CBN, Egypt’s apex bank partner on joint Fintech bridge
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a Nigeria-Egypt Fintech Bridge.
This was contained in a statement obtained from the website of the CBN.
The MoU signed on Tuesday at the Seamless North Africa Conference 2023 Conference in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, came after a series of engagements on issues around payment systems, financial technology, and financial inclusion in Africa.
The CBN said that the MoU represented a partnership between the central banks of the largest economies in Africa.
The MoU will cover a broad range of collaborative initiatives, including joint registration, innovative projects, a coordinated licencing and supervisory framework, and information sharing.
Read also: Farmers reject CBN role in Tinubu’s food security plan
Houston to invest in Nigeria’s Energy, oil and gas sectors
Houston, Texas, USA, has expressed readiness to invest in Nigeria’s energy, agriculture, technology, and oil and gas sectors.
Sylvester Turner, the Mayor of Houston, Texas, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at a meeting with the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment, Evelyn Ngige.
Turner, who came to Nigeria with a 30-man delegation to explore areas of trade and other relations between Houston and Nigeria, talked about the need to build on the existing trade relations with the country.
Speaking at an event, he urged Nigeria to partner with the city, which has extensive years of experience in the global energy industry.
“Where there is a strong relationship, everything else will follow. Energy, specifically oil and gas, is critical to Nigeria.
“Nigeria is a significant trading partner with the city of Houston to the tune of about 1.6 billion dollars as at 2022 but we know that can be much higher.
“Nigeria is also a leading economic player on the African continent but the business and investment relationships need to be significantly greater,’’ Turner said.
NPA generates N191bn in six months
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said in a recent statement that it generated more than N191 billion in revenue for the first half of 2023.
The port agency added that around N55.7 billion was paid into the Federal Government’s consolidated revenue fund.
These disclosures were contained in the half-year 2023 performance reports released by the Managing Director of NPA, Mohammed Bello-Koko.
Bello-Koko said, “The Authority has completed operations on a total of 1,851 vessels for the first half of 2023, with a combined gross registered tonnage of 57,870,083.
“Cargo throughput for the period under review stood at 33,895,784 metric tonnes, while container traffic was 707,985 20-foot equivalent units.”
He added that around 1,852 vessels completed operations in the first half of 2023.
CBN withdraws licences from 2,698 BDCs in one year
The Central Bank of Nigeria withdrew the operational licence of 2,698 Bureau De Change dealers in one year, a report on the updated list of Bureau de Change dealers approved in the country has revealed.
In the report titled “Approved BDCs,” the apex bank added that the number of approved BDCs fell from 5,571 to 2,991 BDCs.
Oil prices up on China’s economic support pledge, tighter supply
Oil prices rose on Wednesday, following a renewed pledge by China to boost economic growth, tighter supply from Russia, and lower weekly U.S. crude oil inventories.
Brent futures rose 9 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $79.72 a barrel at 0010 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was steady at $75.75 per barrel.
According to Reuters, China’s top economic planner pledged on Tuesday that it would roll out policies to “restore and expand” consumption in the world’s second-largest economy as consumers’ purchasing power remained weak.
Russia will reduce its oil exports by 2.1 million tons in the third quarter in line with planned voluntary export cuts of 500,000 barrels per day in August, according to the energy ministry.
