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E-Financial

Naira Roars Back to Life in Parallel Market

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By Lukman Otunuga, Senior Research Analyst at FXTM,

The Naira has marched into September with a renewed sense of confidence, rallying to its strongest level since April on the black markets as supplies of Dollar surged ahead an auction set by the CBN.

On the parallel markets, the Naira is trading around 435 per Dollar compared to the 465 witnessed on the last day of August.

It looks like local currency is deriving strength from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s announcement in resuming the sales of foreign exchange to operators of the Bureau de Change (BDC) from September 7.

Over the past few months, the CBN has found it challenging to clear the backlog of foreign exchange demand by foreign investors as the havoc wrought by COVID-19 created shockwaves across the economy.

Dollar shortages were further intensified by depressed Oil prices which account for more than 90% of foreign exchange earnings and over 70% of government revenues.

The economic outlook for Nigeria remains clouded by uncertainty due to COVID-19 and shaky Oil prices. GDP is expected to contract anywhere from 3% to 6% in 2020 with most of the damage from the pandemic seen in the first half of the year.

Although a weak recovery is predicted in 2021, this will depend on oil prices and the government’s efforts in implementing critical structural reforms to reducing Nigeria heavy dependence on Oil.

Gold wobbles as Dollar fights back 

Gold has woken up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, struggling to nurse wounds inflicted from Wednesday’s hefty depreciation as king Dollar rebounded from two-year lows.

The precious metal has lost almost 2% since the start of the September and could extend losses in the short term if the Dollar fights for its thrown and “risk-on” remains the name of the game. However, when looking at the key themes influencing Gold, the medium to longer term outlook points north despite the possible weakness in the near term.

Buying sentiment towards Gold could be dented by a sense of confidence over the world economy recovering quicker than expected, while renewed US-China trade hopes and optimism around a coronavirus vaccine may boost attraction towards riskier assets at the expense of safe-havens.

However, rising coronavirus cases in the United States, political uncertainty ahead of November’s presidential elections and Brexit drama among other negative themes may drain investor confidence, ultimately accelerating the flight to safety.

On top of this, low-to-negative government bond yields, unprecedented monetary stimulus and handsome fiscal packages should continue sweetening appetite for the precious metal for the rest of 2020.

Although economic data from major economies have beat estimates, the overall shaky macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape may ensure the Gold remains a hotspot of safety.

Looking at the technical picture, prices remain in a wide range on the daily timeframe with support at $1910 and resistance around $1985. It looks like the precious metal is under pressure with $1910 acting as the first level of interest. A breakdown below this point could encourage a decline towards $1890. Should $1910 prove to be reliable support, prices could rebound back towards $1950, before potentially testing $1985.

 

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E-Financial

World Bank Approves Extra $65m for Nigeria’s SPESSE

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World Bank has approved an additional $65 million loan for Nigeria to support the Sustainable Procurement, Environmental, and Social Standards Enhancement (SPESSE) project, increasing the total financing for the initiative to $145 million.

World Bank Approves Extra $65m for Nigeria’s SPESSE

The approval was granted on June 24, 2025, according to details posted on the World Bank’s website, which also indicates that the project’s status has moved to “active” following the approval.

The SPESSE project, initially launched with an $80 million loan approved in February 2020, aims to strengthen institutional capacity for managing procurement, environmental, and social standards in both the public and private sectors across Nigeria.

The World Bank described the project’s development objective as the establishment of sustainable capacity in these areas.

This latest approval is part of a broader wave of financing expected from the World Bank to Nigeria in 2025.

The bank is scheduled to approve loans totalling $1.61 billion over the coming months, supporting various development initiatives.

Among these is a $300 million loan for the ‘Solutions for the Internally Displaced and Host Communities Project,’ expected to be finalised by the end of July.

This project aims to improve access to basic services and economic opportunities for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and host communities in selected local government areas in northern Nigeria.

