E-Financial
NOVA Wins ‘Bond Offering of the Year’ @ BAFI Awards
NOVA Merchant Bank has emerged the winner of the ‘Bond Offering of the Year’ prize at the BusinessDay Bank and other Financial Institutions (BAFI) awards.
It clinched the prize for its extremely successful N10 billion seven year subordinated unsecured bond which was oversubscribed by 300 per cent.
In a well-attended ceremony comprising of Bank Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), captains of industries and senior financial executives, the Bank was crowned with the award in recognition of the unprecedented and audacious nature of its bond issuance which was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic and within three years of the Bank commencing operations.
Despite the significant level of uncertainty occasioned by the pandemic and the resultant lockdown, the bond offer was highly demanded with a diversified order book made up of discerning investors, which included asset managers, insurance companies, domestic pension funds, non-financial institution corporates, high net-worth individuals, as well as, international fund managers.
Mr. Phillips Oduoza, chairman, NOVA Merchant Bank
Mr. Phillips Oduoza, chairman, NOVA Merchant Bank, who expressed delight at the recognition, said that even within its short period of operations, the Bank had done a lot to fulfil its mandate of providing long-term funding to its customers.
“This award is due to the combined effort of the Bank’s high calibre Board and Management team. It bodes well for the future realisation of our desire to re-establish merchant banking as a key economic driver by providing long-term funds and advisory services,” he enthused.
Mr. Nath Ude, managing director/chief executive officer, NOVA who received the award on behalf of the Bank, dedicated it to all the staff who, according to him, have been highly instrumental to the achievement of the Bank’s goals and worked tirelessly to deliver strong results notwithstanding the macroeconomic challenges.
“This bond leaves the Bank better positioned to meet the ever-growing needs of our customers for long term financing. It complements the traction we have witnessed in our business despite the challenging environment as we continue to seek ways to deliver superior value to our customers,” he stated.
NOVA Merchant Bank Limited is an investment grade rated merchant bank in Nigeria which offers an integrated suite of financial solutions covering Wholesale Banking, Investment Banking, Asset Management, Securities Trading, Wealth Management, Trade Services, Transaction Banking, Cash Management and Digital Banking.
It has an ambitious vision of being Africa’s preferred financial solutions provider by creating superior value in the markets it serves. It is guided by its overarching philosophy of “New Thinking. New Opportunities.
By 8 am on July 9, GTCO Holdings is set to commence trading on the London Stock Exchange.
As the group is set to list all its shares on the London Stock Exchange, becoming the first Nigerian banking entity to do so.
This is as the group launches a public offer of new ordinary shares to raise approximately $100 million on the London Stock Exchange.
The equity offering, which is an accelerated bookbuild and managed by Citigroup, began on July 2 and is to last until July 31.
On July 31, the group announced that it would cancel the listing of its Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) on the UK Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Official List.
It will also cancel their admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange (LSE)’s main market.
In place of the GDRs, the group will list all its ordinary shares directly.
aims to admit all its shares to the equity shares category for international commercial companies under a secondary listing on the FCA’s Official List.
The shares will also begin trading on the LSE’s main market for listed securities.
According to a regulatory filing on the London Stock Exchange, the net proceeds from the offering will be used to recapitalize GTBank Nigeria.
Based on the prevailing exchange rate of N1,540 to the US dollar, the targeted $100 million equates to approximately N154 billion.
This capital raise is expected to position the Group to fully meet the N500 billion minimum paid-up share capital required by regulators for banks with international licenses.
As of now, both Zenith Bank and Access Holdings have already met—and exceeded—this threshold.
The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has handed over new licenses to SanlamAllianz Life and General Insurance Nigeria Ltd at brief ceremony held in Abuja.
Olusegun Omosehin, commissioner for Insurance emphasized the Commission’s commitment to supporting the growth of insurance entities in the country, while ensuring strict compliance with regulatory requirements. He urged the companies to prioritize good corporate governance, stability, and timely claims settlement processes.
The Commissioner reiterated NAICOM’s dedication to removing unnecessary bottlenecks and improving the insurance industry’s overall performance. He expressed confidence that the merger would enhance the companies’ capabilities and contribute to the industry’s growth.
SanlamAllianz recently launched its operations in Nigeria, marking a significant step in the company’s Pan-African expansion.
The launch follows the merger of Sanlam and Allianz’s Nigerian operations, creating a new entity named SanlamAllianz Nigeria.
This joint venture aims to transform the Nigerian insurance landscape by offering enhanced customer experiences, innovative solutions, and improved financial inclusion.
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.
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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