Nigeria

The federal government has rolled out the Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme (PCGS) to empower nano businesses as part of the Presidential Palliative Programme. Beginning 9 March, the scheme offers financial grants, without repayment obligations, to eligible small business owners operating in various sectors such as trading, food services, ICT, transportation, creatives and artisans. The PCGS targets 70 per cent women and youth, 10per cent people with disabilities, and 5 per cent senior citizens, with the…

Global investment bank Goldman Sachs said it sees the Nigerian naira gain more ground against the US dollar in the next twelve months. The bank projected the exchange rate of the local currency to the greenback at 1200 in the short term on the back of policy reforms that could support the currency’s recovery. In a research note issued late Thursday, the New York-based financial institution highlighted the recent upward interest rate adjustment by monetary authorities in Nigeria and a recent N1.6 trillion bill…

The remains of the late CEO of Access Holdings, Herbert Wigwe, his wife, and his son, on Friday, arrived in Nigeria from the United States. This is ahead of the funeral service in Isiokpo, Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State. Mr Wigwe, his wife Chizoba and son Chizi were part of the 6 people who died on 10 February following a chopper crash in California. The helicopter crashed near the California-Nevada border. Remains of Herbert Wigwe, wife, son arrive hometown for burial (PHOTO CREDIT:…

President Bola Tinubu says his nine month-old administration has attracted $30 billion Direct Foreign Investment commitments to shore up the Nigerian economy. Mr Tinubu said this at the 2023 Leadership Annual Conference and Award on Tuesday in Abuja. The event, with the theme, “An Economy in Distress: The Way Forward,” was organised by the Leadership Group, publishers of Leadership Newspapers. Mr Tinubu, represented by Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the Nigerian economy is…

The price of Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, skyrocketed to a new all-time-high record on Tuesday afternoon. The development follows concerns that the global interest rates may fall, prompting investors to look significantly into U.S. spot exchange-traded crypto products. According to the data published on coinmarketcap, a platform that tracks live time market data of digital coins, the price of Bitcoin climbed to $69,170.63 on Tuesday—the highest rate the digital token has ever reached since it…

Crypto exchange platform, Binance, on Tuesday disclosed plans to discontinue all Nigerian Naira (NGN) services on its platform, with a detailed timeline provided for users to take necessary actions. According to the notice it sent to its customers, Binance users are urged to withdraw their naira balances, trade their NGN assets, or convert naira into cryptocurrencies before the discontinuation of NGN services. It noted that this discontinuation affects NGN services exclusively, and users can continue to utilise…

President Bola Tinubu has assured global investors that his administration would remove all obstacles hindering the ease of doing business in Nigeria. The president gave the assurance at the Nigeria-Qatar Business and Investment Forum held in Doha on Sunday. He urged genuine investors to report to him directly, any official who obstructed progress or asked for a bribe in the course of any dealings in Nigeria. The president said Nigeria was ready for serious business as his administration would deal with…

The 2024 Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games’ football competition has reached the semi-final stage, with the teams confirmed following Friday’s quarter-final matches held at the Shell Residential Area Football Pitch in Port Harcourt. In a tightly contested opening match, Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) emerged victorious over Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) after a penalty shootout (4-2) following a scoreless draw in regulation time. NLNG coach, Dan Jumbo, expressed frustration with PTI’s tactics, claiming they…

The quarterfinal matches of the 2024 Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games preliminaries will be held on Friday at the Shell Residential Area, Port Harcourt. After winning Group 1 with maximum points, the defending champions of the football event of the Nigeria Oil and Gas Industry Games, NNPCL will open the knockout rounds of the preliminaries with a clash against TotalEnergies, who finished as runners-up in Group 3. The other match that will also be held simultaneously is that between NMDPRA and ExxonMobil.…

The Nigerian government is demanding at least $10 billion as retribution from Binance amid crackdown on the crypto exchange platform in desperate moves to salvage the value of the nation’s local currency. Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to President Bola Tinubu, made this known Friday morning in an interview with the BBC. Binance profited substantially from its “illegal transactions” in Nigeria while the nation suffered huge losses, Mr Onanuga said during the interview, monitored by…