Category: Equities

Sterling Bank Plc has further expanded credit opportunities to its customers with the launch of a new digital credit solution under its fast-growing lending platform, Specta.

The new solution, PayWithSpecta, allows customers to pay for goods in instalments, while merchants are credited instantly; helping businesses increase sales.

PayWithSpecta offers digital credit limits to customers to purchase items in-store at merchant locations or from merchant online platforms.  Also, PayWithSpecta gives merchants the opportunity to access credit for their business activities.

Consumers can make purchases at zero percent interest rate at designated stores for those who choose 30to 90 days repayment tenor and as low as 1.75 per cent monthly for tenors of 7 to 12 months repayment tenor.

Divisional Head, Retail and Consumer Banking, Sterling Bank Plc, Shina Atilola, said the new product will enable customers to buy goods from merchants in-store and  from online platforms on credit.

According to him, customers can assess their credit limits via the PayWithSpecta platform; use their limits at the merchant’s store and even access 30 per cent of the limit as cash. This will enable customers spread payment up to 12 months while the merchant gets his payments upfront.

He explained that to sign up, customers will provide their basic information and the platform will give an instant credit decision all within five minutes.

The website will then generate a Specta identity (ID) for the customer. The customer can then utilize the spending limit by providing the Specta ID at any of the bank’s partner stores to conclude a purchase.

Atilola explained that the credit and spending limit is valid for three months and can still be renewed if not utilized; and you are not charged for unutilized spending limits.

He further stated that PaywithSpecta provides more convenience with lending to the customer and gives him access to 30 percent of the credit limit as cash.

He also added that for business across the country to start benefiting from this, business owners need to visit the PayWithSpecta website to sign up to start receiving payments from consumers as this will significantly increase revenue for any business.

He advised customers to do their shopping through PayWithSpecta with their Specta ID, saying the Specta ID is the smartest way available in Nigeria to make purchases.

By Taofik Salako, Deputy Group Business Editor

Newly inducted stockbrokers have been advised to uphold best practices and ethics in their dealing with investors, regulators and other stakeholders in the economy.

Speaking at the first virtual induction of authorised dealing clerks at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Oscar Onyema, said the stockbroker’s robe represents a commitment to uphold highest ethical standard and to always discharge responsibilities with honour and integrity. A total of 50 new stockbrokers were inducted.

While commending the new stockbrokers for their resilience and adaptability to the new learning conditions in spite of the challenges occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, Onyema urged them to always put the interest of the market first.

According to him, stockbrokers’ robes represent a commitment to uphold the Chattered Institutes of Stockbrokers (CIS) ethical standards and the NSE’s Rulebook for Dealing Members.

He explained that the Automated Trading System (ATS) training is a pre-requisite for participating in an oral examination; a rigorous exercise to ensure only suitable candidates secure the required regulatory approval to practice as authorised dealing clerks of the NSE.

He advised the new stockbrokers on skills development, noting that the need to embrace the culture of continuous learning in a fast-paced environment such as the capital market cannot be over-emphasised if one must remain relevant.

“As the market deepens with the launch of new products, I encourage everyone to seek for better understanding of various aspects of the Capital Market as well as new developments,” Onyema said.

Chairman, Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON), Mr. Onyenwechukwu Ezeagu, reiterated the importance of skills and integrity for the newly inducted ctockbrokers.

By Taofik Salako, Deputy Group Business Editor

Investors in Nigerian equities recorded their biggest gain in recent months in November as sustained bargain-hunting saw the market closing with a net capital gain of N2.35 trillion, about 22 per cent above N1.93 trillion recorded as net capital gain in October 2020.

Benchmark indices at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Monday indicated average return of 14.78 per cent in November 2020, equivalent to net capital gain of N2.35 trillion. Nigerian equities had recorded average return of 13.79 per cent in October 2020, equivalent to net capital gains of N1.93 trillion, more than a double of N785 billion recorded as net capital gains in September 2020.

