E-Financial
Capital Market Operators Get April 30 Deadline to Renew Licences
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has given Capital Market Operators, CMO, April 30, 2021, as deadline to renew their operation licences.
Mr. Lamido Yuguda, director general of SEC, who briefed journalists on the outcome of the first quarter Capital Market Committee meeting held virtually said licence renewals will now be periodical.
He explained that the “rationale for this is to ensure that operators in the market are fit and proper at all times and to strengthen the supervision and monitoring activities of the Commission. The renewal process is electronic and the deadline for 2021 renewal is 30th April, 2021”.
Speaking on the controversy over restriction placed on trading in digital currencies and other digital assets, the DG said the lack of access to commercial banking accounts as a result of ban imposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria means the market no longer exists.
According to him, “The Commission recognizes the impact of FinTechs on capital market activities, and wishes to assure the public that we remain accommodative of this development. We shall continue to engage players and support them to cooperate lawfully. Our aim is to ensure the delivery of safe products and services without stifling innovation, I therefore encourage FinTech firms to approach the Commission for due registration and desist from operating illegally”.
Giving details during questions and answers, he said: “In the area of cryto assets, you know that with the recent prohibition by the CBN of access to Nigerian banking accounts by the crypto exchanges that market has been disrupted.
“The truth of the matter is that while the SEC has issued guidelines in September 2020 aimed at regulating this market, for now, for all intent and purposes because these exchanges do not have access to commercial banking accounts in Nigeria, the market now does not exist.
“We are in discussion with the CBN towards better understanding and better regulations for this market. We would be able to come back at some point later to tell of the result of our engagement but because of the lack access to commercial banking accounts, we have to suspend our circular of September 2020.
“The implementation of that circular is suspended until these operators are able to have access to Nigerian banking accounts”, he added.
Yuguda therefore advised all registered CMOs to “refrain from providing any form of support to unregistered entities operating unlawfully within our market, as such action would not be condoned.
Furthermore, we urge CMOs to improve on their level of compliance, timeliness and correctness of disclosures and other filings made to the Commission”.
He disclosed that at April 8, 2021, there were still 4,012,311 accounts with incomplete know your customers, KYC, information, reminding CMOs to update their KYC information.
“This exercise is critical to deepening the participation of retail investors and we direct all CMOs to accord it the highest level of priority”, he added.
He also stated that the Nigerian Stock Exchange has concluded the Demutualization process.
“As a result of this, the Organization would now be known as the Nigeria Exchange, (NGX), Group Plc. While NGX has informed us that a formal launch of the Group would be made at the end of April, we used the platform of the meeting to congratulate the new management of the Group. The Shares of NGX Plc have also been admitted on the NASD platform for trading.
“As part of measures to support the development of the commodities ecosystem, the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN) revalidated its 59.9% holding in the Nigerian Commodities Exchange (NCX) to ensure its appropriate positioning for effectiveness. This addressed the funding problem plaguing the NCX and several engagements are ongoing with relevant authorities to promote trading on the Exchange”.
Debt Management Office (DMO) said the federal government spent N3.14 trillion on servicing its domestic debt in the first quarter of 2026.
The office disclosed the data in its latest domestic debt service report for Q1 2026.
The figure comprises N2.97 trillion in interest payments and N169.68 billion in principal repayments.
The agency said in January, the government spent N741.82 billion on domestic debt service, while the figure rose to N967.67 billion in February.
Debt service increased further to N1.43 trillion in March, bringing the total for the quarter to N3.14 trillion.
The March figure was 47.7 percent higher than the N967.67 billion recorded in February and 92.7 percent above the N741.82 billion spent in January.
Also, the debt office said interest payments accounted for about 94.6 percent of total domestic debt service during the quarter.
The DMO said treasury bills accounted for the largest share of interest payments at N1 trillion, while interest on federal government bonds stood at N1.96 trillion.
The agency said the government also paid N4.24 billion in interest on FGN savings bonds during the period.
The DMO said the principal component of the debt service comprised N169.68 billion in repayments on local-denominated promissory notes.
