trading, clearing and central counterparty, settlement, and risk management for financial market transactions; depository of securities, as well as data and information services, across the debt capital, foreign exchange, derivatives and equity markets, through its wholly owned subsidiaries – FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited, FMDQ Clear Limited, FMDQ Depository Limited and FMDQ Private Markets Limited.

Shareholders of Unilever Nigeria Plc have approved the payment of a dividend per share of 50 kobo as cash dividend for the 2021 business year, its first dividend in two years.

At the Annual General Meeting in Lagos, shareholders approved the audited the report and accounts for the year ended December 31, 2021, with a commendation for the board and management over the return of the fast moving consumer goods company to profitability.

The audited report showed that revenue from its continuing operations increased by 35 per cent to N70.5 billion in 2021 from N52.2 billion in 2020. Profit before tax from continuing operations stood at N1.9 billion compared with a loss of N4.5 billion in 2020. Profit after tax rose to N700 million as against a loss of N3.8 billion in 2020.

Chairman, Unilever Nigeria Plc, Nnaemeka Achebe commended the shareholders for their trust and loyalty to the company, despite the challenging business environment in the last two years.

He noted that despite the challenges faced by the company, its operational discipline on secondary sales, trade debt, overdue, and cash management drove the right kind of growth in 2021 as it continued to see growth coming back to the business.

He assured that the management would maintain its strategic approach to the company’s operations to further achieve profitability and long-term growth.

Managing Director, Unilever Nigeria, Mr. Carl Cruz, said the considerable improvement in the 2021 financial statements was a direct outcome of the company’s management and staff’s renewed commitment to reaching new heights.

“Unilever Nigeria Plc’s increased focus on business fundamentals such as reinvesting in the brands, enhancing secondary sales, and ensuring adequate liquidity while tightening controls on cost in 2020, resulted in better operational discipline and governance of the business in 2021. We prioritiSed serving the mainstream consumer, ensuring that we met their needs.

“We saw topline growth of 35 per cent over last year and a consistent quarter-on-quarter average growth of 5.0 per cent. The bottom line grew by N7.4 billion from a loss of N4.0 billion in 2020. Our active management of cost inflation benefitted our profit and loss by 800 basis points improvement on gross margin. Cash managed properly such that we are declaring dividends after two years at 50 kobo per share. Cash generated in the year at N18.8 billion from N1.2 billion in 2020,” Cruz said.

He assured that Unilever Nigeria would continue to monitor the business environment and respond appropriately to the challenges with a view to providing solutions through its brands and operations.

Investors in Nigerian equities closed weekend with net capital gains of N598 billion despite the onset of a considerable profit-taking.

Investors sought to monetise substantial capital gains built up over weeks of successive rally but gains by large-cap telecommunication stocks rallied the overall market position to a positive closing.

Benchmark indices at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) at the weekend indicated average return of 2.09 per cent, equivalent to net capital gains of N598 billion. The rally nudged the average year-to-date return to 26.61 per cent.

The All Share Index (ASI)- the value-based common index that tracks share prices of all quoted equities at the NGX, closed weekend at 54,085.30 points as against its week’s opening index of 52,979.96 points. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities increased correspondingly from its week’s opening value of N28.562 trillion to close at N29.160 trillion.

With more than two decliners for every advancer, the positive overall market position was driven majorly by gains recorded by Airtel Africa, the only large-cap stock within the top 10 gainers. On the back of rekindled foreign investors’ appetite, Airtel Africa’s share price rose by 20.2 per cent to close at N1, 767 per share, the third highest gain for the week and the highest for any large-cap stock.

The underlying sentiment was generally negative with 54 losers to 23 gainers during the week, compared with 37 gainers and 42 losers recorded in the previous week.

Expectedly, sectoral indices closed negative.Telecommunications stocks are not represented by any sectoral index, but they hold substantial influence on the overall market benchmark, the ASI. The NGX Insurance Index recorded above-average loss of 6.27 per  cent. The NGX Consumer Goods Index followed with a drop of 3.94 per  cent. The NGX Oil and Gas Index dipped by 0.86 per cent.

The NGX Banking Index declined by 0.76 per cent. The NGX Industrial Goods Index slipped by 0.67 per cent. The NGX 30 Index, which tracks 30 largest stocks at the stock market, declined by 2.28 per cent. The NGX Pension Index- which tracks stocks that have been specially screened in line with pension funds investment guidelines, posted a negative return of -2.74 per cent while the NGX Lotus Islamic Index- which tracks ethical stocks that comply with Islamic principles, also recorded negative return of -2.23 per cent.

On the upside, Industrial and Medical Gases Nigeria led with a gain of 20.88 per cent to close at N11 per share. MRS Oil Nigeria followed with a gain of 20.59 per cent to close at N16.40 per share. Conoil rose by 9.95 per cent to close at N34.25 while FTN Cocoa Processors appreciated by 9.37 per cent to close at 35 kobo per share.

