Global tax and advisory service firm, KPMG Nigeria has criticised the 50% windfall tax on the bank’s foreign exchange revaluation gains recorded in 2023 stating that it could result in a legal dispute. The firm stated this in its reaction to the recently imposed tax on banks by the federal government where it stated that current revenue challenges of the government may have triggered the tax. According to the firm, Nigeria’s tax policy does not support retroactive taxation and since most banks have settled their tax liabilities for the financial year of 2023, it could lead to a constitutional crisis…
Author: Temitope Nlewemchi
In recent weeks, a series of monetary policy decisions have seen central banks across Africa hold benchmark interest rates, as inflationary pressures ease across the continent. In South Africa, the South African Reserve Bank voted to hold its benchmark rate at 8.25%. According to reports, four members of its monetary policy committee voted to hold the rates, while two voted for a 25-basis point cut. Speaking to pressmen on July 18, South Africa’s central bank governor, Lesetja Kganyago noted that the committee members agreed to hold the rate to mitigate future inflation risks. “The battle against inflation is not yet…
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s summer hit, Bad Boys: Ride or Die, has surpassed the N400 million mark at the Nigerian box office. According to data posted by the Nigerian Box Office page on X, the movie has recorded over 88,000 admissions. Admissions refer to the total number of tickets sold for a movie screened at cinemas. “Bad Boys: Ride or Die crosses the N400M mark with over 88K admissions. It becomes the 1st non-December movie to cross that mark since The Woman King (October 2022) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (November 2022),” the page reported. Over the weekend of…
The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has dismissed the case filed by a former minister, state for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, against Douye Diri’s election as governor of Bayelsa State. The judgement was delivered on Thursday by a three-man panel of the appeal court, led by Justice James Abundaga in an appeal entered by Timipre Sylva and the All Progressives Congress (APC). The appeal commenced as a petition at the tribunal after the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) declaration of the candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP), Duoye Diri, as the winner of the Bayelsa governorship election. Appellant’s…
Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has commended the sacrifices of members of the House of Representatives as they decided to reduce their salaries by 50% for six months as a demonstration of solidarity and shared sacrifice with the Nigerian people who are currently experiencing economic challenges and food insecurity. He emphasizes that this is merely a drop in the ocean of Nigeria’s fiscal challenges. In a statement on his X account, the ex-vice president stressed that the core issue lies within the allowances of lawmakers and government officials, not their salaries. Atiku expressed concerns over the much-trumpeted implementation…
Netflix, a popular streaming platform, has added 8.05 million new paid subscribers in the second quarter of 2024. The company surpasses projected estimates of 5.2 million by 54%. This increase brings Netflix’s global subscriber base to 277.65 million, reinforcing its dominance in the streaming market. Although considerably lower than the 9.33 million recorded in Q1, 2024, it is still ahead of the curve for its estimated new subscribers. Based on its Q2 earnings reports, it has outperformed expectations continuing a strong performance streak this year. The streaming giant reported $9.5 billion in revenue and $4.88 earnings per share, in line with…
On Thursday,18th of July, 2024, President Bola Tinubu approved a new minimum wage of N70,000 for Nigerian workers, with a commitment to review this amount every three years. The announcement was confirmed by Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy. President Tinubu revealed the new minimum wage during a meeting with leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) at the presidential villa in Abuja. Key attendees included Joe Ajaero, the president of NLC, Festus Osifo, the president of TUC, and various relevant ministers. In addition to the minimum wage…
The International Criminal Police Organization(INTERPOL) said it has blocked over 720 bank accounts linked with online financial frauds across West African countries. The organization said this was the outcome of its sting operation tagged ‘Operation Jackal III’, which ran from 10 April to 3 July across 21 countries on five continents. It added that the operation targeted online financial fraud and the West African syndicates behind it. According to a statement from INTERPOL, the operation led to hundreds of arrests, the seizure of assets worth USD 3 million, and the dismantling of multiple criminal networks around the world. Nigerian network…
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has asked the federal government to address the concerns raised by the organised private sector during the new minimum wage negotiation to enable them to implement the new minimum wage agreement. The Director-General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mr. Segun Ajayi Kadir stated this in his reaction to the N70,000 minimum agreement between the federal government and organised labour unions yesterday. According to him, the President promised to find ways to help the private sector and sub-nationals pay the minimum wage and manufacturers looked forward to the promised assistance and urged the…
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the sale of $106.5 million as foreign exchange (FX) to 29 FX dealer banks. In a statement signed by Dr Omolara Omotunde Duke, Director, Financial Markets Department, it was disclosed that on July 18 and 19, 2024, the CBN sold $106.5 million to 29 authorized dealer banks at exchange rates ranging from N1,498/$1 to N1,530.00/$1 and bought $9.5 million from four authorized dealer banks at rates between N1,510/$1 and N1,550/$1. The statement read: “Over the next few weeks, the CBN will continue to support various segments of the official markets with liquidity. “In…
