GT Bank declares N165.14bn profit in 2016

Guaranty Trust Bank Plc on Wednesday posted a profit before tax of N165.14 billion for the financial year ended December 31, 2016.

The profit represented a growth of 37 per cent when compared to N120.69 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2015.

A statement issued by the bank in Lagos said the bank’s gross earnings for the review period grew by 37 per cent to N414.62 billion from N301.85 billion reported in December 2015.

Presidency Orders Arrest Of Journalists Over ‘Health Scare’ Story

Men of the Zimbabwean Police force have arrested an editor and senior reported of one of the privately owned Media agencies in the country, NewsDay Newspaper, for ‘undermining’ the President, Robert Mugabe.
The arrested journalist, Wisdom Mudzungairi who was arrested alongside the senior reporter for the news agency, Richard Chidza were incriminated based on a story in which the news agency claimed the Zimbabwean president was ‘in fresh health scare’.

CBN Takes Battle to Speculators, Pumps Additional $350m to Energise Naira

As part of its resolve to sustain the positive momentum in the foreign exchange (FX) market, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) again pumped additional $350 million into the market this weekend.
This will take the total amount supplied to the market by the central bank this week alone to a total to $570 million and may further crash the value of the dollar. The Naira traded between N450 and N460 to a dollar at some parallel market points in Lagos.
The move, which is part of the central bank’s strategy, is expected to further strengthen the value of the Naira.

CBN sells $180 million forex to boost liquidity

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday released additional $180 million to the forex market to further ease business transactions in the country.

The intervention was done in two phases – an $80 million offer for Personal Travel Allowance (PTA), school fees and medicals at the inter-bank market and $100 million Wholesale Forwards Market sell, which by the new policy, is reduced to maximum of 60-day tenor.

Reps chide Emefiele over information on $17bn crude proceeds

 

House of Representatives

The House of Representatives yesterday chided the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele over his alleged failure to furnish the lawmakers with details of the proceeds of crude oil sales between 2011 and 2014.

Abdulrazak Namdas, Chairman of the House ad hoc committee probing into the issue, said CBN’s failure to provide such details was delaying probe of undeclared crude oil exports in those years.

INEC announces date for Anambra governorship poll

INEC Chairman Mahmud Yakubu

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved the date for the conduct of the Anambra State governorship election.

This was announced by an National Commissioner, Solomon Soyebi, and he made this known at a news conference on Thursday in Abuja.

CBN reintroduces charges on cash deposits, withdrawals

The Central Bank of Nigeria on Thursday announced the reintroduction of bank charges on certain categories of cash deposits and withdrawals, three years after it stopped the charges.

The reintroduction of the charges was contained in a circular to all Deposit Money Banks posted on the website of the CBN.

Fed govt plans $64m green bond issue by April

The Federal Government plans to launch a N20 billion ($64 million) green bond in April to fund projects and enhance sustainable development.

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo stated this yesterday while addressing participants at the Green Bonds Capital Market & Investors Conference organised by the Federal Ministry of the Environment and the Debt Management Office (DMO) at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in Lagos.

Dollar falls to N470 at parallel market

The naira has been gaining steadily against the U.S dollar in three days of trading at the parallel market. 
The dollar sold for N510 on Tuesday, dropping to N505 Wednesday and fell to about N470 at the end of trading yesterday as more people trooped to the market to sell their foreign currency.

Osinbajo, Saraki, Dogara, others meet over 2017 budget

According to report, acting President Yemi Osinbajo has lobbied the leadership National Assembly, urging for the quick passage of the 2017 budget into law

This was disclosed in a statement by the spokesman of the acting president Laolu Akande.

According to Akande,

Outrage as N145b questionable items remain in 2017 budget

There is the fear that a huge part of the funds borrowed to execute the 2017 budget may end up in private pockets, as no less than 276 questionable items from 55 agencies still remain in the document.

The controversial items, estimated at nearly half of the $1billion Eurobond proceeds, appear in the form of duplications, repetitions and inexplicable headings in the 2017 budget.

Senate urges National Primary Health Care to authenticate claim of Maduike Ezeibe of having a cure for HIV

On Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Primary Healthcare, Communicable and Non-Communicable Diseases, urged the National Primary Health Care Development Agency to authenticate the claim of Prof. Maduike Ezeibe, of having a cure for HIV.

Presidency lied, Trump didn’t speak with Buhari – InterSociety

The International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law, InterSociety, says it is most unlikely that President Donald Trump of the United States, U.S, had a telephone conversation with President Muhammadu Buhari who is on a medical vacation in London.

Drama grips Trump inner circle, as president charges ahead on agenda

The Trump inner circle is becoming less like “The Apprentice” and more like “Survivor.”

National Security Adviser Gen. Michael Flynn may or may not survive scrutiny regarding his ties to Russia.

Pres. Trump Defends Travel Ban: 'Courts Seem to Be So Political'

President Donald Trump defended his executive order temporarily banning travel from seven predominantly Muslim nations.
In a speech to law enforcement groups in Washington this morning, Trump said he's seen "disgraceful" things on TV about the policy, arguing that the order was "written beautifully."

India to remove cash withdrawal limits

The Reserve Bank of India said withdrawal limits would be nearly doubled from 24,000 rupees to 50,000 from February 20 and removed altogether from March 13.

Limits on cash withdrawals will be removed entirely from March 13, India’s central bank said Wednesday, as it left interest rates on hold for the second time since a ban on high-value rupee notes.

Theresa May ‘does not agree’ with Trump’s refugee ban

Theresa May does “not agree” with Donald Trump’s immigration restrictions and will make representations if it affects Britons.

The Prime Minister clarified her position after earlier insisting it was up to the US government to devise its own policy.

A Downing Street official said:

The Obamas will be Living in Kalorama

The Obamas will be living in Washington, D.C., for at least the first two-plus years of the Trump administration. And while Sasha Obama is no doubt happy to be able to finish high school at the nearby Sidwell Friends School, one can only imagine that the rest of the family would rather avoid regular run-ins with their new neighbors Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. But despite the fact that recent presidents have tended to get out of dodge as soon as the opposing party takes over the Oval Office,

Trump signs executive order to keep out 'radical Islamic terrorists'

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday that indefinitely suspends admissions for Syrian refugees and limits the flow of other refugees into the United States by instituting what the President has called "extreme vetting" of immigrants.

Titled "Protection Of The Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into The United States," the executive order would start to make good on Trump's promise to tighten borders and halt certain refugees from entering the United States.

The text of the order --

Senator wants corruption ‘legalised and liberalised’

A Nigerian senator has asked the country’s senate to legalise corruption, in spite of it being one of the major problems confronting one of Africa’s largest economies.

Senator Yele Omogunwa (APC-Ondo South) spoke during plenary on Wednesday while contributing to the upper chamber’s debate on the 2017 budget.

Noting that pass federal budgets have had little or no impacts on the Nigerian people because of pervasive corruption, the senator stated that legalising and liberalising it would be better.