On the downside, UAC of Nigeria led the losers with a drop of 27.08 per cent to close at N10.50. Global Spectrum Energy Services followed with a loss of 18.77 per cent to close at N2.77. Royal Exchange dropped by 14.04 per cent to close at 98 kobo. RT Briscoe lost 13.85 per cent to close at 56 kobo while Jaiz Bank dipped by 13.33 per cent to close at 78 kobo per share. Jaiz Bank’s share price was during the week adjusted for dividend payment.

The momentum of activities also slowed down with total turnover of 1.84 billion shares worth N27.29 billion in 27,273 deals last week in contrast to a total of 3.02 billion shares valued at N31.78 billion traded in 29,153 deals two weeks ago.

The financial services sector remained atop activity chart with a turnover of 1.29 billion shares valued at N10.75 billion in 12,379 deals, representing 69.90 per cent and 39.37 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively. The conglomerates sector followed with 251.105 million shares worth N1.66 billion in 1,371 deals while consumer goods sector placed third with a turnover of 105.60 million shares worth N2.52 billion in 4,263 deals.

Banking stocks dominated the activities chart. The trio of Ecobank Transnational Incorporation, Jaiz Bank and Access Holdings were the most active stocks, accounting for 640.650 million shares worth N4.825 billion in 2,098 deals, representing 34.81 per cent and 17.68 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

“The market keeps going against general sentiment and closed the week positive. The negative market sentiment is waning. A positive close in the next trading session may signal the beginning of a bullish trend. A negative close may signal a possible retracement,” Analysts at Arthur Stevens Asset Management stated at the weekend.

Analysts at Cordros Capital noted that with the recent decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to hike the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) by 150 basis points to 13.00 per cent, negative sentiments will dominate market performance in the short term.

“Nonetheless, we think a short-term market correction will present opportunities for investors to make re-entry in stocks with sound fundamentals and attractive dividend yields. Overall, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks as the fragility of the macroeconomic environment remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings,” Cordros Capital stated.

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Cititrust Holdings Plc, a diversified finance and investment group, has listed its shares on the NASD OTC Securities Exchange, paving the way for investors to trade on the shares of the group.

A total of one billion ordinary shares of Cititrust Holdings were listed at N5.5 per share, giving the group initial market capitalisation of N5.5 billion.

Cititrust Holdings is a finance and investment group with operations covering commercial banking, investment banking, wealth management, pension management, insurance, and alternative investment and securities trading.

Since 2007, Cititrust Holdings has grown from its home Nigerian market to establishing footprints in 12 African countries including Ghana, Rwanda, Botswana, Liberia, Benin Republic, Malawi, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Cote d’Ivoire and South Africa. It also has operations in United Kingdom.

The group noted that the upscaling of its operations in 2019 into a vibrant and reputable financial services provider aligns with the strategic vision of its shareholders to build an enduring institution that serves as a multifunctional service offering for its clients.

The NASD OTC Securities Exchange is the government-approved over-the-counter (OTC) platform for trading in unlisted public companies.

NASD provides companies and investing public an orderly and transparent market for shares to be traded, such that with transparency, investors have some comfort in the type of transactions taking place.

NASD can also, by its structure and rules open securities to trade between 24 and 48 hours, with its only requirement being that the securities being introduced are registered at Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and complies with the capital market regulations.

The NASD OTC platform was created for securities that are not listed on any other securities exchange, thus providing a secure regulated platform for Investors to trade on them.

Cititrust Holdings joined several other companies on the NASD OTC Exchange, including Infrastructure Bank, 11 Plc, formerly known as Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc, Capital Bancorp Plc, Dufil Prima Foods Plc, the manufacturer of Indomie Noodles; Friesland Campina Wamco Nigeria Plc, manufacturer of Peak Milk brand; and Fan Milk Plc, popular manufacturer of Fan Yoghurts, NIPCO Plc, Air Liquide Nigeria Plc Industrial & General Insurance Plc, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, the clearing and depository arm of the Nigerian Stock Exchange; Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company, Acorn Petroleum Plc, ARM Life Plc, Afriland Properties Plc, BGL Plc, Consolidated Breweries Plc and Food Concepts Plc.

Others included Geo-Fluids Plc, Golden Capital Plc, Niger Delta Exploration & Production Plc, Partnership Investment Company Plc, Resourcery Plc, Riggs Ventures West Africa Plc, Swap Technologies & Telecomms Plc, Vital Products Plc, Fumman Agric Products Industries Plc, Free Range Farm Plc, FAMAD Plc, AG Mortgage Bank, Trustbond Mortgage Bank Plc, Mass Telecom Innovation (MTI ) and Providus Bank among others.

