In the last four years, following the 2015/2016 recession, the Nigerian banking industry has written off a minimum of ₦1.9 trillion of impaired loans from its loan portfolio. This volume of write-offs has been driven by the weak macroeconomic climate and the introduction of the IFRS 9 accounting standard in 2019.
This was disclosed by Agusto & Co in the report titled, “2020 Banking Industry Report” and released on Sunday. The credit rating agency linked the banks’ actions to weak macroeconomic fundamentals and the introduction of the International Financial Reporting Standard 9 (IFRS 9).
In the wake of the unprecedented COVID 19 pandemic, the Industry’s asset quality is further threatened given significant exposures to vulnerable sectors.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has granted palliatives to banks in form of permitted loan restructurings to certain sectors that have been severely affected by the pandemic and we expect this to moderate the anticipated level of asset quality deterioration in the short term.
The credit rating agency stated that “Our assessment of the Industry’s financial condition is based on figures and information published in the approved annual reports of nineteen commercial banks and five merchant banks as at 31 December 2019.
These banks collectively accounted for an estimated 98% of the Industry’s total assets as at the same date and provide a good representation of the Industry.”
In its continuous bid to support the growth of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and equip them with the necessary tools aimed at strengthening and sustaining their businesses, Pan African Financial Institution, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc is set to organise another MSME Workshop for entrepreneurs.
The workshop which will hold on Wednesday via Microsoft Teams will host professionals who will share their experiences and give essential tips to MSME and business owners on how to their businesses to the next level.
This Workshop which will be in two separate sessions will specifically target financial record keeping in business which has been established as one of the major challenges that business owners face and it promises to be an eye-opener to participants.
The Founder, Accounting Hub, Chioma Ifeanyi-Eze, will take the first session as she gives insights and shares practical knowledge on Bookkeeping and Accounting Basics for Small Businesses, while in the second session, UBA’s Group Head, Tax Management, Emeka Amadi, will take participants through practical steps om Tax Management for Small Businesses.
UBA’s Group Head, Consumer and Retail Banking, Jude Anele, who spoke on the bank’s deep passion to help small businesses, explained that as the engine of any developing economy, MSMEs should be armed with the necessary tools that will help galvanise their businesses, adding that this necessitated the regular MSME workshops organised by the bank to assist both its customers and non-customers to boost their businesses.
He said, “UBA is committed to the overall growth of its customers beyond banking services, and the bank’s passion is hinged on ensuring that customers and entrepreneurs run businesses that can stand the test of time with the knowledge and experience required to take their businesses to the next level.
“Because of our interest in Businesses and customers, we conceptualised the SME workshop to fill the existing gaps observed in businesses thus assisting them to learn new ways of doing business and how to package their businesses for increased patronage,” Anele noted.
UBA’s Group Head, Marketing & Customer Experience, Michelle Nwoga, said the seminar is open to all business owners and leaders across Nigeria reiterated its important because of the long-term impact which ranges from strengthened confidence, skills, knowledge, and resources.
Participants who register for the Teams session here will be trained in record keeping, cost reduction, stock compiling, financial and tax planning, maximising opportunities, financial planning and projections.
Nwoga explained that the bank is on the constant look-out for top business personalities who are able to share their growth strategies with other upcoming business owners, adding, “Our business leaders for this workshop are experienced in every sense of the word and willing to share insight with others on how to grow their business.”
Emeka Amadi is a seasoned Chartered Accounting and Tax professional with14 years’ experience. He has facilitated several seminars and training to Finance professionals and sensitising SMEs on the importance of Tax and Accounting function in business value creations.
Chioma Ifeanyi-Eze who is the Founder, Accountinghub, a tech-accounting firm, is a Chartered Accountant. She is a recipient of several awards, both academic and entrepreneurial, as well as an amazing speaker and writer.
The fifth season of the Big Brother Naija reality show officially kicked off last week, and understandably, the show is leading conversations on and off social media. But as entertaining as the Big Brother Naija is, it is important to note that some of the content of the show may not necessarily be suitable for viewers of all ages.