In September, the World Bank plans to approve four additional loans: a $10.5 million facility to support technical assistance for the Central Bank of Nigeria, a $300 million Health Security Program targeting Western and Central Africa (Nigeria – Phase IV), a $500 million project for building resilient digital infrastructure (BRIDGE), and a $500 million loan under the Nigeria Sustainable Agricultural Value-Chains for Growth project aimed at promoting sustainable growth and job creation within key agricultural sectors.

Earlier in March 2025, the bank approved three financing requests amounting to $1.13 billion.

These funds are directed towards projects focused on enhancing quality education, boosting household and community resilience, and improving nutrition.

Among the approved loans were $80 million for the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria 2.0 project, $552 million for the HOPE for Quality Basic Education for All programme, and $500 million for the Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus Programme.

In February, the Nigerian government announced expectations of new World Bank loans totalling $2.2 billion for six different projects in 2025. This follows a $1.5 billion loan disbursed in 2024 aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s economic stability and resource mobilisation efforts.


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E-Financial

Ecobank Taps Google Cloud to Deepen Financial Inclusion

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Ecobank, a pan-African financial services group, has partnered with Google Cloud in a deal to improve financial services with advanced analytics, AI and driving digital empowerment across Africa.

This collaboration will focus on leveraging Google Cloud’s advanced technologies and AI to enhance Ecobank’s digital offerings to accelerate the digital transformation of the Bank.

The partnership agreement is designed to empower individuals, support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the region, and contribute to the overall economic development of Africa.

“Our collaboration with Google Cloud is a leap forward in Ecobank’s digital transformation journey. We look forward to leveraging Google Cloud’s world-class technology to unlock new possibilities for individuals and businesses to grow and scale across Africa,” said Jeremy Awori, group chief executive officer of Ecobank.

“This collaboration signifies our shared intent to explore building a more connected and financially inclusive future for the continent.”

Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud, stated that Google Cloud and Ecobank have a shared vision for using technology to help deliver financial empowerment to more people and businesses in Africa.

“We look forward to exploring the ways our cutting-edge AI, powerful data analytics, and scalable infrastructure can support Ecobank’s efforts to fuel the continent’s economic development and digital future.”

The collaboration aims to simplify and streamline money transfers, both domestically and across borders. By leveraging Google Cloud’s capabilities, including its powerful data analytics platform, BigQuery, for AI-driven insights, Ecobank will aim to develop solutions that improve access to finance for SMEs, simplify payment acceptance, and provide valuable data-driven insights to help businesses scale across more than 33 countries in Africa.


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E-Financial

Stanbic IBTC Holdings Rights Issue Oversubscribed by 21.9%

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Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc has announced the successful close of the N148.7 billion Rights Issue subscription exercise following the completion of the verification exercise by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and final clearance by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Stanbic IBTC Holdings said the Rights Issue was oversubscribed by 21.9 percent, adding that the holding company has injected N140 billion into Stanbic IBTC Bank.

Kunle Adedeji, acting Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc while commenting on the just concluded rights issue programme said that “The turnout and participation of existing shareholders taking up their rights was impressive such that the rights issue was oversubscribed by 21.9percent to the tune of N181.4 billion. Our shareholders’ interest shows the confidence they continue to have in the brand,” he said.

“We appreciate the support of the Central Bank of Nigeria, The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Lead Issuing house, Joint Issuing houses and other stakeholders in the successful completion of the recapitalisation exercise.

“We are optimistic about future opportunities, as the injection of new capital will position us to take advantage of them to enable us to deliver to our shareholders. To all shareholders, we are grateful for your unwavering belief and support for the Stanbic IBTC Brand and your willingness to continue this journey with us,” Adedeji said.

Having received an injection of N140 billion from the parent company, the Chief Executive of the Banking subsidiary, Wole Adeniyi, remarked that “the injection of the new capital into the banking subsidiary is a positive development. This will enable the Bank to seize additional opportunities within the industry and enhance our Single Obligor Limit (SOL).

“We deeply appreciate the dedication and hard work of our regulators, issuing houses, and all other stakeholders. We extend our sincere gratitude for your continued support.”


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