The Nigerian equities market closed Thursday’s session in negative territory, extending its bearish run to the fourth consecutive trading day as profit-taking in heavy and mid-cap equities dragged down key performance indicators.

At the close of trading, the overall market capitalisation value shed N581bn or 0.37 per cent to seal the day at N155.359tn, down from N155.940tn recorded in the previous session.

Similarly, the All-Share Index retreated by 905.30 absolute points, representing a decline of 0.37 per cent, to close at 242,227.31 points. The negative outing was largely driven by price depreciation in large and medium-capitalised stocks, including Aradel Holdings, UACN, Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Eterna, and Transnational Corporation.

Market breadth closed negative as 30 decliners outpaced 24 advancers, reflecting dominant bearish sentiments.

On the laggards’ log, McNichols led the losers’ chart with a maximum price plunge of 10 per cent to close at N7.74 per share. Associated Bus Company followed closely, declining 9.88 per cent to finish at N6.20 per share, while Eterna lost 9.85 per cent to close at N29.75 per share.

Energy giant Aradel Holdings also suffered a 9.51 per cent drop to close at N1,749.90 per share, while NPF Microfinance Bank slipped 8.45 per cent to settle at N5.20 per share.

Conversely, International Energy Insurance recorded the highest price gain, rising 10 per cent to close at N6.60 per share. Omatek Ventures followed on the gainers’ log with a 9.73 per cent increase to close at N2.03, while Ellah Lakes and Abbey Mortgage Bank both appreciated 9.68 per cent to close at N8.50 per share. Cutix also registered a 9.66 per cent gain to close at N3.18 per share.

Activity metrics weakened as total volume traded plummeted 43.4 per cent to 522.28m units, valued at N24.11bn, and exchanged in 53,613 deals.

Transactions in the shares of Access Holdings topped the volume-driven activity chart with 109.719 million shares valued at N2.617m. FCMB Group followed with 34.599m shares worth N384.162m, while Nigerian Exchange Group transacted 28.045m shares valued at N3.889bn.

Zenith Bank traded 26.937m shares valued at N3.318bn, while Sterling Financial Holdings Company filled the top-five volume spot with a turnover of 22.492 million shares worth N176.098m.

Shareholders of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated have approved all resolutions tabled at its 2026 Annual General Meeting in Lomé, including a $40m dividend payout for the 2025 financial year following a record fiscal performance.

The dividend distribution, which translates to 0.16 US cents per share, represents the financial institution’s first dividend payout to investors since 2022.

For the year ended 31 December 2025, the pan-African banking group reported a record profit before tax of $801m, representing a 21 per cent growth year-on-year compared to the previous period.

Net revenues for the conglomerate climbed 17 per cent to hit $2.45bn, while its pre-provision, pre-tax operating profit jumped 29 per cent to $1.265bn, underlining significant operational momentum across its geographic footprints.

Addressing investors at the meeting, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Papa Ndiaye, tied the improved metrics directly to the group’s corporate recovery roadmap.

“Our strong 2025 financial performance has marked the return to dividend payments to our shareholders. This $40m dividend is a direct reflection of the resilience of our unrivalled pan-African model, institutional maturity, and our staff’s skill and discipline.

“This achievement is a good illustration of my absolute confidence in the strength of the group to continue delivering sustainable growth and value across the continent,” Ndiaye said.

He added that the lender’s performance strongly validates the strategic safety net provided by a highly diversified regional structure, which shields the broader balance sheet from localised macroeconomic shocks.

Corroborating the chairman’s position, the Chief Executive Officer of Ecobank Group, Jeremy Awori, explained that the ongoing execution of its Growth, Transformation, and Returns strategy remains central to the expansion.

He said, “Our shareholders once again strongly reaffirmed their confidence in our GTR strategy. Thanks to our deliberate and structured approach to growth, we are bringing value to our shareholders while transforming payments and trade across our 34 markets.

“Steadily, our pan-African model is building the infrastructure that will enable the future of the continent’s financial architecture.”

The financial reports indicate that the tier-1 lender maintained a capital adequacy ratio of 16.7 per cent, placing the group roughly 420 basis points above the regulatory minimum required for seamless cross-border banking operations.