Inaugurated in July 2013, NASD is registered by the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) as a Self-Regulatory Organisation (SRO). The NASD OTC provides the platform for trading of a broad range of instruments over-the-counter, including equities, bonds and securities not listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX).

Sterling Bank Plc has launched a new digital product known as the Imperium Platform to connect consumers and providers of renewable energy as a viable solution to Nigeria’s electricity crisis.

The Imperium Platform was launched following the unveiling of the Nigerian electricity industry report entitled: “Powering Nigeria: How solar energy can become a sustainable electricity alternative.”

The report was produced by Sterling Bank in partnership with Stears, a digital information company.

Group Head, Renewable Energy, Sterling Bank, Dele Faseemo, at the weekend said Imperium Platform seeks to provide clean and affordable energy solutions to interested customers while providing different financing options to customers purchasing the solution outright or paying for the installation and operation of the solution.

He explained that Sterling Bank, in partnership with Stears Data, the data collection, analytics, and data access division of Stears, embarked on the study to tackle the problem of providing solar energy in the country.

According to him, the report showed that despite the privatisation of Nigeria’s electricity industry, the country still has one of the lowest electrification rates in the world, as 43 pe rcent of its population has no access to grid electricity, an indication that 85 million Nigerians are not connected to – and cannot receive electricity from – the Nigerian transmission grid.

He said the Imperium would provide a range of purchase options to consumers because solar energy solutions are not one-size-fits-all, so purchasing options should not be either.

He explained that Sterling Bank employs several purchase models to provide renewable energy solutions for its customers. This ensures that customers with different needs and purchase abilities can access solar energy solutions.

He listed the options to include outright purchase, lease to own, and power as a service. Using outright purchase as an example, he said that energy consumers could purchase products directly from vendors via the Imperium Platform, a dedicated e-commerce platform hosted by Sterling Bank.

“In lease to own, Imperium provides financing at competitive interest rates for consumers with good credit scores or clean credit checks who are keen to own the assets. Under power as a service, Imperium offers fixed monthly energy-charge options to consumers, but the underlying assets are owned by Imperium as it (Imperium) purchases and owns the assets.

“This saves clients huge capital outlay and maintenance worries, while the monthly energy charge is based on the capacity deployed,” Faseemo said.

He noted that, in this regard, the bank has recently partnered with the Nike Art Gallery to install solar panels at the gallery via the bank’s Imperium outlet as part of its commitment to a renewable energy-powered Nigeria and the development of the nation’s tourism sector.

According to him, this was sequel to recent partnerships with the gallery to drive an appreciation and spotlight the investment opportunities available in Nigeria’s arts and tourism sectors.

The Nike Art Gallery, owned by Chief Nike Okundaye, is one of the largest of its kind in the West African sub-region, with a collection of about 8,000 diverse artworks from various Nigerian artists.

TrustBanc Holdings at the weekend launched a new capital raising with the floatation of two series of its latest commercial papers, which are expected to raise up to N5 billion.

The N5 Billion Series 7 and 8 Commercial Paper (CP) Notes are being issued under the company’s N20 billion CP issuance programme.

The holding company will use the net proceeds of the new issue to fund its short-term working capital requirements.

TrustBanc is offering 180-day CPs under its series seven with implied yield of 11.50 per cent and discount rate of 10.8828 per cent. Under series eight, TrustBanc is also simultaneously offering 270-day CPs with implied and discount yields of 13 per cent and 11.8595 per cent.

Application list for the offer opened on May 27, 2022 and will close on June 1, 2022. Minimum subscription to the CP issue is N5 million and, thereafter, in multiples of N1,000.

TrustBanc is the holding company for the operations of TrustBanc Financial Group and it provides an integrated strategy and governance that allows for shared services, increased efficiencies and reduced cost of capital, operations, and service delivery within the group.

The TrustBanc Financial Group is an integrated financial services group with solutions covering wealth management, ethical and conventional investments management, securities trading, savings, and lending.

With more than N27.74 billion assets under management and total assets of N72.13 billion, TrustBanc Group’s total earnings stood at N1.76 billion in 2021. The group’s ortfolio includes asset management, securities trading and microfinance businesses.

Shareholders of Multiverse Mining & Exploration Plc will surrender nine out of every 10 shares held under a massive share capital reduction that will see the company cancelling about 3.84 billion ordinary shares from its total issued share capital of 4.26 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each.

The board of Multiverse has filed an application at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), seeking a regulatory approval to undertake the share capital reconstruction. The company stated that the planned share capital reconstruction was sequel to special resolutions passed by shareholders almost three years ago.

According to the company, shareholders had at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in November 2019 approved special resolutions authorising the reconstruction.

Under the proposed deal, the share reconstruction would be carried out under the provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990 (CAMA), Part V, Section 105 to113,  Section 131, CAMA 2020, for the reduction of share capital.