The BBNaija show is rated 18 to protect younger viewers. And if you’re worried about your children or any younger person in your care accidentally stumbling on the channel while you may not be looking, below is a set-by-step guide on setting up the parental control or channel blocking features on your DStv and GOtv decoders.
If you own a DStv Explora & HD decoder:
Press the Blue ‘DStv’ button on your remote
Scroll to settings
Select Parental Control
Select PG settings
Enter 1234 as default pin
Change global blocking to personalise
To activate, scroll to PARENTAL CONTROL and select 18
Alternatively, you can switch on channel blocking
Select blocked channels to choose the channel number you intend to block ‘Ch. 198 for BBNaija’ and press OK
If you are a GOtv subscriber:
Press the GOtv or Menu button on your remote
Scroll to parental control
Select PG settings
Enter 1234 as default pin
Change global blocking to personalise
To activate scroll down to PARENTAL GUIDANCE SETTINGS and select 18.
Alternatively, you can select BLOCK CHANNELS
Choose the channel number you intend blocking ‘Ch. 29 for BBNaija’ and press OK
Alternatively, you can OPT Out of viewing the channel completely. If you are a DStv customer, send “Smart card number [space] BBOUT” to 30333, while GOtv customers can do same by sending “IUC Number [space] BBOUT” to 4688.
BBNaija is available on DStv packages and GOtv Max and Gotv Jolli package only.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) disclosed this in a report titled ‘Sectoral Distribution Of Value Added Tax (H1 2020)’ published on Monday.
According to the NBS, sectoral distribution of Value Added Tax (VAT) data for H1 2020 reflected that the sum of N651.77bn was generated as VAT in H1 2020 as against N600.98bn generated in H1 2019. This represents 8.45% growth Year-on-Year.
It revealed that professional Services generated the highest amount of VAT with N95.92bn generated and closely followed by Other Manufacturing generating N67.63bn, Commercial and Trading generating N31.10bn while Mining generated the least and closely followed by Textile and Garment Industry and Pharmaceutical, Soaps and Toiletries with N127.58m, N499.19m and N648.78m generated respectively.
Out of the total amounted generated in H1 2020, N335.82bn was generated as Non-Import VAT locally while N161.74bn was generated as Non-Import VAT for foreign. The balance of N154.21bn was generated as NCS-Import VAT.
Eterna Plc notifies the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the general public of the impending retirement of Mr. Mahmud Tukur as Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Eterna Plc with effect from 31st August 2020, having successfully completed a maximum tenure of 10 years.
In line with the succession policy of the Company, the Board has approved the appointment of Mr. Nnamdi Obiagwu the current Chief Operating Officer as Managing Director/ CEO designate, effective 1st September 2020.
Mahmud B. Tukur joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director on the 3rd of September 2004 and was appointed Managing Director/ CEO on the 1st of June 2010. He has been the driving force in the transformation of the Company over the last ten years.
Under his leadership, the Company experienced year on year increase in its annual turnover from N9 billion at the end of 2009 to N229 billion as at 31st December 2019. The Company’s net assets grew from N3.9 billion in 2009 to N12.4 billion as at 31st December 2019 from internally generated cash flows.
The Board declared and paid dividends for the first time in the Company’s history during his tenure, a feat which was sustained in subsequent years.
Mahmud B.Tukur
Over the past decade, the Company’s fortunes have been completely transformed, with the expansion of its retail stations from 10 to 60 retail outlets, including mega stations strategically located in major cities nationwide.
Mr. Mahmud Tukur
The lubricants business has also witnessed strong growth from its expanded relationship with Castrol across the lubricants value chain.
The Company’s continuous investment in its state-of-the-art lubricant blending plant located at Sagamu, Ogun State is a key pillar in the deployment of its lubricants strategy and was pivotal in the Company’s recent selection by NNPC Retail as its lubricant manufacturing partner following a competitive bidding process.