Operational efficiency also reached a historic milestone, with Ecobank’s cost-to-income ratio dropping to an all-time low of 48.3 per cent during the period under review.

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has said that recent government interventions, including the Naira-for-Crude initiative, the Nigeria Industrial Policy, withholding tax exemptions, expanded VAT deductibility on fixed assets and services, phased reductions in Companies Income Tax, tax incentives for research and development, and fiscal relief measures for small and medium industries, could revive the manufacturing sector if properly implemented.

The group noted that manufacturers had borne the brunt of economic reforms introduced over the past three years, which led to soaring production costs, declining capacity utilisation, reduced access to credit and significant job losses.

In the organisation’s recent three-year government assessment document, MAN Director-General Segun Ajayi-Kadir stated that the reforms had laid the foundation for long-term economic restructuring but stressed that implementation must now focus on industrial recovery and growth.

Ajayi-Kadir stated, “The Nigeria Industrial Policy and the renewed emphasis on local content procurement through the Nigeria First framework equally represent important steps toward strengthening domestic industrial capacity. If properly implemented and consistently enforced across all government institutions, these initiatives could significantly improve market access for locally manufactured goods, deepen local value addition and stimulate industrial expansion.”

MAN’s DG noted that the implementation of the Naira-for-Crude initiative had reduced foreign exchange pressure within the downstream petrochemical and plastics value chain, while fiscal measures that zero-rated VAT and excise duties on pharmaceutical raw materials and medical devices had provided relief for local manufacturers.

He added that the 2025 Tax Reform Act introduced key provisions capable of improving the industrial climate, including withholding tax exemptions, expanded VAT deductibility on fixed assets and services, phased reductions in Companies Income Tax, incentives for research and development, and fiscal relief for small and medium-scale industries.

The MAN boss also stated that the ongoing harmonisation of levies across states could help reduce the burden of multiple taxation, while the National Single Window platform offers an opportunity to simplify trade procedures and improve supply chain efficiency.

Despite the positive outlook, MAN said manufacturers faced severe challenges following the removal of fuel subsidies, exchange rate liberalisation, electricity tariff increases and tight monetary policies.

Ajayi-Kadir said the removal of the fuel subsidy in May 2023 caused logistics and distribution costs to surge by more than 300 per cent within weeks, while electricity tariffs for Band A consumers rose from about N68 per kilowatt-hour to between N209 and N225 per kilowatt-hour.

He said manufacturers continued to rely heavily on alternative energy sources because the electricity supply remained stable, noting that expenditure on alternative energy rose from N781.68bn in 2023 to N1.11tn in 2024 and further increased to N1.34tn in 2025.

The association disclosed that manufacturing capacity utilisation declined from 61.3 per cent in the first half of 2025 to 57.7 per cent in the second half, while more than 18,900 jobs were affected during the period under review.

Ajayi-Kadir also said exchange rate liberalisation increased the cost of imported industrial inputs, with the naira depreciating from about N463 to the dollar in June 2023 to N899 by December 2023 and later to approximately N1,535 by December 2024.

He said, “Consequently, the cost of imported raw materials rose from N3.04tn in 2023 to N6.64tn in 2024, representing an increase of about 118 per cent. Manufacturing value-added also declined significantly from $45.2bn in 2023 to $21.84bn in 2024.”

The association further stated that inadequate access to foreign exchange at the official market remained a challenge, with less than half of industrial demand currently being met.

MAN added that high interest rates had constrained industrial expansion, noting that prime lending rates averaged 24.4 per cent as of March 2026, while maximum lending rates reached 33.8 per cent in several commercial banks.

According to Ajayi-Kadir, credit to the manufacturing sector fell from N10.88tn in February 2024 to N6.6tn by December 2025, adding that manufacturers also grappled with fluctuating customs duty assessments linked to exchange rate volatility, making business planning and pricing difficult.

The association urged the Federal Government to prioritise affordable access to foreign exchange for productive activities, concessionary financing for industrial investment, stable electricity supply and predictable trade policies.

