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Reps fume as Emefiele fails to appear over CBN’s cash withdrawal policy

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The house of representatives has again rescheduled the appearance of Godwin Emefiele, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), over the new cash withdrawal policy.

The CBN governor was initially due to appear before the lawmakers on December 15, but it was rescheduled after he sent a letter to the parliament stating that he was out of the country.

At the plenary session on Tuesday, Emefiele, again, through a letter signed by Edward Adamu, CBN deputy governor, corporate services, said he was not yet back in the country.

THE DEBATE

Femi Gbajamiamila, speaker of the house, said the invitation should be rescheduled to Thursday while wondering why the CBN governor was out of the country for over two weeks “at this critical time”.

“At this point, we will be requesting to find out what that official assignment is that keeps the CBN governor away for almost two weeks,” he said.

“I would love to know what that official assignment is at this critical time in Nigeria that will keep him away for two weeks.”

Abdulganiyu Olododo, a lawmaker from Kwara, raised a point of order saying the CBN governor may not be available on Thursday.

“You said the CBN governor was out of the country and you’re picking another day — on Thursday. How are we sure that he’s going to be available this very Thursday?

Ndudi Elumelu, the minority leader, said the house had already taken a position on the cash withdrawal policy, and that Emefiele is expected to implement the lawmakers’ decision.

“The house in the interim had taken a position. The issue of him coming was just to fulfil all righteousness,” he said.

Elumelu said whether Emefiele honours “the invitation or does not come, we have passed a resolution asking him to suspend the policy”.

In his ruling, Gbajabiamila said if the CBN governor is “unavoidably” unavailable on Thursday, a high-ranking deputy should represent him.

“What is important is that this house gets a full proper briefing and I think it behoves on the CBN governor in accordance with the law to brief this house,” he said.

“If for any reason it is verified that he is unavoidably out of the country on Thursday, [he should] ask his deputy governor or anyone who is well equipped to fully brief this house so that we do not carry this to next year.”

THE MOTION

On December 8, the green chamber asked the apex bank to suspend the policy on weekly cash withdrawals by individuals and corporate entities.

The lawmakers also summoned Emefiele to appear before them to be grilled over the policy scheduled to take effect on January 9, 2023.

In a memo issued and signed by Haruna Mustafa, director of banking supervision, the apex bank had directed all banks and other financial institutions to ensure that over-the-counter cash withdrawals by individuals and corporate entities do not exceed N100,000 and N500, 000, respectively, per week.

The CBN also directed that only N200 and lower denominations should be loaded into banks’ ATMs.

The row over Emefiele’s snub of the green chamber comes hours after a federal high court in Abuja declined an application by the Department of State Services (DSS) to arrest and detain him.

The court had said there was no concrete evidence to substantiate the claim that the CBN governor was involved in terrorism financing and economic crimes.

Business

Transcorp Power Plc Records 775% PBT Jump in Q1 2024 with Impressive Revenue Growth

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Transcorp Power Plc (Transcorp Power), one of the electricity generating subsidiaries of Nigeria’s leading, listed conglomerate, Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), has demonstrated impressive financial performance in its released Q1 2024 unaudited financial statements, for the period ended March 31, 2024.

The Company recorded N67.86 billion in gross earnings, compared to N21.04 billion reported in Q1 2023, reflecting a significant increase of 223%.

The strong performance is further demonstration of the Company’s strategic focus and effective execution, as part of Transcorp Group’s implementation of its integrated power strategy.

Highlights of Transcorp Group Results

 Q1 2024 Revenue N67.86 billion, up 223%, compared to N21.04 billion in Q1 2023.

 Profit before Tax rose by 775%, amounting to N28.77 billion in Q1 2024, compared to N3.29 billion in the same period last year.

 Profit after Tax grew by 665% year-on-year to N20.1 billion in Q1 2024, compared to N2.6 billion in the same period last year.

 Total assets grew to N276.2 billion in Q1 2024, up from N223.3 billion in Q4 2023.

Commenting on the financial highlights, Evans Okpogoro, the Chief Financial Officer said, “The Q1 2024 results saw a gross margin of 51%, a cost to income ratio of 70% and net profit margin of 30% compared to Q1 2023 gross margin of 37%, cost to income ratio of 87% and net profit margin of 13%. This highlights the remarkable operational efficiency gains of the Company. Transcorp Power has continued to grow its revenue aggressively and consistently over the last five years. We expect that by year end 2024, we will see a similar growth trajectory recorded between FY 2022 and FY 2023.”

Transcorp Power MD/CEO, Peter Ikenga, commented on the results, “We are pleased to report further robust financial performance, despite sectoral challenges such as gas supply issues and macroeconomic challenges. Our ability to sustain growth amidst this environment shows the resilience of our business model and the efficient execution of our strategic initiatives.”

“We remain committed to leveraging our strengths to capitalise on emerging opportunities, drive sustainable growth and provide superior value to all our stakeholders. We will continue to prioritise ingenuity, operational excellence, corporate governance, and stakeholder engagement, to deliver superior value for our long-term growth”. He added.

Transcorp Power Plc is an electricity generating subsidiary of Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp Group), one of Africa’s leading, listed companies, with strategic investments in the power, hospitality, and energy sectors.

Transcorp Power is committed to creating value and driving economic growth, by improving lives through access to electricity and transforming Africa.

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Business

Elon Musk threatens to suspend X accounts doing engagement farming

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The owner of X, Elon Musk, has said he will suspend all accounts found to be doing engagement farming on the social media platform.

Several users on X are engaging in farming to boost their earnings from the content creator monetization program of the platform. This comes as the billionaire struggles to get rid of bots and fake accounts from X, formerly known as Twitter.

Engagement farming refers to when someone posts generic or obnoxious content to get likes or replies. The goal is to get people to interact with the tweet, which may lead to followers and more earnings.

  • “Any accounts doing engagement farming will be suspended and traced to source,” Musk posted on Friday.

Aside from boosting their chances of getting paid by the platform, individuals and organizations use engagement farming to to artificially inflate their online presence and influence.  This involved unethical practices and the use of fake accounts or tools to inflate metrics such as likes, retweets, and follower counts.

This activity disrupts the organic flow of information on X, and manipulated content lowers genuine voices. By blocking such accounts, X Crop aims to foster an original and organic online environment where content is rated based on its originality.

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Business

Transcorp Hotels sells Calabar subsidiary to Eco Travels

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Transcorp Hotels Plc says Eco Travels and Tours Limited, an indigenous hospitality company, has acquired its 100 percent stake in Transcorp Hotels Calabar Limited.

According to a statement on April 17 by Stanley Chikwendu, the company’s secretary, Eco Travels and Tours has a diverse portfolio including hotel management, wellness and fitness facilities, family-centric spaces, as well as interior and exterior design and decoration.

“Transcorp Hotels strategic focus is on Abuja and the significant continuing investment in the iconic Transcorp Hilton Hotel and in development opportunities in Lagos,” the company said.

In its published 2023 audited financial statements, Transcorp Hotels — a subsidiary of Transnational Corporation (Transcorp) Plc — recorded 36 percent revenue growth.

With the ongoing execution of its business strategies and optimisation of new business opportunities, Transcorp Hotels said it will continue to create more value for all its stakeholders.

Meanwhile, on January 15, Transnational Hotels joined the trillionaire club in the stock market after their valuation crossed N1 trillion.

As of Thursday, the company’s market capitalisation is valued at N1 trillion.

On March 4, Transnational Corporation announced the listing of its subsidiary, Transcorp Power Plc, on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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