Insights

Top Nigerian banks may freeze dividends through 2028 as $2.7bn forbearance exposure bites

The scale of the exposure emerged just days after Nigeriaโ€™s apex bank ordered lenders with unresolved forbearance loans to suspend dividend payouts, delay executive bonuses, and freeze new investments in offshore subsidiaries.

Follow the story

From transfers to credit: LemFiโ€™s $1 billion gambit with Pillar in migrant finance.

Nigeria-born fintech LemFi has acquired UK-based credit card issuer Pillar, marking a strategic pivot from cross-border remittances into the underserved migrant credit market.

Follow the story

Nigeria faces inflation, oil revenue hike as Israel-Iran war escalates

The escalating conflict between Israel and Iran is sending tremors through global energy markets, with Nigeria caught in the crosscurrents, poised to reap short-term benefits from surging oil prices while facing heightened inflation and monetary tightening at home. Crude oil prices jumped from $65 to $75 per barrel in the week following Iranโ€™s missile strikes…

Follow the story

Data says Nigeria overspent by $9.8 billion in 2024. Finance Minister has other numbers

Glaring discrepancies in official fiscal data are fuelling fresh doubts about the true scale of Nigeriaโ€™s financial woes.

Follow the story

Top 10 best performing stockbrokers on the Nigerian exchange – May 2025

According to the latest NGX report, Nigeriaโ€™s top-ten brokers in May, transacted $280.05 million in value, and 13.61 billion shares, representing 62.29%, and 50.23% respective share of all broker’s input on the NGX.

Follow the story

Banks will be the biggest beneficiaries of open banking โ€“ Adedeji Olowe, CEO, Lendsqr

Despite concerns that open banking could be detrimental to Nigeria’s commercial banks, Adedeji Olowe, CEO of Lendsqr, argues that they could be the biggest winners when it goes live.

Follow the story

A $1.26 million recapitalisation hurdle leaves Nigeriaโ€™s forex operators on the sidelines

The CBN’s recapitalisation benchmark introduced in 2024 aimed at reforming Nigeria’s informal sector runs on a deadline today, only 5% of BDC operators has hit the bar

Follow the story

Ghanaโ€™s ex-finance minister back on wanted list after no-show at interrogation

In addition to the renewed warrant, the special prosecutor has begun the process of issuing an Interpol red alert for the former ministerโ€™s arrest and extradition to Ghana.

Follow the story

Adesinaโ€™s 10-year AfDB legacy: $273B raised, progress mixed

Dr. Adesinaโ€™s AfDB tenure saw $273B+ mobilised for energy, food, and industry, but progress on trade and livelihoods lagged amid conflict, climate shocks and global crises.

Follow the story

Nigeriaโ€™s Tinubu economy at 2: Gains, pains, and the road ahead

Tinubuโ€™s two-year economic scorecard reveals gains in growth and investment โ€” but inflation, debt, and hardship still plague businesses and citizens

Follow the story

Jumia loses largest investor, as Baillie Gifford dumps its entire shares

The Amazon of Africa, has just lost its largest backerโ€”after a Q1 revenue drop of 26% and only $110m left in the tank.

Follow the story

Meet the AfDB presidential contenders, and their plans for Africa’s financial future

The African Development Bank (AfDB) will pick its next president on May 29, 2025, at its annual meeting in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The timing is critical. With a recent $555 million funding cut proposed by the United States, the bank faces pressure to steer Africaโ€™s growth through tough global financial waters. The current president, Dr.…

Follow the story

Why a nearly $30m liquidity drain has not shaken Nigeriaโ€™s banking sector

In the fourth quarter of 2024, liquidity in Nigeria’s banking sector fell below $100 billion for the first time in years. At the same, emergency borrowing by banks rose sharply, fuelling fears of a liquidity squeeze. Despite the signs of distress, Nigerian lenders remain broadly resilient โ€”this piece explores why.

Follow the story

What you should know as South Africaโ€™s Transnet secures $2.8bn guarantee to avert collapse

The governmentโ€™s $2.8 billion guarantee to Transnet targets debt relief and urgent infrastructure repair

Follow the story

A look into the fastest growing sectors in Africaโ€™s $2.8 trillion economy

Africa’s fastest-growing sectors in 2025 include fintech, IT, healthcare, and educationโ€”driven by population growth, tech adoption, and urgent infrastructure needs across the continent.

Follow the story

A technical deep dive into NIBSS, the infrastructure powering Nigerian payments

Nigeriaโ€™s financial ecosystem looks like a crowded maze of banks, fintechs, microfinance institutions, and agenciesโ€”but beneath the noise is one quiet force keeping everything running: NIBSS. If your product moves money, verifies identities, or talks to a bank, chances are itโ€™s already riding on NIBSS rails. This guide breaks down what NIBSS does, how it…

Follow the story

Over $100bn in African inflows at risk as US lawmakers propose tax on non-citizen remittances

A proposed 5% U.S. tax on remittances sent abroad spell trouble for African economies, which rely heavily on money sent home by their diaspora.

Follow the story

Nigeriaโ€™s loss-making companies are returning to profit, fuelling a bullish stock market

Q1 2025 marks a turnaround for Nigeriaโ€™s corporate giants, with many returning to profit as FX losses ease and business strategies adapt to a tougher economy.

Follow the story

The African banks squeezing the most value from their assets

GTCO, Capitec, and CIB lead the pack on Return on Asset, showing that in African banking, the real winners arenโ€™t always the biggestโ€”but the ones that do more with less.

Follow the story

Africa bank scorecard: Who are Africa’s most capital efficient banks?

In Africa, GTCO, Capitec, and Zenith are turning capital into profit with ruthless efficiency.

Follow the story

Access Holdings, Zenith Bank and First Bank โ€” three leading Nigerian lenders โ€” may withhold dividend payments for at least the next three years, as they confront a combined regulatory forbearance exposure of $2.7 billion, a new report reveals.


From Lagos to London,the Nigerian-founded fintech has snapped up UK credit card issuer Pillar, a bold leap from remittance to credit, a leap into a friction, high-potential market.



New data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), reveals a federal government fiscal deficit of $9.8 billion in 2024โ€”more than double the $4.2 billion figure reported by the Ministry of Finance just weeks earlier.




Only 5% of Nigeria’s Bureau De Change operators have met the Apex Bank’s new $1.26 million recapitalisation requirement as the final deadline expires today.


Ghanaโ€™s Special Prosecutor has re-listed former finance minister Ken Ofori-Atta as a wanted person after he failed to honour a summons for questioning on Monday.



Two years into President Tinubuโ€™s tenure, Nigeria faces a complex economic picture; marked by reform-driven gains, painful inflation, and an uncertain road to recovery.





South Africa extends a $2.8 billion guarantee to Transnet to cover funding and debt servicing amid years of decline, corruption, and theft. The move aims to stabilise key logistics and protect the economy




  1. A new U.S. bill proposes a 5% tax on remittances sent. While aimed broadly, the move could hit African economies hardest, threatening a vital financial lifeline for millions.