Ajayi-Kadir said, “Nigeria cannot achieve sustainable economic prosperity without a strong manufacturing base. The country’s long-term resilience depends on its capacity to produce competitively, create jobs locally and expand industrial value addition.

“The current reforms can still deliver meaningful industrial transformation if implementation becomes more coordinated, more responsive to productive sectors and more focused on reducing the structural constraints limiting manufacturing performance.”

MAN’s position is reinforced by the recent African conversation about manufacturing as a national security policy.

In her contribution to The Boardroom Africa 2026 Industry Report, Founder and Managing Director, Senvoice, Marième Doukouré-Amoa, observed that African markets’ tightening of mining codes and local content oversight reflect “a shift away from passive participation in global value chains toward embedding resilience and domestic industrial capacity.”

She noted that “trade and supply chain norms have been fundamentally disrupted, exposing the fragility of systems built on uninterrupted material flows and stable processing capacity.”

Doukouré-Amoa explained that as globalisation faces structural strain, Industrial, manufacturing, and metals strategies are being recalibrated around supply security, regional processing, and long-term value retention.

The International Finance Corporation and Standard Chartered Bank have launched a $300m risk-sharing facility to expand access to supply chain finance for businesses across eight African countries, including Nigeria, as firms on the continent continue to grapple with funding shortages.

The initiative, announced in a statement by Standard Chartered Bank on Wednesday, is expected to support supply chain and trade finance transactions worth about $1.9bn over the next three years, benefiting more than 500 suppliers, including small and medium-sized enterprises.

According to the statement, the programme will be implemented in Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia, targeting sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, and manufacturing.

The facility is designed to help suppliers receive payments faster, thereby improving cash flow and enabling businesses to expand production, pay workers, and invest in growth.

Under the arrangement, IFC, the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, will provide guarantees of up to $150m, with an initial commitment of $100m. The guarantees will support transactions denominated in both United States dollars and selected local currencies.

The statement noted that the risk-sharing structure would cover up to $300m in supply chain and trade finance assets originated by Standard Chartered across Africa.

It explained that the programme would deploy financing tools, including payables finance, receivables discounting, and pre-shipment finance schemes, to improve access to working capital for smaller businesses.

“The facility will help ensure their suppliers get faster payments, freeing up the working capital they need to improve production, pay wages, and hire,” the statement said.

The partnership comes amid growing concerns over the financing gap facing businesses in emerging markets, particularly SMEs that often struggle to secure affordable credit despite playing a critical role in economic activity and employment generation.

IFC Vice President for Products and Clients, Mohamed Gouled, said supply chain finance remained one of the fastest ways to address the funding challenges confronting businesses in developing economies.

“Supply chain finance is among the fastest ways to narrow the growing finance gap that businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises, are facing in emerging economies,” Gouled said.

He added, “By partnering with Standard Chartered to support companies at the centre of strategic value chains, we can unlock much-needed working capital at scale for businesses across Africa, including smaller firms and farmers, making supply chains more competitive and boosting job creation.”

The statement projected that the initiative could indirectly benefit more than one million farmers through stronger value-chain linkages and improved access to finance.

Chief Executive and Head of Coverage, Standard Chartered Africa, Dalu Ajene, said the partnership would strengthen supply chains and encourage sustainable business expansion across the continent.

“This $300m facility with IFC underscores our shared commitment to strengthening Africa’s supply chains and enabling sustainable business growth,” Ajene said.

He noted that the bank’s presence across major trade corridors linking Africa with Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Americas would help channel financing to businesses involved in regional and global trade.

“By expanding access to supply chain finance, we are helping African companies unlock liquidity, manage risk, and invest with confidence,” he said.

Ajene added that the collaboration would empower businesses ranging from large corporations to local suppliers to participate more actively in international trade while supporting job creation and inclusive growth.

The statement highlighted the rapid growth of the global supply chain finance market, which reached an estimated $2.7tn in 2025, representing an eight per cent increase from the previous year.

However, it noted that access to such financing remains limited in many emerging and low-income economies because commercial lenders have traditionally focused on developed markets.

According to the statement, the new facility seeks to reduce risk associated with short-term trade and supply chain finance portfolios, thereby encouraging greater lending activity in markets where capital remains scarce.

