News
Foreign Investors Want More Naira Devaluation
International investors, dismayed by Nigeria’s decision to delay a naira devaluation they see as long overdue, will hold back from its stock and bond markets, raising risks of a deeper crisis in Africa’s biggest economy.
Reuters reported that the afterglow from March, when an incumbent president handed over power after what was seen as Nigeria’s freest ever election, is dissipating as new leader Muhammadu Buhari shows little sign of following up on promises of economic reform.
Markets have moved sharply in the past week in particular after the central bank announced curbs on dollar funding for investors, as well as for importers of goods ranging from toothpicks to private jets.
The move, meant to conserve foreign exchange, has dashed widely-held expectations of a naira devaluation – the central reform that investors had been banking on.
Since then 10-year bond yields have jumped 1 percentage point to almost 15 percent, stocks have fallen and the naira’s value is plunging in the parallel market, down about 7 percent from early-June levels.
According to Reuters, a devaluation to restore the economy to competitiveness is a matter of time, fund managers still believe. In the meantime, they are unlikely to bring back cash they pulled out before the election.
“It will take a combination of weaker currency and higher interest rates to get us back to Nigeria,” said Kieran Curtis, a bond fund manager at Standard Life Investments.
“When we compare Nigeria to other oil exporters it hasn’t had enough of a currency adjustment.”
With oil exports providing 70 percent of budget revenues, Nigeria can certainly use a cheaper currency. Most had reckoned on a 10-15 percent devaluation at least and some such as Curtis estimate a 20-25 percent move is probably needed.
The naira fell 20 percent in the year to February. Even so its real exchange rate, against currencies of trade partners and adjusted for inflation, is up than 50 percent in the past decade. link.reuters.com/ben53w
In real terms, currencies of oil-exporting peers Russia and Colombia are 5 and 17 percent respectively below long-term averages. African oil producer Angola also recently devalued its kwanza, which is down 15 percent to the dollar this year
And the price for supporting the naira is high – the central bank has spent at least $3.4 billion since fixing the exchange rate in February and reserves have fallen below $30 billion for the first time since 2005. http:link.reuters.com/huf76v
Devaluation expectations continue to mount. Non-deliverable forwards, derivatives used to hedge against future exchange rate moves, reflect expectations of currency weakening: six-month NDFs price the naira at 225 per dollar, while a week ago the forward price was around 215.
“To me, (central bank measures) are doing more harm than good: you are putting off the inevitable and the reaction you are seeing on rates markets and the NDF shows that,” said Kevin Daly, a fund manager at Aberdeen Asset Management.
“Effectively the bond market is starting to price in a much wider move on the currency.”
Curbing access to dollars may briefly stabilise reserves and constrict imports but pent-up demand for hard currency will eventually weaken the exchange rate and drains central bank coffers.
It may also stoke inflation if importers are forced to pay more for dollars. The naira trades at 230 per dollar in the black market, some 14 percent below the official rate.
With oil revenues down and borrowing costs rising, the 2015 budget is already 3.2 percent smaller than last year’s. By early May, the government had already exhausted half its borrowing allowance for the year.
Ten-year yields at almost 15 percent, 250 basis points above post-election lows, will raise borrowing costs for the government and the private sector.
“Ultimately (devaluation) will become more of a fiscal necessity than an external necessity. The longer they will take to do the adjustment, the bigger the adjustment would have to be,” said Antoon de Klerk, portfolio manager at Investec’s African Fixed Income Fund.
And crucially for investment flows, Nigeria’s place in the GBI-EM local currency debt index looks increasingly precarious.
JPMorgan warned in June it could eject Nigeria from its benchmark index by year-end unless it restores liquidity to currency markets in a way that allowed foreign investors to transact with minimal hurdles.
Nigeria has a 1.8 percent share in the $220 billion index, suggesting $4 billion in inflows, Morgan Stanley estimates, a major offset to its current account deficit.
“Were Nigeria to be removed from the index as a result of the dry-up in liquidity as forewarned by the index provider, upside risks to our naira forecast of 200-205 (per dollar) over the next 12 months could crystallise immediately, especially if one considers that its (annual) current account deficit could be up to … $10 billion,” Morgan Stanley said.
New data from CFA Society Nigeria is reshaping how the country’s financial sector thinks about talent development, with Access emerging as the single largest source of CFA candidates in Nigeria, distinction industry watchers say signals a deeper shift in how leading institutions are building investment expertise from within.
In its Where Nigeria’s Finance Professionals Work series, published in a national daily, CFA Society Nigeria placed Access first among employers of CFA candidates nationwide, with 82 candidates enrolled in the programme, more than double the 38 recorded at the next-placed institution and well ahead of every other bank or financial services firm on the list.
Access also ranked second among employers of CFA charterholders, with 11 professionals who have completed all three levels of the Programme and met its experience and ethics requirements.
For an industry that has long measured itself by balance sheet size and branch count, the rankings point to a different kind of competition: one over who is building the deepest bench of certified, globally credentialed talent.
CFA Society Nigeria compiled the data from its Salesforce Membership Database as at June 2026, and described the exercise as a way of recognising employers whose people “bring rigour, integrity and global best practices into the workplace every day.”
Analysts following the sector say the outcome is notable less for the ranking itself than for what it suggests about talent strategy across Africa’s financial services industry. A single institution developing more aspiring charterholders than the rest of the market combined raises the floor for professional standards nationally, not just within one balance sheet.
