AFRICA Finance Corporation (AFC) said its 2015 fiscal year results despite a difficult operating environment, delivered strong underlying operating results. It said it achieved 25 per cent growth in its balance sheet, with total assets in excess of $3.2 billion. Its net interest income increased by 39 per cent to $108.4 million with net interest margins growing to 4.4 per cent, a 7 per cent improvement over the prior year, as the Corporation continues to lower its borrowing costs. Fees, commissions and other income however declined by 85 per cent largely due to one-off revenues of $46 million recorded in 2014.

The Bank of Industry (BoI) has received over 13,272 online applications in two weeks for its N10 billion facilities earmarked for on-lending to small businesses under its Youth Entrepreneurship Support (YES) programme.

The Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), managers of Nigeria’s Sovereign Wealth Funds, SWF, has said it generated N26.3 billion income in 2015, a 67 per cent increase over N15.77 billion total comprehensive income declared in the previous year.

The Federal Government has voted N14.69 billion for group life for its Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in the 2016 Appropriation Bill passed by the National Assembly on March 23, 2016.

Shareholders in the nation’s capital market have decried poor return-on-investment from insurance companies and called on the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to implement changes that will guaranty them better returns.

There are indications that the slowdown in economic growth recorded last year persisted in the first quarter of this year.

As a response to the growing need for the development of non-oil sectors in the country, over thirty-six Indonesian companies from within and outside Nigeria will feature at the maiden edition of the Indonesia Solo Exhibition billed to take place in Lagos early next month.

Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has unveiled the Office of Overseas Affairs and Investment, otherwise known as Lagos Global. The Lagos Global, an initiative of the Ambode administration, is a one-stop shop designed to enhance ease of doing business in Lagos State and also actualize the state’s vision of becoming Africa’s model megacity and global economic and financial hub.

Shelter Afrique has received $8.2 million injection of equity from the African Development Bank (AfDB). Shelter Afrique is a pan-African finance institution which exclusively supports the development of housing and real estate sector in the continent.

Organisers of the maiden edition of the fire safety conference by the National Fire Protection Association West Africa, NFPAWA, scheduled for April 18 to 21, 2016 in Lagos, have reiterated its importance in view of fire disasters and building collapses currently being experienced across the country.