Nigeria attracted $10.37bn in capital importation in the first quarter of 2026, representing an 83.83 per cent increase from the $5.64bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The latest Capital Importation Report released by the bureau on Wednesday also showed that capital inflows rose by 60.97 per cent from $6.44bn recorded in the fourth quarter of 2025, reflecting renewed foreign investor interest in the country’s financial markets.

The report stated, “In Q1 2026, total capital importation into Nigeria stood at $10.37bn, higher than $5.64bn recorded in Q1 2025, indicating an increase of 83.83 per cent. In comparison to the preceding quarter, capital importation increased by 60.97 per cent from $6.44bn in Q4 2025.”

Analysis of the inflows showed that portfolio investment remained the dominant source of foreign capital, accounting for $9.86bn or 95.09 per cent of the total amount imported into the economy.

The NBS disclosed that foreign direct investment stood at $135.08m, representing only 1.30 per cent of total capital inflows, while other investments accounted for $374.48m or 3.61 per cent.

“Portfolio Investment ranked top with $9.86bn, accounting for 95.09 per cent, followed by Other Investment with $374.48m, accounting for 3.61 per cent. Foreign Direct Investment recorded the least with $135.08m, representing 1.30 per cent of total capital importation in Q1 2026,” the report added.

A further breakdown showed that money market instruments attracted the largest share of portfolio investments at $6.50bn, while investments in bonds amounted to $3.23bn. Equity investments under the portfolio category stood at $131.81m.

The banking sector emerged as the biggest destination for foreign capital during the quarter, attracting $7.55bn, representing 72.79 per cent of total inflows.

The financing sector followed with $2.43bn or 23.42 per cent, while the production and manufacturing sector attracted $152.27m, accounting for 1.47 per cent of total capital imported.

According to the report, “The Banking sector recorded the highest inflow with $7.55bn, representing 72.79 per cent of total capital imported in Q1 2026, followed by the Financing sector, valued at $2.43bn (23.42 per cent), and the Production/Manufacturing sector with $152.27m (1.47 per cent).”

Other sectors that received foreign investments included shares, trading, agriculture, information technology services, telecommunications, oil and gas, transport, construction, healthcare, education, and consultancy services.

The United Kingdom remained Nigeria’s largest source of foreign capital, accounting for $5.08bn or 49.01 per cent of total inflows. The United States followed with $3.18bn, representing 30.69 per cent, while South Africa accounted for $983.83m or 9.49 per cent.

The NBS said, “Capital importation during the reference period originated largely from the United Kingdom with $5.08bn, representing 49.01 per cent of the total capital imported. This was followed by the United States with $3.18bn (30.69 per cent) and the Republic of South Africa with $983.83m (9.49 per cent).”

Among financial institutions, Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Limited received the highest capital inflow during the quarter at $4.41bn, representing 42.56 per cent of the total.

Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc followed with $2.78bn or 26.79 per cent, while Rand Merchant Bank handled $930.82m, accounting for 8.97 per cent. Other banks that facilitated capital inflows into the country during the period included Citibank Nigeria, Access Bank, First Bank of Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Bank, Zenith Bank, FCMB, Ecobank, Fidelity Bank, and United Bank for Africa.

The report noted that the capital importation data was compiled from information supplied by the Central Bank of Nigeria and captured fresh foreign capital reported by commercial banks. It added that the figures did not include other components of foreign direct investment, such as reinvested earnings.

Africa can unlock more than $469bn in additional annual revenue without raising statutory tax rates, according to the African Development Bank.

Chief Economist and Vice President for Economic Governance and Knowledge Management at the African Development Bank, Prof Kevin Urama, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja.

He said the additional revenue could be mobilised without increasing tax rates, stressing that stronger domestic resource mobilisation remained the most sustainable source of development financing for the continent.

According to him, improving tax administration through digitalisation, strengthening public institutions, and enhancing service delivery would significantly increase tax compliance.

“We see that by improving tax administration through digitisation and other reforms, just adopting best practices, the continent can mobilise more than $469bn extra without increasing tax rates.

It is simply about improving efficiency and strengthening compliance,” he said.

