NIGERIA IN BRIEF: Rent set to soar, BUA, MTN, Dangote top market, Kogi IRS payment, twin tragedy

Africa’s top 10 gold-producing countries as prices hit record highs

https://businessday.ng/news/article/ghana-to-double-royalties-scrap-stability-deals/

Ghana plans to scrap long-term mining stability agreements and raise royalty rates to capture more revenue from rising gold prices, the country’s mining regulator said. Introduced in the early 2000s to attract foreign investment, these deals helped Ghana become Africa’s largest gold producer and the world’s sixth. The reforms, part of a broader trend across Africa, aim to balance investor confidence with greater government revenue. Acting Minerals Commission CEO Isaac Tandoh said a draft bill will be submitted to parliament by March, signaling a major shift in the country’s mining policy

https://businessday.ng/market-intelligence/article/bua-foods-mtn-dangote-lead-nigerias-most-valuable-firms-in-2025/

Nigeria’s equities market staged a sharp comeback in 2025, driven by a handful of heavyweight companies that pushed the Nigerian Exchange to record valuations. After years of currency shocks, inflation, and policy uncertainty, investors returned on expectations of an earnings rebound supported by FX stability, stronger pricing, and recovering consumer demand.

The rally was led by BUA Foods, MTN Nigeria, and Dangote Cement, whose combined valuations now dominate the NGX. BUA Foods topped N14.4 trillion as profits more than doubled, MTN Nigeria reached N12.2 trillion with a return to profitability and dividend payouts, while Dangote Cement hit N10.7 trillion on pricing and FX gains. The trio underscores a recovery driven less by market breadth than by the strength of a few corporate giants.

https://businessday.ng/africa/article/africa-finance-digest-banks-retreat-high-risk-list-exits-trade-uncertainty-sovereign-funding-consolidation-pressures-and-ai-led-growth/

Standard Chartered is edging toward a complete exit from Botswana, as the London-based lender explores the sale of its entire local subsidiary, signalling an accelerating retreat by global banks from smaller African markets. The potential divestment would mark another step in the bank’s strategic pullback, following scaled-down operations or full exits from Zimbabwe, Angola, Cameroon, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Zambia and Tanzania, as international lenders reassess the risk-reward balance of operating across the continent.

Rising compliance costs, thinner margins and mounting competition from fintechs and well-capitalised local banks are reshaping Africa’s banking landscape, pushing foreign players to retrench while regional champions expand. The shift carries broader implications for trade finance and access to hard currency, particularly in frontier markets where global banks have traditionally played an outsized role, even as recent removals of Nigeria, South Africa, Burkina Faso and Mozambique from EU and FATF high-risk lists between late 2025 and early 2026 point to regulatory progress that could, over time, help restore investor confidence.

https://businessday.ng/news/article/kogi-irs-paid-consultant-n1-1bn-in-8-months-under-yahaya-bello-witness/

An Abuja court has heard that the Kogi State Board of Internal Revenue paid more than ₦1.1 billion as commission to a private tax consultant within eight months in 2019, in testimony that sharpened the corruption trial of former Governor Yahaya Bello. An EFCC witness told the court that the payments, made to Bespoke Business Solutions Limited between January and August 2019, were backed by bank records tendered as evidence.

Testifying before Justice Maryanne Anenih, David Ajoma said the consultant later withdrew ₦952.4 million from its Sterling Bank account, leaving a balance of about ₦212.5 million. Bello and his co-defendants, Umar Shuaibu Oricha and Abdulsalam Hudu, are facing charges of criminal breach of trust involving ₦110.4 billion, which they have denied, while the witness said he was unaware of the exact terms of the consultancy arrangement.

https://businessday.ng/news/article/lagos-orders-postmortem-after-nine-month-old-twins-die-following-routine-immunisation/

The Lagos State Government has ordered a postmortem on nine-month-old twins, Testimony and Timothy Alozie, who died about 24 hours after receiving routine vaccines at a state primary healthcare centre. Their deaths gained attention after the twins’ father, Samuel Alozie, shared videos online showing their bodies in body bags and linking the deaths to the immunisation.

Alozie said the twins became weak shortly after the shots on December 24, 2025, and despite taking paracetamol and cold baths, they died the next morning. He also claimed the nurse who administered the vaccines was not their usual health worker and rejected suggestions that food contamination caused the deaths.

Athekame Kenneth is a politics, economy, and finance reporter whose work is anchored in sharp investigative storytelling. He brings analytical depth to every piece, drawing on a strong academic foundation that includes a degree in Economics, an MBA in International Trade, and a minor in Petroleum Economics from Lagos State University, Ojo. His reporting blends rigorous research with a keen eye for hidden truths, delivering stories that illuminate power, policy, and the forces shaping everyday lives.

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