The board of the company indicated that the purpose of the share capital reconstruction is to offset accumulated losses on the company’s statement of financial position which will enable the company to undertake subsequent future capital raise.

The share capital reconstruction will result in the cancellation of nine existing ordinary shares out of every 10 ordinary shares held by existing shareholders. The total number of issued ordinary shares after the reconstruction exercise will be 426.194 million ordinary shares while 3.836 billion ordinary shares would be cancelled.

With its authorized share capital remaining unchanged at 4.5 billion ordinary shares, the company’s total unissued ordinary shares will be 4.074 billion, by simultaneously pooling back the surrendered shares into the unissued share capital.

The company plans to revalue the reconstructed shares by adding that total value of the surrendered shares to the price of the remaining one, to make the new post-reconstruction listing price. About 60 per cent below its nominal value of 50 kobo each, Multiverse’s pre-reconstruction shares were calculated at 20 kobo per share and will then be listed after the reconstruction at N2 per share.

Multiverse’s share price dropped by 8.33 per cent to close at 22 kobo per share in weekend trading at the NGX.

Shareholders had approved the reduction of the company’s capital base by more than N2.52 billion to offset retained loss in the company’s audited financial statements. According to the proposal, more than N2.52 billion which had been lost as at December 31, 2018 and any such losses till the end of December 31, 2019, which are otherwise unrepresented by available assets will be used to write off retained losses.

Multiverse also secured shareholders’ approval to raise additional equity capital from Nigerian or international investors through any or a combination of special placement, public offer, rights issue and other means of capital raising.

Market analysts had said the share capital restructuring and capital raising might not be unconnected with efforts to strengthen the company after sustained losses.

External auditors to Multiverse had raised concerns that negative bottom-line and net current liabilities of the company could affect its going concern status, referring to its ability to continue operations into the foreseeable future.

Auditors had warned that there was material uncertainty on the future survival of Multiverse noting that its ability to meet emerging financial obligations and working capital and its continuing survival depends on its bankers.

Multiverse, quoted on the NGX in 2008, is engaged in the business of exploring, extracting, prospecting, boring, refining, drilling for, producing, and quarry mining of stones and other extractive solid minerals, especially Lead and Zinc, into different configuration and classification.

Vitae London Investment, a global brand that deals in topnotch wristwatches and accessories in over 40 countries, plans to list its shares on the stock market as the global brand commenced preliminary moves to carve a niche for itself in Nigeria.

Founder, Vitae London Investment, Mr William Adoasi, at the weekend met with select members of the business community and media in Lagos in the first series of engagement that will lead to establishment of the company in Nigeria.

He explained that the London-based watch and accessories brand, which specialises in selling high quality products at affordable prices, runs a charitable business policy that creates a sort of virtuous cycle, with five per cent of every sale committed to charity, particularly educational assistance.

He said Vitae is a global brand with a huge market in the United States and United Kingdom and it has achieved social recognition with endorsements from many celebrities and thought leaders, including Virgin Atlantic’s Richard Branson, a famous British billionaire, Adekunle Gold and  the President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Ado.

Adoasi explained that the choice of Nigeria as the next market was borne out of the country’s population, including with high percentage of millennials and generation Z as well as Vitae’s business philosophy of doing good to the people.

According to him, Vitae London’s presence in the country would bring many values, including job opportunities, investments and corporate social responsibility, with the company working with local charities to identify and meet the need of the vulnerable groups, especially in the area of children’s access to and ease of education.

“We shall create pathways to employment, especially through marketing, logistics, sales and accounting  and train young people. We shall expand to underserved communities in Nigeria, partner with local charities to understand local needs and create virtuous cycle of a brand selling in Nigeria, supporting Nigerians. We shall expand our focus in Nigeria through corporate partnerships, retail partnerships, e-Commerce, and celebrity capsule collection. We have always placed premium on social impact through our intervention in education of less privilege in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“There is a sort of disconnect between a generation of people who want to see positive change and what some other charities are doing. Education is key to overcoming poverty. Over 20 per cent of children in Sub-Saharan Africa are out of primary school education. Simple things like school uniform and electricity to study at home act as deterrents. We distribute uniforms and solar light for the child in need, costing five per cent of our sales. The initiatives are done in partnership with House of Wells and Pen to Paper, Ghana,” Adoasi said.

Managing Director, Professional Stockbrokers, Mr AdedapoAdekoje, explained that market research revealed that Vitae London’s presence in Nigeria would enhance the company’s marketing drive as Nigeria remains a significant investment destination in Africa.

Details of the company’s plan to embark on capital raising as preparatory to listing on a securities exchange in Nigeria are still under the wraps.

Adoasi expressed optimism that the capital market option was on the front burner as it would enable Nigerians to be part owners of the global brand. There are strong indications that the company would be launched in Nigeria in the last quarter of the year.