Urama said many citizens were reluctant to pay taxes because they often had to provide essential services such as electricity, water, and road infrastructure for themselves.

He noted that governments could improve voluntary tax compliance by delivering quality public services, strengthening transparency, and ensuring prudent management of public resources.

The economist said AfDB was supporting African countries, including Nigeria, to strengthen domestic revenue mobilisation through capacity building for national revenue authorities.

For years, Nigeria’s foreign exchange market has been shaped as much by uncertainty as by supply and demand. Importers complained about delays and documentation bottlenecks. Exporters often questioned whether existing procedures encouraged them to repatriate earnings through official channels. Investors worried about policy reversals and access to foreign exchange. The banks found themselves navigating changing regulations, multiple directives, and periods of market stress.

Against that backdrop, the launch of the fourth edition of the CBN’s Foreign Exchange Manual represents more than a regulatory update. It is the latest stage in a broader effort by monetary authorities to build a foreign exchange market governed less by discretion and more by clear rules, transparency and accountability.

The revised manual, which became effective on 1 June, comes after nearly eight years since the previous edition was issued in 2018. During that period, Nigeria’s economy experienced a global pandemic, oil price volatility, foreign exchange shortages, exchange rate reforms and a shift towards a more market-driven currency regime. Those developments exposed weaknesses in the existing framework and increased calls for clearer operating standards.

Speaking at the launch, CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, argued that the changes were necessary to align foreign exchange administration with present realities.

“Foreign exchange is more than a financial instrument; it is a critical enabler in any open economy. It anchors price stability, facilitates the flow of goods and capital, and shapes investor sentiment,” Cardoso said.

He noted that both global and domestic economic conditions had changed considerably over the past decade, requiring regulators to update the framework guiding market operations.

“Ongoing foreign exchange market reforms have made it necessary to revise the Manual to provide a more coherent and forward-looking regulatory framework. The last edition was issued in 2018, making this review both timely and necessary,” he added.

Yet beyond the ceremonial launch, the revised manual raises a broader question. Can clearer rules and stronger compliance requirements help deliver the stable, transparent and liquid foreign exchange markets that policymakers have promised for years?

Rules driving confidence

The CBN’s current reform programme has largely focused on restoring confidence in the foreign exchange market. Since assuming office, Cardoso has repeatedly argued that transparency, market discipline and credible price discovery are prerequisites for attracting investments and improving liquidity.

The revised manual appears designed to provide the operational framework for those objectives.

According to the Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, Dr Muhammad Abdullahi, the review formed part of a wider strategy initiated at the beginning of the current administration of the apex bank.

“It is important to note that the reform and comprehensive review of Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange Manual was initiated by the CBN Governor, Mr Olayemi Cardoso, from the very beginning of his administration as part of a broader agenda to restore confidence, improve transparency, deepen liquidity, and strengthen the overall functioning of Nigeria’s foreign exchange market,” Abdullahi said.

His remarks suggest that the manual should not be viewed in isolation. Rather, it follows a series of reforms introduced over the past two years, including the adoption of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System, the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Code and efforts to unify exchange rate determination within the official market.

Those reforms sought to address longstanding criticisms that Nigeria’s foreign exchange market was fragmented, opaque and vulnerable to discretionary practices.

“A modern FX market cannot thrive in an environment characterised by opacity, fragmentation, delays, uncertainty, or excessive administrative bottlenecks,” Abdullahi said. “It requires trust, transparency, liquidity, efficient market infrastructure, prudent regulation, and responsible market conduct.”

The deputy governor argued that the revised manual would help create those conditions by standardising procedures, clarifying documentation requirements and establishing clearer responsibilities for authorised dealers and market participants.

The objective is not simply regulatory compliance. It is to reduce uncertainty.

Foreign exchange markets function most efficiently when participants understand the rules and have confidence that those rules will be applied consistently. Where ambiguity exists, businesses tend to delay investment decisions, traders demand higher risk premiums, and investors become cautious.

For Nigeria, where foreign exchange remains central to trade, manufacturing, education, healthcare and capital flows, such uncertainty carries significant economic costs.

This explains why the CBN repeatedly emphasised transparency and consistency throughout the launch event.