Every candidate who advances through the CFA Programme adds to a shared pool of ethics-trained, analytically rigorous professionals that Nigeria’s capital markets, pension funds and asset managers all eventually draw from.
Access Holdings Group Chief Executive Officer Innocent C. Ike, commenting on the rankings, framed the achievement in terms of institution-building rather than recruitment: “Every candidate on that list represents our commitment to building institutions and professionals that endure.”
The remark echoes a broader thesis increasingly voiced by market observers, that talent depth, not scale alone, is what will determine which African financial institutions earn lasting global credibility.
That distinction sits at the centre of Access’s stated ambition to become the World’s Most Respected African Financial Services Group. If the CFA numbers are any indication, the Group’s route to that goal runs less through square metres of branch network and more through the calibre of the people sitting inside it, a bet that Nigeria’s finance professionals, and the institutions that will one day hire them, are already placing alongside Access.
Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has announced plans to introduce Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) baggage tracking technology across domestic and international airport terminals to tackle the growing problem of delayed, misrouted and missing luggages
Michael Achimugu, director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, NCAA, disclosed this at a stakeholder engagement forum in Lagos.
Achimugu said the RFID-enabled system would replace the traditional barcode-based baggage tracking framework and provide airlines and passengers with real-time visibility of checked luggage from check-in to final collection.
According to him, the technology would improve baggage traceability, reduce mishandling and strengthen accountability across the baggage-handling chain.
Unlike conventional barcode systems, RFID technology allows baggage to be automatically scanned at multiple points without requiring direct line of sight, enabling real-time tracking of luggage throughout its journey.
Achimugu said issues involving short-landed, missing, lost or damaged baggage had remained among the major complaints from air travellers, alongside flight delays.
He said the introduction of RFID technology was therefore aimed at improving baggage-handling standards and restoring passenger confidence in the aviation sector.
The NCAA said the initiative also aligns with IATA Resolution 753, which requires airlines to track baggage at key points during the passenger journey.
The authority expects the technology to provide more accurate information on the location of luggage, facilitate quicker resolution of baggage-related complaints and improve the overall passenger experience.
The NCAA said the initiative would also strengthen accountability among airlines and other stakeholders involved in baggage handling at Nigerian airports.
eTranzact International Plc has called for increased adoption of digital payment solutions among micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), saying access to technology is critical to improving business efficiency, financial inclusion and growth.
The company also said it was deepening its partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) to expand digital access and financial literacy among small businesses across the country.
In a statement, the Divisional Head, Merchant Services, eTranzact, Mrs. Abimbola Reis, stated this at the SMEDAN/eTranzact Town Hall Engagement in Lagos recently, themed, “Financial Literacy and Inclusion for MSMEs Leveraging on Fintech Innovation.”
Reis described MSMEs as the backbone of Nigeria’s economy, noting that the sector comprises almost 40 million businesses and contributes significantly to economic growth and job creation.
However, she said many businesses continue to face challenges including limited access to finance, inefficient payment systems, weak financial reporting, cash-flow constraints and inadequate access to digital platforms.
She added that trust concerns also affect businesses’ ability to access finance, while heavy reliance on cash increases exposure to theft and makes payment reconciliation more difficult.
Representing the Director-General of SMEDAN, Prof. Yinka Fisher said the town hall was aimed at generating practical ideas and solutions that would support the growth and expansion of MSMEs.
“The essence of this engagement is to share ideas and concepts that will help MSMEs thrive and expand. Our partnership with eTranzact is about expanding the frontiers of MSMEs and ensuring they continue to grow,” he said.
Also speaking, representative of the Director-General of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Dr. Praise Adedigba said businesses could no longer depend solely on hard work to remain competitive.
Airtel Nigeria Adds Over 1,000Cell Sites in Nationwide Expansion to Surpasses 17,000
MacOS Users Report More Cyber Threats than Windows Users – Survey Reveals
Mastercard, TeamApt Collaborate to Expand Digital Payments Across Africa
Access Holdings Sets New Benchmark in Nigeria’s Finance Talent Pipeline
ESUT Workers Get N82,000 Minimum Wage as Enugu Approves Fresh Salary Increase
EFCC Busts NIS Visa Overstay Racket, Uncovers N700m in an Account
Fact-Check: Elon Musk’s “Tesla Pi Phone” is Internet Rumor
NBC Tasks Broadcasting Stations over 2028 DSO Global Deadline
NBC Scraps Annual Digital Access Fee on DSO
Glo Sponsored African Voices to Feature Netflix’s “The Polygamist” Stars
Telecom3 days agoipNX Joins Calls for Innovation-Friendly Ecosystem and Stronger Local Opportunities at Regenesys AI Summit
E-Business3 days agoNDPC Probes UNILAG, Lotus Bank, Hackerbella over Alleged Students’ Data Misuse
News3 days agoPalmPay Reinforces Commitment to Youth Empowerment on International Youth Day
E-Financial3 days agoKudiWave Asks for Clarification over N750m Transfer from PalmPay Account
Telecom3 days agoNCC Reports over 5,000 Fibre Cuts in 6 Months
Telecom3 days agoGoogle Selects Six Nigerian News Creators for Emerging Voices Growth Lab
E-Financial3 days agoNigerians Borrow More to Buy Homes as Mortgage Demand Climbs – CBN
General News3 days agoNUPRC Warns of Counterfeit, AI-Generated Appointment Letters