Nnewi-based cable manufacturer, Cutix Plc is currently trading at a share price of N6.13, marking a 46% appreciation from its July 12 opening price of N4.20. The company announced a dividend payment of N0.15 per share as well as a bonus share issuance on July 12, which led to a 10% appreciation in its share price that day. The stock then appreciated by 9.96% and 9.84% on July 15 and July 16 respectively. As of 12.30 pm on July 17, the stock had already appreciated by 9.86% with a turnover volume of about 187.2 million shares, reflecting immense attention from…
Cryptocurrency exchange, OKX, has announced plans to discontinue its service in Nigeria effective from August 16, 2024. The company disclosed this in an email message to its Nigerian users on Wednesday citing unfavourable policies by the Nigerian government. With this, OKX has asked its Nigerian customers to withdraw their funds from the platform on or before the said date. This development follows a similar action in March by Binance, whose executives are currently facing trial in Nigeria. According to the company, from August 16, Nigerian customers will no longer be able to open any new account on the platform. What…
As a qualitative economist, I look at trends and patterns to explain and analyze the economy. The Nigerian economy is shrinking at a pace we have not seen since the civil war. Rated as number 4 in Africa, down from number 1, if it continues at this pace and there is nothing to show that it will slow down, we might be dropping out of the top 10 by the end of this administration’s first term in office. But like I said, I have begun to notice some positive trends emanating from this carnage. Human trends flow like water. It…
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) is advocating for new legislation to allocate 3% of the Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue as an additional funding source. This initiative emerged from the technical sessions at the recently concluded Niger Delta Stakeholders Summit 2024, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, from July 10 to 12, 2024. This information is contained in a press release issued by the NDDC, which outlines several resolutions reached at the end of the three-day summit. “At the end of the sessions, the following were arrived at as Resolutions from the entire summit: “That additional sources of funding…
Nigeria’s inflation rate in June 2024 surged from 33.95% in May 2024 to 34.19% in June according to the latest report from the National Bureau of Statistics, (NBS). The headline inflation rate in June 2024 increased by 0.24% points in June when compared to the figure for May 2024. The headline inflation rate in June 2024 was 11.40 percentage points higher compared to June 2023, rising from 22.79%. On a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in June 2024 was 2.31%, an increase of 0.17% points from May 2024’s rate of 2.14%. This indicates that the average price level increased…
The Presidency through the State House has spent at least N16.06 billion to buy foreign currencies for international trips in the past one year under the administration of President Bola Tinubu. This is according to an analysis of data from GovSpend, a platform by BudgIT, which tracks, analyses and presents Federal Government spending over time. Covering a period from June 23, 2023, to May 25, 2024, the data includes spending by the president, vice president, First Lady, and the Chief of Staff to the President. It also includes the purchase of foreign exchange (forex) for the Presidential Air Fleet. In the…
As the presidential campaign heats up in the United States, there are palpable concerns among national governments around the world that have strong economic relationships with the country including Nigeria. Analysts believe that a second presidency of Donald Trump would bring a series of potential impacts on the Nigerian economy, driven by his distinct approach to international trade, foreign policy, and immigration. Trump’s first term was marked by a preference for protectionist trade policies, including tariffs and renegotiated trade agreements aimed at prioritizing American industries. Should he pursue similar policies in a second term, Nigerian exports to the United States…
The ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development says it is issuing sustainable bonds worth N175 billion (FCFA 70 billion) aimed at boosting the economy of West African countries. The ECOWAS Bank disclosed this via its X page on July 12, 2024. The bank says the funds will support agriculture, renewable energy, health, and industry projects in the region resulting in high social impact. Financing Africa’s private sector FCFA are currencies or units of account used within the West African Monetary Union(WAEMU) by ECOWAS bank. One CFA sells at N2.5 according to the official exchange rate of the Central Bank of Nigeria. The bank…
On 13th July, 2023 the administration of President Bola Tinubu which was barely two months old announced a state of emergency on food security and declared that matters about food and water availability be under the purview of the National Security Council. The state of emergency declaration on food security then follows concerns by the President over the escalating prices of food items in the market following the removal of fuel subsidy. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), food inflation in July 2023 stood at 26.98%– an increase of 1.73% from the figure recorded in the previous month of…
The Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) distributed N1.354 trillion in June revenue among the Federal Government, states, and Local Government Councils (LGCs). This distribution took place during the July FAAC meeting in Abuja, chaired by Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy. According to a communiqué issued by FAAC, the N1.354 trillion total revenue included statutory revenue of N142.514 billion and Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N523.973 billion. It also comprised Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL) revenue of N15.692 billion, Exchange Difference revenue of N472.192 billion, and an augmentation of N200 billion. The communiqué…