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Tag: capital

  • Retired soldiers to get start-up capital

    Retired soldiers to get start-up capital

    The Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan-Ali has said retiring soldiers would be given start-up capitals to establish themselves for life after service.

    He spoke at the Nigerian Armed Forces Resettlement Centre (NAFRC), Oshodi, Lagos, during the retirementgraduation of 403 soldiers who underwent skills acquisition training.

    The retired soldiers comprised 281 from the Army, 17 from the Navy and 105 from the Air Force.

    According to him, the money would be in lieu of the start-up equipment for whatever skills they acquired for post-service livelihood. He urged the retirees to continue to surmount security threats in their domiciled areas, assuring them the government is unrelenting in its quest to boost the welfare of both serving and retired personnel.

    His words: “You are all aware of the security challenges confronting our country, particularly insurgency in the Northeast, cattle rustling, kidnappings, pipeline vandalism and other criminal activities.

    “Be reminded that as retired personnel of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, much is still expected of you in contributing your quota towards surmounting any threat to life within your area of domicile.

    “This will help in curtailing these vices and enhance safety and security, which is essential for meaningful socio-economic development, as well as peaceful co-habitation and existence.”

    In his welcome address, NAFRC’s Commandant, Air Vice Marshal (AVM) Ajibola Jekenu urged the retirees to make good use of the skills acquired, saying they should be law abiding.

    At the ceremony were the Commandant, National Defence College, Rear Admiral Adeniyi Oshinowo, Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Naval Training Command, Rear Admiral Obi Ofodile, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Logistics Command, AVM Ibrahim Yahaya, General Officer Commanding (GOC) 81 Division, Maj.-Gen. Peter Dauke, among others.

  • Nigeria’s capital importation rises to 147.5% in Q3 – NBS

    Nigeria’s capital importation rises to 147.5% in Q3 – NBS

    The total capital imported in the third quarter has hit 4,145 million dollars, which doubled the inflow in the second quarter, representing an increased value of 147.5 per cent on a year- on- year basis.

    The National Bureau of Statistics ( NBS ) said this in a report on “Nigerian Capital Importation for third quarter’’ posted on its website on Tuesday.

    The bureau stated that capital importation into Nigeria in the third quarter recorded a substantial increase compared to the past few quarters, as the economy continued to recover from recession following its exit in the second quarter.

    The total capital imported in the third quarter was recorded at 4,145.1 million dollars, more than double the inflow in the second quarter of this year, representing an increased value of 147.5 per cent on a year on year basis.

    According to the report, this inflow of capital in Q3 quarter is the first time since the beginning of 2015 that the capital hit over 4,000 million dollars in a quarter.

    The reports noted that the boom in capital importation in Q3 was mainly driven by significant growth in both Portfolio and other Investment.

    Capital Importation can be divided into three main investment types: Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs), Portfolio Investment and Other Investments, each comprising various sub-categories.

    Meanwhile, the report stated that Portfolio Investment, which was recorded at 2,767.4 million dollars in the third quarter, remained the largest component of capital import.

    It said it remained the largest component of capital import and it contributed to 67 per cent of the total amount.

    The report stated that the component expanded faster than the other two main categories with a year-on-year growth rate of 200 per cent.

    It stated that Foreign Domestic Investments recorded 117.6 million dollars, which fell by 65.5 per cent year –on- year, while other investment increased by 124.55 per cent compared to Q3 of 2016.

    It, however, stated that other Investment in the third quarter was more doubled the value in the Q3 of 2016.

    The report stated that it doubled the value in the quarter from 516.2 million dollars to 1,260 million dollars, it remained about 30 per cent of the total capital importation.

    Read Also: 2017 budget: FG, Senate clash over capital vote

  • Abuja, not that dream capital

    SIR: STwo critical reasons for establishing Abuja away from Lagos as the administrative capital of Nigeria were for defence of the country and centrality to and easy accessibility to all regions and people of the country. A capital free from the stranglehold of natives, a model city and home to all responsible Nigerians seeking to live and do business in it.

    The planners of this city were smart but the executors aren’t. Why aren’t there world class model cities near Abuja?

    Everything starts and ends in the heartland. The beauty of the city rises inside of the heartland and falls as you drive outside of it. Many people who live outside of this city aren’t happy, they can’t be, because the surrounding cities pass for slums – they aren’t zoned and planned as the one-city Abuja and the aesthetics in these places are nothing to write home about. Many of the people who live inside of Abuja city aren’t happy either because no-one is in charge to control the rising cost of living. Costs of housing, of public transportation connecting high-brow areas in the city are throat-cutting.