Cardoso also described the revised manual as part of efforts to strengthen “clarity, consistency, and market efficiency” while promising stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure accountability across the system.

Whether those goals are achieved will ultimately depend on implementation. Regulations alone rarely change markets. Consistent enforcement does.

What has changed?

The practical significance of the revised manual lies in its detailed operational provisions.

While many of the changes may appear technical, they affect a wide range of economic activities, from import transactions and export proceeds to travel allowances and tuition payments abroad.

Among the notable revisions is the harmonisation of Personal Travel Allowance and Business Travel Allowance disbursements with the revised Bureau de Change guidelines. Under the new arrangement, 75 per cent of PTA and BTA transactions will be processed electronically, while only 25 per cent may be disbursed in cash.

The manual also increases allowable advance payments for imports from 15 per cent to 30 per cent. For businesses that depend on imported inputs, this could improve transaction flexibility and reduce delays associated with supplier payment arrangements.

Another important provision concerns export transactions. Processing of Form NXP, the principal export documentation platform, will now be free of charge. The manual also introduces specific provisions governing service exports, technology-sector remittances and Pan-African Payment and Settlement System transactions.

These additions reflect changes in the structure of Nigeria’s economy.

A growing share of foreign exchange earnings now originates from services, technology exports and regional trade rather than traditional merchandise exports alone. Regulatory frameworks that fail to recognise those realities risk becoming outdated.

The revised manual also introduces Non-Resident Investment Accounts and Non-Resident Ordinary Accounts, while allowing foreign companies operating in the extractive sector to repatriate 100 per cent of export proceeds.

Perhaps more significant for individual account holders is the removal of the mandatory Form A requirement for remittances using ordinary domiciliary accounts.

Although authorised dealer banks will still be required to verify the legitimacy of transactions, the change eliminates an administrative layer that many market participants considered cumbersome.

The manual further provides for tuition fee payments of up to $25,000 per semester for undergraduate and postgraduate studies abroad and allows transfers between export proceeds domiciliary accounts and ordinary domiciliary accounts under specified conditions.

Collectively, these provisions indicate a regulatory approach focused on reducing bottlenecks while maintaining oversight.

“Our goal is to reduce transaction frictions, improve processing timelines, deepen market confidence, encourage formal market participation, and create a more seamless and efficient experience for legitimate users of Nigeria’s foreign exchange market,” Abdullahi said.

For businesses and investors, the real measure of success will be whether these changes translate into faster processing, reduced compliance costs and more predictable access to foreign exchange.

Banks back discipline

Among market participants, commercial banks are likely to play the most critical role in implementing the revised framework.

As intermediaries between customers and the foreign exchange market, banks will be responsible for applying documentation standards, processing transactions and ensuring compliance with the new requirements.

It was therefore notable that bank chief executives used the launch event to publicly endorse the reforms.

Speaking on behalf of the Body of Banks’ Chief Executive Officers, the Group Managing Director of United Bank for Africa, Mr Oliver Alawuba, described the revised manual as a continuation of the CBN’s recent market reforms.

“Coming after the introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System and the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Code, this revised manual reinforces a clear policy direction of the Central Bank of Nigeria, a policy direction that anchors on transparency, ethical conduct, credible foreign exchange discovery, stronger documentation, improved oversight, and greater confidence,” Alawuba said.

He argued that reforms introduced over recent years had altered perceptions within the market.

“One of the things I always ask anytime I ask questions about Nigeria is that two years ago or three years ago, as a banker, if you meet your customer, they will ask you, ‘Do you have foreign exchange for us?’ But today, when you meet your customer, you will be the one asking the customer whether they have foreign exchange,” he said.

His remarks reflected the CBN’s broader objective of encouraging foreign exchange inflows into the formal market rather than outside official channels.

However, Alawuba also stressed that reforms could not succeed without discipline, saying, “We can’t do this reform without discipline. So what this manual comes with is the discipline of operators and regulators and all stakeholders as we continue to have a sustainable foreign exchange market.”

A similar theme emerged in remarks by the Group Managing Director of Access Holdings Plc, Mr Roosevelt Ogbonna.