Overall, the government’s domestic debt service rose sharply through the quarter, with March accounting for almost half of the N3.14 trillion spent between January and March.
Nigeria’s public debt increased by 0.01 percent to N159.35 trillion in the Q1 of 2026.
Interswitch Group, an integrated digital payments and commerce company, together with global banking software provider, Temenos have reassured the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) of their commitment to advancing the modernisation of Nigeria’s financial services sector.
Interswitch and Temenos had earlier in June announced a strategic partnership across Africa which would see Interswitch leverage Temenos solutions – across core banking, digital banking, payments, wealth management and financial crime mitigation – to provide cloud-hosted and on-premises managed services to banks and financial institutions across Africa.
This will enable institutions to progressively transform their banking platform and evolve to more customer-centric business models. The service will initially support key African markets including Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya and others.
The recent regulatory visit to CBN headquarters in Abuja, was led by the Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe, and Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) at Temenos, Santhosh Rao, as part of the ongoing efforts by both organisations to deepen collaboration with Central Banks across the African region on the future of digital banking infrastructure across Nigeria and key African markets.
Discussions centred on the strategic partnership between Interswitch and Temenos, and how it will enable Nigerian financial institutions to progressively modernise their core banking platforms and transition to more customer-centric business models.
The two organisations also explored opportunities to work with the CBN in charting new frontiers in Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) innovation, leveraging resilient financial networks and decentralised application platforms to support the issuance and management of CBDCs.
Commenting on the visit, Elegbesaid: “Our partnership as Interswitch with Temenos and our continued engagement with the Central Bank of Nigeria reflect a shared commitment to building banking infrastructure that is resilient, inclusive, and ready for the next phase of Africa’s financial evolution.
We are proud to be at the table as these conversations shape the future of digital banking technology and innovation across key Africa markets…”
The Bank of Industry, through BOI Financing SPV Plc, has opened subscriptions for its inaugural Series 1 Fixed Rate Bond worth up to N250bn under its $1bn multi-currency instruments programme, seeking to raise long-term capital to finance businesses across Nigeria’s priority sectors.
The offer, which opened on 5 August and closes on 11 August, is being arranged by Chapel Hill Denham as the lead issuing house. The five-year bond is priced within a yield range of 17.35 per cent to 17.50 per cent and will be listed on the FMDQ Securities Exchange.
According to the offer document, proceeds from the issuance will be deployed to finance eligible businesses and projects across sectors, including agriculture and food processing, healthcare, engineering and technology, renewable energy, petrochemicals, oil and gas, creative industries and solid minerals, in line with BOI’s development finance mandate.
The lender said the financing is expected to improve access to medium and long-term funding for Nigerian enterprises, expand productive capacity, create and preserve jobs, deepen local value addition, support import substitution, boost exports and strengthen domestic value chains.
BOI, Nigeria’s foremost development finance institution, said it has provided funding to more than one million businesses across the country and disbursed over N1.27tn between 2023 and 2025. The institution operates across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory and is jointly owned by the Ministry of Finance Incorporated and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The bank also highlighted its financial performance, reporting a 36 per cent compound annual growth rate in gross earnings between 2021 and 2025.
Interest income rose 64 per cent to N884bn in 2025 from N538bn in the previous year, while its capital adequacy ratio stood at 39 per cent, nearly four times the regulatory minimum of 10 per cent. Its non-performing loan ratio was 1.7 per cent, below the CBN’s prudential limit of five per cent.
The bond has been assigned AAA ratings by Agusto & Co. and Intelligence Africa, reflecting the issuer’s strong capitalization, profitability, liquidity and ownership structure.
The issuance is open to institutional and qualified investors with a minimum subscription of N5m and additional investments in multiples of N1m. Interest will be paid semi-annually at a fixed rate, while principal repayment will begin in the third year through equal semi-annual amortised instalments until maturity in 2031.
The bond is also exempt from tax, making it an attractive investment option for investors seeking stable returns amid expectations of declining interest rates.
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