    What is totally not acceptable is to have one beautiful city and slums surrounding it. In Egypt, governments over time tried to de-congest Cairo (though not yet successful) by building many model cities outside of it. Whatever you can find in Cairo, you can also find in the many well-planned satellite cities outside of Cairo.

    Not so here in Abuja. In the FCT, there are too many empty houses with high perimeter walls with no people living in them save for security men, many of whom say they haven’t seen their landlords in decades.

    The money used to build Abuja should have been invested in human capital and physical infrastructures. Bad politics and greed prevented the following, astutely, of the blue-print for the development of Abuja. The surrounding towns are becoming a magnet for the good, the bad and the ugly.

    The Gwari (Gbagi) people, the main inhabitants of Abuja many of whom now live in the suburbs have complained and are still complaining that they were not adequately compensated by the federal government and this is a recipe for trouble in future.

    Most of the economic assets in Abuja are owned by southerners and in a fragile nation like Nigeria, a north/south divide resentment on the part of the natives can trigger an ethnic clash.

    The money used to build Abuja should have been invested in the economy all around Nigeria and probably would have made Nigeria an economic giant like South Korea.

     

    • Simon Abah,

    Abuja.

  • National Assembly to partner regulators on capital market development

    The National Assembly has reiterated its commitment towards the development of the Nigerian capital market.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Capital Market, Senator Mustapha Bukar, gave the assurance in Lagos during a visit to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Also in the entourage was the clerk of the Committee, Hajia Habeebat Mohammed.

    Bukar said the Committee would work to create a right environment for investment to thrive noting that he and other members of the committee are ready to work hand in hand with capital market stakeholders.

    According to him, the committee would consider revision and amendment of some laws governing capital market activities in order to encourage the growth of the market.

    “I want to achieve two or three things during this tenure, one, I want to see how the capital market can grow during this tenure, support infrastructure development in this country and also to see how it can grow the Nigerian economy and let Nigerians see how it can compete like any other market in the world,” Bukar said.

    He said the committee has adopted a listening strategy because it needs to know and understand the issues affecting the market and the things the National Assembly can do in terms of legislations in order to create an enabling environment for the market to grow.

    “It is important for us to talk to the actors and then we see how we can work together to make the market a better place,” Bukar said.

    He said the need to have more Nigerian players in the market cannot be overemphasized noting that having more Nigerians in the market would deepen domestic investors’ base and attract other people to come into the market.

    He said that a bill has been passed and its provisions are being examined, after which it will be submitted to the Senate very soon.

    “There are so many legislations being discussed and there will be public hearings on them. The next thing is to make sure that it is presented to both the lower and upper chamber so it can be passed into laws by the National Assembly,” Bukar said.

    He lamented that after the 2008 capital market problem which affected all the entire world, the Nigerian market has yet to recover fully from the decline it had in 2008, thus underlining the need to re-engage with the populace and the private sector in order to grow investors’ confidence

    “That confidence has to be rebuilt, so we need to go and do a lot of roadshows and other explanations to attract the private sector back and address those issues that concern them,” Bukar said.

  • Red Star plans new capital raising

    Red Star Express Plc has planned to raise new capital as the logistics and courier company moves to diversify its operations.

    Its Managing Director, Mr Sola Obabori, said the company would be raising the new capital in two tranches as part of efforts to provide supports for its business development plan.

    Speaking at the presentation of the underlying facts behind the operations of the company to the investing public at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Obabori said the company has the potential to successfully raise the new funds, citing its historical performance and future outlook.

    “I have no doubt in my mind that we will be able to raise the money. This is why we are so confident about the figures we have put forward,” Obabori said.

    He noted that as Red Star Express celebrates its 25 years in business, the company will be diversifying into the agro business with the approval of the government.

    “The agro space in Nigeria is beginning to experience some buoyancy. Quite a lot of countries, especially in Europe and the United Kingdom, are beginning to request for products in Nigeria to be shipped to them. In the last 18 months, people have gone so much into farming in Nigeria trying to create new wealth in that environment. So, for us as a company we are beginning to look at the agro chain services, so we can move our products and services into that environment,” Obabori said.

