In 2018, the Nigerian economy
continued in the direction of double-digit inflation and constant intervention
to keep the Naira at N360 to the US dollar.
The capital market also recorded
steady outflows as election uncertainties hit the market.
Apart from all these, there were
some shocking events that the economic landscape had to deal with during the
year.
Here are some of them:
NEW EXCISE DUTY
In February, it was reported that
Kemi Adeosun, former minister of finance, proposed a review of the excise duty
for cigarettes and alcoholic beverages.
Despite calls from the
Manufacturer Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the Distillers and Blenders
Association of Nigeria (DIBAN) that the new excise duty would encourage smuggling
and put 25,000 Nigerians at risk of losing their jobs, players in the industry
had to deal with it.
In October, Nigerian Breweries
blamed the new excise duty for the dip in its profit.
CBN vs MTN
In August, the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) announced that MTN Nigeria would have to refund $8.1 billion that
was allegedly repatriated from the country using irregular certificates of
capital importation.
It also fined Citibank, Diamond
Bank, Stanbic IBTC Nigeria and Standard Chartered Bank a total of N5.87 billion for issuing the certificates to
the company.
The matter has been resolved and
the telco would now pay $53 million instead.
NIGERIA AIR
Dreams of Nigeria becoming the
proud owner of a national carrier was cut short barely three months after the
proposal was announced in July.
The Infrastructural Concession
Regulatory Commission (ICRC) had issued the public-private partnership
certificate and all seemed to be going well with the project as meetings with
proposed investors and stakeholders were made public.
In September, Hadi Sirika, the
minister of state for aviation, announced that the national carrier project has
been suspended indefinitely.
ADEOSUN
Three months after it was
reported that former minister of finance Kemi Adeosun forged a certificate of
exemption from the National Youth Service Corps, she tendered her resignation.
Although the time between the
initial report was published in July and her resignation in September was
fraught with various commentaries, her resignation was termed as unusual in the
Nigerian political landscape.
SKYE BANK
It was an unpleasant September
weekend for customers and shareholders when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) announced that the licence of
Skye Bank had been revoked.
Although Polaris Bank took over
the assets and liabilities of the bank, customers and shareholders had to deal
with the initial panic.
DIAMOND BANK
After the September drama in
Nigeria’s economic landscape, December proved that it had its own bite.
Access Bank acquired Diamond
Bank. The merger, which is expected to be completed in the first quarter of
2019, will see Access Bank become the largest bank in the country.
FORTE OIL
Femi Otedola, Nigerian
businessman and billionaire, is popular for owning the majority of Forte Oil.
He, however, announced that he
would be selling his 75% stake in the company to maximise the opportunities in
refining.
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