The Company’s business activities were further diversified into international trading of Crude Oil, Condensate, LPG and Crude for product swap contracts, this has led to very strong relationships with major global trading companies and refiners.
Mr. Tukur conceptualised and oversaw project LEAP, which commenced with Business Process Re-engineering and led to the automation of key processes and the successful deployment of an ERP.
The development of a long-term strategic blueprint, a robust Performance Management System, Enterprise Risk Management Framework (ERM) and a Corporate Governance Framework bespoke for the Company were all undertaken as part of corporate transformation initiatives under project LEAP.
The Company will miss his passion and exemplary leadership and wishes him the very best in his future endeavours.
Nnamdi Obiagwu is a graduate of Mechanical Engineering from the Federal University of Technology Owerri. He has worked across several countries and industries during the course of his career whilst also attending numerous local and international training including; INSEAD Kenan-Flagler Business School, Enterprise Leadership Program, Achieve Global Professional Selling Skills and Acclivus Professional Negotiation to mention a few.
Nnamdi Obiagwu
His work experience is a testament to his versatility, love of challenges and success in a wide range of business segments that span Telecoms, Lubricant Sales, Business Development, Financial & Business Data Analysis & Reporting, Distributor Network Development, Fuels Territory Management, Fuels Supply Chain Management, Oil & Gas Consulting, Financial Advisory, Co-operative Administration & Management and Marine Vessel Management.
He commenced his career at Digital Computer Communication (a Computer Warehouse company) as a network engineer responsible for feasibility assessments, planning, and implementation of computer networks linking sites nationally. Where he found a flair for IT and developed an understanding of its importance and role in modern business.
In 2001, he moved to Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc (an ExxonMobil subsidiary) as a Lubrication Sales Engineer responsible for lube sales across various channels. Driven by performance and innate ability, he rose through the ranks to Special Sales Projects and Business Development.
This involved the development and implementation of key sales & marketing strategies along with relevant analysis.
To harness and further develop his competencies, he was deployed to the ExxonMobil Africa Mid- East Head office in Brussels, Belgium as an expatriate in 2004.
His assignment involved financial and business data collection, analysis, and presentation to both lube and fuels top management. An experience that availed him the opportunity to understand the inner workings of Multi-national Corporations and expectations as a top executive.
On his return to Nigeria, he was responsible for technical sales of specialized lubricants and lubrication solutions to help customers optimize lube and plant performance across Nigeria and worked to bring the young distributorship model and network to maturity.
In 2009, he was immersed in the side of the fuel of the business as a Territory Manager, responsible for all fuel-related activity in Eastern Nigeria for almost 40 sites. His duties ranged from enforcement of retailing standards to resolution of ligation and legal issues.
Shortly after, he became the Fuels Supply Manager responsible for the National fuels supply chain operations from importation and local sourcing to ensuring product availability to over 250 sites and corporate customers.
He subsequently became the Fleet/Logistics Manager responsible for transportation and all logistics to move fuel on a national scale and in the management of all related relationships (unions, transporters, agencies, etc.).
In 2014, he left Mobil and established COMACO Advisory Ltd, a company that provides corporate advisory services to Oil & Gas, Marine, Financial, Cooperatives and other sectors of the economy and in addition took on the role as an Executive Director, Supervising- Marine for the HARPS group of companies to coordinate the activities of the Nigerian and Singaporean offices.
Mr. Obiagwu joined Eterna Plc in July 2017 as General Manager, Head Lubricants responsible for all lubricant’s activities and was appointed to the Board of Eterna Plc in January 2020 as Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer.
He has served on the Boards of several private companies, has the requisite experience and the professional but calm personality that would allow steer Eterna despite the prevailing challenges currently facing the industry.
Exit of Mr. Ibrahim Boyi from theBoard
The Board of Directors has also considered and has accepted the resignation of Mr. Ibrahim Boyi – a Non-Executive Director from the Board.