    He added that the company will also invest in new ventures, which will unlock long term value through strategic investments as well as explore new growth opportunities in pharmaceutical logistics, agro trade, technological services, prints and packaging.

    Obabori said there would be expansion of existing businesses, including warehouses and fleet in order to increase coverage and visibility.

    He pointed out that the company’s subsidiary in Niger Republic has growth opportunities, noting that work has been done to ensure that the subsidiary taps into opportunities in the country.

    “It promises to bring additional revenue and profit  to the fold of Red Star Express.  More offices in underserved locations will be opened,” Obabori said.

    According to him, the company is targeting turnover of N8.1 billion for the year ending 2018, while profits before and after tax will be N883 million and N618 million respectively.

    “The logistics business is a wide one. Cargo is a major area where you can have more volumes once you have the economy bouncing back and you can have more people importing and exporting,” Obabori said.

  • Wema Bank to reorganise capital for efficiency

    Wema Bank to reorganise capital for efficiency

    Wema Bank Plc has issued a notice of an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM), to seek the consent of its shareholders for a comprehensive scheme of capital reduction.

    The exercise is in line with the procedures set out in Sections 105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, 111 and 120 of Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) and Rules 4(d), 4(g) and 5(4) of the Company Proceedings Rules 1992.

    Wema Bank is pursuing this holistic approach to enable it position its balance sheet for better efficiency. Having been transformed to one of the leading banks within the retail banking space, Wema Bank with its national authorisation, has reemerged stronger, more efficient, resilient and customer-focused organisation with a robust risk and governance structure.

    A review of the bank’s financials revealed the carrying of a negative retained earnings balance, which arose from losses prior to June 2009 when the current management assumed office.

    Though the bank has since returned to profitability in the last four years, the implication of negative retained earnings is that, the bank, by regulation, is precluded from providing necessary returns to providers of capital.

    “We believe the completion of this exercise would result in the plough back of subsequent years’ profits – aiding the continued growth of the institution, improvements in performance, particularly as it relates to the reduction in our cost to income and return on equity ratios while commencing the payment of dividend,” a statement from the bank said.

    The holistic capital reduction scheme would have no impact on the current holdings of shareholders, though the Bank will be creating a capital reduction account while an equivalent amount will be moved from its share premium account to effectively close the entries. Following the consent of the shareholders, the bank will subsequently make an application to the Federal High Court  for the approval of the scheme.

    Wema Bank continues to improve on its performance, despite the relatively challenging business environment. Furthermore, the bank has recorded successes in several financial and non-financial priorities specifically, Wema Bank’s growth strategy – Project LEAP – revolves around a blended approach involving partnership, growing branch network and digitization.

    This was further strengthened by the May 2017 launch of ALAT – Nigeria’s first fully digital Bank. ALAT is the first of its kind with its end-to-end digital offering and customer interaction

    The bank has its National Long-Term Rating affirmed at (BBB-) by Fitch and Global Credit Rating (GCR), both leading credit rating and research agencies with its Non-Performing Loans (NPLs), Capital Adequacy Ratio and Liquidity Ratio all within the regulatory threshold.

  • Wema Bank plans capital reduction to write off retained losses

    Wema Bank plans capital reduction to write off retained losses

    Wema Bank’s Board of Directors at the weekend indicated that it has called an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders of the bank to consider a comprehensive capital reduction exercise that will lead to a write off of accrued legacy losses in the bank’s balance sheet.

    Under the capital reduction exercise, the bank will create a capital reduction account to charge off impaired assets and legacy losses while simultaneously moving the equivalent amount from its share premium account to effectively close the entries. The capital reduction will, however, have no impact on the shareholdings of the bank.

    Shareholders are expected to meet next week to consider and vote on the capital reduction scheme. If approved, the bank will subsequently apply to the Federal High Court for the approval of the scheme in line with extant laws.

    In a regulatory filing signed by the Company Secretary/Legal Adviser, Wema Bank Plc, Mr Oluwole Ajimisinmi, the comprehensive capital reduction represents an holistic approach that will enable the bank to position its balance sheet for improved efficiency.

    The bank noted that while it has emerged stronger and more profitable, negative earnings that arose from legacy losses prior to June 2009 have continued to undermine the bank’s ability to pay dividends while restricting the ability to raise new capital.

    “Though the bank has since returned to profitability in the last four years, the impaction of negative retained earnings and other impaired assets is that, the bank, by regulation, is precluded from providing necessary returns by way of dividends to shareholders and most importantly, restricts the ability and cost to raise new capital,” the bank said.

