FBNQuest, the investment banking and asset management business of FBN Holdings Plc, has urged private mid-cap companies to carefully explore the capital financing options available in the local financial markets.

The firm noted that equity and quasi-equity capital are important sources of financing for mid-cap companies seeking investment for their current operations and expansion initiatives.

Speaking at a parley organised for representatives of the financial media on Thursday, Mrs Ijeoma Agboti, Managing Director, FBNQuest Funds, said that the current economic headwinds facing mid-cap businesses place a demand on business leaders to carefully plan their capital needs with a view to optimization and defensive positioning.

Equity capital can be helpful to businesses because business owners can sell shares to investors to finance expansion and growth without immediate obligation.

Quasi-equity encompasses various loan and convertible loan options for which repayment is linked to future cash flows but often provides more flexible payment terms than traditional loans.

The interaction included a presentation by Mr Tunde  Abidoye, Head of the Equity Research team of FBNQuest, on the prospects for Nigeria’s macroeconomy, highlighting the outlook for public debt, the exchange rate, and inflation.

Mr Abidoye stated that “businesses and investors now face difficult conditions including mounting pressures on inflation and exchange rate, constrained disposable income as well growing pressure from the external sector.

Given the challenges on both the global and domestic fronts, it is essential for  businesses and investors to have informed views on important macroeconomic variables in order  to minimize business risks and to develop a long-term strategy to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.”

Overall, Mrs Agboti said that while the outlook for the business environment remains uncertain over the next 6 months, strong opportunities remain to bolster capital structures and pursue strategic business prospects.

“A difficult economic environment provides a good opportunity to re-strategize and position for recovery,” she noted.

In the process, she noted that investors should decipher attractive opportunities presented by quality issuers.

Visually-Impaired Woman Gets Business Start-Up Grant

NASD Bourse Closes Flat as Prices of Stocks Remain Unchanged

Adedapo Adesanya is a journalist, polymath, and connoisseur of everything art. When he is not writing, he has his nose buried in one of the many books or articles he has bookmarked or simply listening to good music with a bottle of beer or wine. He supports the greatest club in the world, Manchester United F.C.

FBNQuest Shares Attractive Investment Opportunities for Stock Investors

The Naira appreciated against the United States Dollar at the black market for the first time in a while by N7 or 0.79 per cent to trade at N885/$1 on Sunday compared with the N892/$1 it was sold on Friday.

The strengthening of the domestic currency at the unauthorised segment of the foreign exchange (FX) market today was influenced by a moderation in speculative activities in the parallel market.

Some days ago, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced that it would redesign the higher Naira notes, precisely N200, N500, and N1,000.

This forced hoarders to rush to the parallel market and bypass the banking system to change their stashed funds into Dollars.

Business Post reports that most of these hoarders were willing to exchange the Naira at any rate as long as they got the greenback in exchange.

However, the scarcity of forex in the country has made this very difficult, giving room for speculators to fix prices at will.

It was observed that last Friday, some customers bought Dollars above N900 at the black market, but the average price for the day stood at N892/$1, which was what this newspaper reported.

It is not certain if the Naira will further gain strength at the market window on Monday.

The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange closed lower by 0.07 per cent yesterday, Friday, November 4, despite recording no single price advancer or decliner.

Business Post reports that the market capitalisation lost N620 million to close at N948.30 billion as against the previous value of N948.92 billion, as the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) decreased by 0.47 points to settle at 720.36 points versus Thursday’s 720.83 points.

In the midst of the fall, the trading data showed that there was a rise in the volume, value, and number of securities deals transacted by investors during the final trading session for the week.

According to data from the NASD OTC exchange, the volume of unlisted securities traded by market participants stood at 131,236 units in contrast to the 4,311 units of securities transacted at the preceding session, indicating a jump of 2,944.2 per cent.

Equally, the value of shares exchanged by the market participants appreciated by 161.2 per cent to N1.05 million from N401,015 recorded at the previous session.

The total number of deals executed at the bourse yesterday increased by 66.7 per cent to five deals from the three deals carried out Thursday.

As the market closed for the week, AG Mortgage Bank Plc remained as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with the sale of 2.3 billion units worth N1.2 billion, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc also retained the second spot with the sale of 687.8 million units valued at N14.3 billion, while Mixta Real Estate Plc was in third place for trading 178.1 million units valued at N313.4 million.

CSCS Plc maintained its position as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with a turnover of 687.8 million units valued at N14.3 billion, VFD Group Plc was in second place with 29.1 million units worth N7.7 billion, while FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc retained the third place with the sale of 15.1 million units valued at N1.8 billion.

The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited rebounded by 0.07 per cent on Friday on renewed buying interest in FTN Cocoa, Geregu Power and 12 others.

FTN Cocoa appreciated during the session by 9.68 per cent to trade at 34 Kobo, Regency Assurance rose by 8.33 per cent to close at 26 Kobo, Linkage Assurance also gained 8.33 per cent to finish at 39 Kobo, Geregu Grew by 8.21 per cent to N120.00, and Trans Nationwide Express improved by 8.11 per cent to 80 Kobo.

In the session, 14 equities depreciated in price led by Custodian Investment, which fell by 9.23 per cent to N5.90, followed by Chams, which lost 8.00 per cent to close at 23 Kobo. Academy Press declined by 6.67 per cent to trade at N1.26, Jaiz Bank went down by 5.05 per cent to 94 Kobo, and CAP depreciated by 4.79 per cent to N16.90.

The banking and industrial goods sectors depreciated by 0.29 per cent and 0.02 per cent, respectively, while the insurance and consumer goods counters appreciated by 0.87 per cent and 0.01 per cent apiece, with the energy index closing flat.

At the close of business, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 32.48 points to 44,269.18 points from 44,236.70 points, and the market capitalisation rose by N17 billion to N24.112 trillion from N24.095 trillion.

Business Post reports that investors transacted 705.9 million shares worth N4.5 billion in 3,472 deals compared with the 215.2 million shares worth N1.9 billion traded in 3,389 deals on Thursday, representing an increase in the trading volume, value and number of deals by 228.10 per cent, 141.04 per cent, and 2.45 per cent, respectively.

FTN Cocoa was the most active stock yesterday after selling 350.2 million units, followed by Access Holdings, with the sale of 190.4 million units. Fidelity Bank transacted 43.3 million units, GTCO sold 19.6 million, and Geregu traded 13.4 million units.