Mr. Boyi has been called to a higher national assignment as an Executive Commissioner at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Mr. Boyi joined the Board as Managing Director/CEO in 2005 and served for five meritorious years before leaving his position as CEO to become a Non-Executive Director in the Company in 2010.
IbrahimBoyi
Mr. Ibrahim Boyi
Mr. Boyi has been an invaluable member of the Board. He served as a member of the Governance, Nomination and Remuneration Committee and chaired the Strategy, Finance & Investment Committee.
His industry experience and invaluable contributions will be missed.
The pandemic has led to a surge in pollution from disposable products like plastic face masks and hand sanitizer bottles. Effective trade rules can help limit the spread of coronavirus waste.
Coronavirus lockdowns around the globe have led to a dramatic 5% drop in greenhouse gas emissions, according to UNCTAD estimates, but not all measures to contain the pandemic have had a positive impact on the environment.
Our streets, beaches and ocean have been hit by a tidal wave of COVID-19 waste including plastic face masks, gloves, hand sanitizer bottles and food packaging.
“Plastic pollution was already one of the greatest threats to our planet before the coronavirus outbreak,” said Pamela Coke-Hamilton, UNCTAD’s director of international trade. “The sudden boom in the daily use of certain products to keep people safe and stop the disease is making things much worse.”
Global sales of disposable face masks alone are set to skyrocket from an estimated $800 million in 2019 to $166 billion in 2020, according to business consulting firm Grand View Research.
But this is only part of the story. Social distancing has also led to a flood of products delivered daily to homes – wrapped in a plethora of packaging – as people turn to online shopping and takeout services. The ensuing plastic waste is enormous.
For instance, during Singapore’s eight-week lockdown that eased on June 1, the island city-state’s 5.7 million residents discarded an additional 1,470 tons of plastic waste from takeout packaging and food delivery alone, according to a survey cited by The Los Angeles Times.
Many insurance businesses have been forced to speed up their digital transformation efforts but could a hybrid business model be the industry’s future?
When the government first announced a national lockdown back in March, countless businesses were left scrambling to make working from home, work. Sure, distributed work was probably on the cards for many of these companies but being forced to enable your entire team to work remotely in a matter of days is easier said than done.
A 2017 report from McKinsey & Company, which focused on digital disruption in insurance, stated that CEOs cannot simply “sanction” digital transformation; they need to communicate their digital strategy with the company and then outline why it’s important to make the changes they’re planning to make.
But when a global pandemic strikes, there isn’t much time to have these conversations. You need to act and adapt. And you need to do so as quickly as possible.
At SureStart, as a digital-first business, we were lucky because we could make the transition to distance work fairly simply. But beyond the nuts and bolts of digitising and keeping things running internally, we’ve also seen a shift in consumer buying behaviour.
Where insurance was traditionally sold via a broker face-to-face, social distancing measures mean that customers have had to get comfortable with buying insurance via digital channels.
And this is where things could get tricky for the industry.
For the most part, customers don’t buy insurance; they’re sold insurance. But in an online world, the onus is on the customer to seek things out. Until there is a mind shift on the consumer side – towards buying insurance, not being sold insurance – it’s likely that we’ll soon see a move back to pre-COVID norms.
But this doesn’t mean that insurers should hold off on using this opportunity to leverage digital to automate and streamline their processes. In fact, I’d argue that the “new normal” will be a more hybrid model, with outbound staff complemented by digital channels.
This is especially important when it comes to client support staff.
Something a lot of people have struggled with during the lockdown is uncertainty. The businesses that have been open and transparent with their customers, those who have communicated effectively, are the ones who will come out of this looking good.
If your advisors, call centre agents and brokers aren’t able to communicate with customers face-to-face, you need to make sure that there are other channels in place so that your clients aren’t left in the dark.
It’s about options
According to a recent Deloitte report, modern insurers need to understand that traditional principles don’t hold the same value as they used to. If insurers want to drive the disruption needed to stay relevant among consumers who expect seamless experiences at every touchpoint, they need to embrace a new approach.