    Wema Bank’s capital reduction plan comes on the heels of plan by another quoted company, Prestige Assurance Plc,  to cancel about 1.6 billion ordinary shares out of its issued and fully paid up share capital under a share reconstruction that seeks to write off accumulated losses.

    Under the share reconstruction proposal, Prestige Assurance is seeking to reduce its share capital from N2.685 billion or 5.370 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to N1.909 billion or 3.817 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each in the issued and fully paid up ordinary shares of the company.

    This will lead to reduction of N776 million or 1.55 billion ordinary shares. “The share capital so reduced will be applied in writing off the capital of the company, which is lost or unrepresented by available assets,” according to a regulatory filing on the reconstruction.

    Prestige Assurance stated that the essence of the capital reconstruction is to enable it wipe out its accumulated retained losses of N776.511 million.

    The company noted that the reconstruction will reposition it on a trajectory for subsequent accumulated retained profit while creating more value to its shareholders.

  • ‘Nigeria’s capital controls deter US firms from investing’

    • Free-floating naira advisable

    U.S. companies are skeptical about increasing  their investments in Nigeria due to capital controls, the Head of a Congressional delegation on a visit to the country, Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, has said.

    Coons said: “Some of the currency controls that remain, I think raise the question of whether foreign direct investment, if successful and profitable, will be able to be returned to any country.

    “I have heard concerns from American companies that before they significantly increase their investment here, they would hope they return to a floating currency.”

    Nigeria, the continent’s biggest oil producer, tightened currency restrictions after the 2014 crash in crude prices, a move analysts blamed for creating a severe shortage of foreign exchange that made it difficult for companies to pay for imports and repatriate profits. While the scarcity has eased this year, the central bank still tightly manages the naira.

    The U.S. is Nigeria’s third-biggest trading partner after India and China, with volume between the two reaching $6.8 billion in 2016, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That was down from $12 billion in 2014. The stock of U.S. foreign direct investment in Nigeria was $5.5 billion in 2015, according to the State Department. Most of that was in oil and gas.

    President Muhammadu Buhari’s government has taken other steps to make Nigeria more attractive to investors, he said. “The Buhari administration has made significant progress in addressing some of the structural challenges, both security and economic challenges, that were a barrier to more active American investment,” he said.

    Coons, a Democrat, visited Nigeria with seven other senators. In Lagos, they met business leaders including Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, Tony Elumelu, chairman of United Bank for Africa Plc and investment company Heirs Holdings Limited, and Tonye Cole, Director and Co-founder, Sahara Group, owners of Nigeria’s biggest power generating plant – Egbin Power Plc.

    The US lawmarkers also met Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, and visited Maiduguri, the epicenter of an eight-year insurgency by the Islamist militant group, Boko Haram that has devastated the north-eastern state of Borno. There, they spoke with U.S. military advisers and Nigerian commanders, who asked for more armored vehicles known as MRAPs.

    “These were reasonable, achievable partnerships requests that I thought were doable,” Coons said. “It was important for us to get an assessment on the ground. It was a voluminous list of the structural damage done over years of fighting Boko Haram.”

    At the Egbin Power plant in Lagos, Coons and his team listened to the presentation of the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the firm, Dallas Peavey, on the challenges, achievements and future plans of the management for the power plant. He promised that back home in the U.S., they will discuss and see how to help Egbin management and Nigerian government to achieve their power sufficiency goals.

  • Stanbic IBTC attracts $1.13b capital in six months, says NBS

    Stanbic IBTC attracts $1.13b capital in six months, says NBS

    Stanbic IBTC, in the second quarter of this year, has facilitated a $589.84 million capital inflow into the country, ranking as the first among financial institutions that imported capital into Nigeria.

    The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in its second quarter 2017 Capital Importation  Report, stated that Stanbic IBTC accounted for 32.91 per cent ($589.84 million or N216.47 billion) of the total share for the period, representing an increase of 9.12 per cent over the $536.78 million it posted in the first quarter of the year, bringing it to $1.127 billion (N413.62 billion) capital importation by the bank in the first six months of the year.

    The trio of Stanbic IBTC, Citibank Nigeria and Standard Chartered Bank have accounted for 70.7 per cent or $1,267.8 million of the total $1.792 billion capital importation during the quarter, while the other 22 banks generated the rest.