The November rally marked the fifth month of consecutive upswing for Nigerian equities, with net gains for the 11-month period now at N3.97 trillion, N2.19 trillion above N1.78 trillion recorded for the 10-month period ended October 2020. Average year-to-date return for Nigerian equities now stands at 30.6 per cent, more than a double of 13.74 per cent recorded at the end of October 2020.

The All Share Index (ASI) – the value-based common index that tracks share prices at the NSE, closed November at 35,042.14 points as against 30,530.69 points recorded in October 2020. It had closed September 2020 at 26,831.76 points as against 25,327.13 points recorded in August 2020 and 24,479.22 points recorded at the beginning of the third quarter, the closing index for June 30, 2020. The ASI had opened the year at 26,842.07 points.

Aggregate market value of all quoted equities closed November at N18.310 trillion as against N15.957 trillion recorded as opening value for the month. It had closed September at N14.025 trillion. It had opened the year at N12.958 trillion but slipped to N12.770 trillion by the end of the first half.

Nigerian equities had sustained their bullish rally for the second consecutive quarter with a net capital gain of about N1.23 trillion in the third quarter. The ASI indicated average gain of 9.61 per cent in the third quarter ended September 30, 2020, equivalent to net capital gain of N1.227 trillion.

Nigerian equities had witnessed a major recovery in the second quarter ended June 30, 2020 with positive average return of 14.12 per cent within the three-month period, representing net capital gains of N1.656 trillion.

Nigerian stocks had posted net loss of N2.68 trillion in the first quarter, which overshadowed the second quarter recovery, leaving investors with net loss of N1.14 trillion for the six-month, half-year period. The ASI had posted a double-digit negative return of 20.7 per cent in the first quarter, driven by a steep decline of 18.75 per cent in March 2020.

Most analysts had attributed the sustained rally to positive influence of third quarter earnings on share prices, fuelling bullish trading in a market already filled with bargain-hunters seeking higher returns in the face of declining yields in the fixed-income market.

Analysts noted that with yields on risk-free assets declining below one per cent, there is increasingly compelling reason for risk-averse investors to rotate their portfolio towards equities, hence, the bulls may maintain dominance in the week ahead.

At the last trading session of the month yesterday, the ASI rose by 0.5 per cent as investors scurried for Airtel Africa. Total turnover rose by 118.4 per cent to 415.53 million shares valued at N4.90 billion in 5,267 deals.

Our Reporter

ARM Investment Managers Limited on Wednesday listed two mutual funds on the Memorandum Listing of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). The listing paved way for investors in the mutual funds to trade on their holdings and for other investors to buy into the funds.

ARM listed 1.0 million units of its ARM Eurobond Fund at $1.0 nominal value per unit. It also listed 500 million units of ARM Fixed Income Fund at a nominal value of N1 per share.

Meanwhile, a recent survey of African fund managers showed that most investment decision-makers consider governance, good regulation and availability of market data and prices in making decisions to invest or not in a market.

The survey of 50 African asset-managers for the African Exchanges Linkage Project (AELP) project found that key factors when African fund managers choose new markets were market regulation, investor regulation and availability of market data and prices.

According to the survey, other top criteria that help fund managers choose where to invest included levels of dealing price, efficiency of execution and commission, the quality of companies and investment opportunities, corporate, social and governance criteria and availability of research.

Three quarters of investors said they were reluctant to invest in small and illiquid markets or where valuations are excessive while only half decide to invest in a company based on its dividend policy, while valuation and governance are the top factors.

Asset managers in Nigeria and the francophone West African countries are the most optimistic about prospects for Africa’s economies. In the AELP poll, some 97 per cent of the surveyed Nigerian asset managers are optimistic about the continent, with average assets of $364 million under management, followed by 85 per cent of surveyed francophone asset managers, who averaged $416 million of assets managed. Average across all the survey respondents, including a couple of South African managers, was $4.1 billion in assets under management.

Optimism is also strong among asset managers surveyed in Mauritius, Morocco, Nairobi and Egypt. Nearly half of respondents manage assets with investment horizons over five years, another 23 per cent for three to five years.