Our shift to remote work happened fairly easily but that doesn’t mean that our lockdown experience has been hurdle free. We’ve seen losses due to product exposure in travel and entertainment, which emphasises the importance of product and distribution diversification.
Winston Churchill once said that you should never waste a crisis and I think this sentiment is especially true today. Businesses must use this situation to better prepare for the future. When you have the right solutions, technologies and strategies in place, it’s easier to adapt when things aren’t going according to plan.
By Travys Wilkins, Executive Director at SureStart
Founded in 2016 as the distribution partner of the Briisk Instant Transaction Platform, SureStart has become a market leader in implementing and consulting end-to-end on, the entire value chain of click-to-buy insurance in South Africa in its own right.
The new CEOs will drive the Group’s strategy and activities in Mali, Uganda, Zambia, Senegal, Tanzania and Sierra Leone respectively.
United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA)
In addition, Ogechi Altraide has become the new Head, Retail Banking; Amadao Konate, Head, Treasury & International Payments for UBA America. These international appointments complement the prior appointments of Sola Yomi-Ajayi as the CEO of UBA America, and Patrick Gutmann as the CEO of UBA UK.
UBA provides a full suite of corporate banking products and services to businesses, multilateral institutions and governments transacting from and with Africa.
Earlier this month, UBA announced the appointment of Ayoku Liadi and Oliver Alawuba respectively, as Deputy Managing Directors in charge of the Group’s Nigeria and Africa businesses, attesting to the importance of UBA’s African business and its strategic positioning as “Africa’s Global Bank”.
UBA Group Chairman, Tony O. Elumelu, stated“The appointments further reflect the strong growth of the Group’s pan-African businesses, currently responsible for over 40% of total Group revenue and the increasing importance of our international businesses in London, Paris and New York, offering superior treasury, trading and corporate banking solutions to clients globally.
We are committed to catalysing growth on the African continent and the new CEOs are taking up roles at a very exciting period, as the Group executes its innovative digital play across the African continent’’.
Also announced was the appointment of three new country Executive Directors – Haoua Cisse as the Executive Director, Wholesale, UBA Mali and Julien Kouassi as Executive Director Wholesale, UBA Côte D’Ivoire.
United Bank for Africa is one of the largest employers in the financial sector on the African continent, with over 20,000 employees group-wide and serving over 20 million customers, across its approximately 1000 branches and over 30,000 ATMs, PoS, and agencies in Africa.
Operating in 20 African countries and globally in the United Kingdom, the United States and France, UBA provides retail, commercial and institutional banking services, leading financial inclusion and implementing cutting edge products, including the first-ever banking chatbot in Africa, LEO.
As part of its ongoing commitment in connecting people to accurate sources and combating misinformation, specifically around COVID-19, Facebook will begin rolling out a new on-platform campaign across a number of countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Named ‘Three Questions To Help Stamp Out False News’, this aims to educate and inform users about how to detect potential false news, and was created in consultation with a number of its third-party fact-checking partners.
Delivered on Facebook’s platform, users will see a series of creative and educative adverts, featuring a link to a dedicated website,www.stampoutfalsenews.com which ask users to challenge the information they see on posts by asking themselves the following:
Where’s it from? If there’s no source, search for one.
What’s missing? Get the whole story, not just the headline.
How does it make you feel? People who make false news try to manipulate feelings.
This campaign comes on the heels of last month’s context notification update, which lets people know when the news articles they are about to share are older than 90 days, providing greater visibility and context to help make informed decisions about what to share.
“We know misinformation is an ongoing challenge, which is why we have invested heavily as a business in addressing misinformation, and more recently around COVID-19. We continue to focus on combating this,” says Aïda Ndiaye, Facebook’s Public Policy Manager, Programs and Campaigns, EMEA.
“This campaign is just another step in taking our responsibility for improving the accuracy and quality of information on Facebook seriously. We remain committed to working with industry experts and the community on our platforms, to tackle misinformation and empower people with resources that help them decide what to read, share and trust.”