    According to the report, Portfolio Investments were the key mover of capital during the quarter, growing by 145.7 per cent, and followed by other investments, which rose by 95.02 per cent, and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by 29.8 per cent over the first quarter. In figures, Portfolio Investment accounted for $770.5 million, or 43.0 percent of the total. Placing second was other investments, with $747.5 million, or 41.7 percent, and FDI with $274.4 or 15.3 per cent.

    The bank’s accomplishment has reflected its strength, strong leadership and unyielding support of its parent company, the 154-year-old Standard Bank  Group, Africa’s largest financial institution.

    Stanbic IBTC has consistently demonstrated its commitment to the Nigerian market and often pledged its continued support to all sectors of the economy in moving individuals and businesses forward. This is also in synergy with the drive to build a leading end-to-end financial solutions institution that offers bespoke products and services to its clientele.

    The NBS report showed that the bulk of capital imported into Nigeria in Q2 came from the United Kingdom (UK), which accounted for $696.7 million or 38.87 per cent of the total. The second largest value of capital importation came from the United States (US) with $287.82 million or 16.06 per cent.

  • Our plan to invest $133m additional capital, by firm

    Subscription Video on Demand (SVoD) service provider for emerging markets, iflix, has completed a $133 million additional funding round, bringing the total amount raised this year by the South Africa-based entertainment firm to over $220 million.

    iflix Co-founder/CEO Mark Britt said the proceeds from the funding round would be invested in the company’s local content strategy. He said iflix had unveiled its first exclusive original production, Oi Jaga Mulut, an audacious, uncensored, no-holds-barred stand-up comedy series.

    Noting that the series, which made its debut in Malaysia, last week, hadskyrocketed to the leading show on the service. He added that iflix, in partnership with TVOne, also launched a live premiere football streaming, available for the first time in Indonesia.

    Britt said the programme immediately became one of the highest performing shows there with more than 34,000 unique viewers tuning in in the first week of airing.

    Also, iflix Philippines, he said, has announced its collaboration with the Philippines’ Queen of All Media, Kris Aquino, to commission an original drama series.

    The firm had earlier announced plans to launch services in Nigeria and other African countries this year as part of strategy to increase its global footprint to 23 territories worldwide, with additional regional markets to be added soon.

    With the establishment of iflix Africa, with headquarters in Cape Town, South Africa, and trading commercially as ‘iflix,’ the firm plans to bring its world class service to sub-Saharan Africa.

    The Nation exclusively learnt that the funding round upon which the company plans to invest in its local content strategy attracted significant interest from new and existing investors and shareholders, and was led by Hearst, one of America’s largest diversified media, information and services companies.

    Existing shareholders such as Evolution Media, Sky PLC, Catcha Group, Liberty Global, Jungle Ventures and PLDT Inc. also increased their investments.

    Britt said: “We are thrilled to welcome Hearst to the iflix family. As iflix continues to grow and pioneer new ways for consumers to enjoy entertainment on their terms, we were looking for a partner who could bring additional expertise and knowledge to our business.

    “Hearst is a leading investor and has many of the world’s most innovative and iconic video brands, including ESPN, A+E Networks, Vice, AwesomenessTV, Complex and more. This collaboration significantly deepens our bench of experts with our longstanding partners Evolution Media, Sky and Liberty Global to help drive iflix’s continuing growth.”

    The iflix CEO said that from the beginning, the firm’s vision was to build a word-class service for the local customer, transforming the way everyday consumers enjoy entertainment in emerging markets.

    “These new funds will allow us to further execute on our local content strategy and expand our technology and development teams so we can continue to rapidly evolve the iflix service to meet the unique challenges of emerging markets,” Britt stated.

    For the President of Hearst Entertainment & Syndication, Mr. Neeraj Khemlani, “iflix is riding the wave of exponential growth of the middle class in emerging markets that want more access to premium regional, local and Western content.”

    Since going live in May 2015, iflix rapidly established a clear leadership position in emerging markets, setting a new standard for delivering a world-class streaming entertainment service, passionately focused on local customer experiences.

    Over the last 12 months, the service has seen extraordinary growth across all segments of the business, expanding from four markets to 19 across Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

    The company has additionally built deep integrated distribution partnerships with 27 leading telecommunications operators to bundle the iflix service with customers’ mobile and data subscriptions, all sponsored by the telecommunications provider.