FMDQ Holdings PLC, Africa’s first vertically integrated financial market infrastructure (FMI) group, held its 8th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Friday, July 24, 2020, following the respective AGMs of its wholly-owned subsidiaries – FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited (FMDQ Exchange or the Exchange), FMDQ Clear Limited (FMDQ Clear), and FMDQ Depository Limited (FMDQ Depository), on Thursday, July 23, 2020.
In compliance with the COVID-19 directives and guidelines of the Lagos State Government that prohibits gatherings of more than twenty (20) persons and FMDQ’s commitment to keeping its staff and stakeholders safe, the AGMs held virtually, with the shareholders and other attendees participating in the proceedings via zoom.
Presiding over the FMDQ Group AGM, the newly appointed Group Chairman of the Board of Directors, Dr. Kingsley Obiora, presented the Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2019, to shareholders, together with the Reports of the Directors and Auditors.
He stated that“FMDQ achieved a resilient performance amidst the challenging operating environment, due to strategic initiatives implemented in its first strategic lustrum (2015 – 2019), which mitigated the impact of volatile market conditions.”
According to Dr. Obiora,“2019 was a year of growth, expansion, and reorganisation for FMDQ, with the consolidation of its flagship wholly-owned subsidiary, FMDQ Exchange, the second year of the operationalisation of its wholly-owned subsidiary, FMDQ Clear, and the activation of another wholly-owned subsidiary, FMDQ Depository, making significant progress in its bid to help de-risk the financial markets by constructing market infrastructures in all components of the capital market value chain, from pre-trade, trade to post-trade.”
He further stated that through FMDQ Securities Exchange, the Group admitted a total of eighty-four (84) securities split across bonds, commercial papers (CPs), and funds from various sectors for listing and quotation on the platform of its platform, in addition to the registration of several CP Programmes.
2019 also saw the strengthening of the operational and strategic capacities of FMDQ’s clearing, settlement, and depository businesses in line with their drive to create value for stakeholders in the Nigerian financial market.
Consequently, FMDQ Clear focused on building operational readiness and capabilities to extend its services from just clearing and settlement to providing central counterparty (CCP) services in the near term, whilst FMDQ Depository leveraged the digitised and integrated structure of FMDQ Group to operationalise its new business; yielding positive results and further paving the way for the Depository to actualise its vision of becoming the Depository of Choice in Nigeria.
Furthermore, as part of the Ordinary Business of the AGM, the shareholders of FMDQ ratified, amongst other things, the appointment of the new Group Chairman, Dr. Kingsley Obiora, Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); Mr. Emeka Onwuka, OON, Partner and Head of Private Clients & Family Wealth Practice at Andersen Tax in Nigeria; and Mr. Sadiq Mohammed, Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer of the Asset & Resource Management (ARM) both serving as Non-Executive Directors on the Board of FMDQ.
Looking ahead, the Group Managing Director/CEO of FMDQ, Mr. Bola Onadele. Koko, noted FMDQ’s commitment, with the support and collaboration of its stakeholders, to the development of a thriving derivatives market in Nigeria by launching new hedging products in 2020.
Furthermore, the Group shall continue to enhance the readiness of FMDQ Clear to operate a fully-fledged CCP upon regulatory approval, whilst making efforts through FMDQ Depository to facilitate interoperability amongst the central securities depositories in Nigeria to enable seamless processing of clients’ transactions.
Also, with the incorporation of its newest wholly-owned subsidiary, FMDQ Private Markets Limited (FMDQ Private Markets) in January 2020, the Group shall focus on promoting the development of organised private capital, providing the much-needed transparency in the market for private debt and equity securities, by eliminating information asymmetry and ultimately improving credibility in the market for private issuances.
FMDQ Group provides an efficient one-stop platform for the seamless execution, clearing, settlement, risk management and depository of financial market transactions, as well as data and information services across the fixed income, currencies and derivatives markets, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries – FMDQ Exchange, FMDQ Clear, FMDQ Depository and FMDQ Private Markets.
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