Nigerian based Popular stock broking application, Bamboo, informed its users on Wednesday that it will no longer allow USD wire transfer options for deposits.

Bamboo offers investors a platform to invest in stocks listed on the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. Users can access these markets by depositing dollars in their wallets, or naira which will then be converting at the prevailing exchange rate (which is usually closer to the parallel market exchange rate).

The company notified its customers via the application’s notification feature leaving the option to fund wallets with United States dollars to USD domiciliary deposits or cash deposits.

“The USD Wire Transfer option is no longer available for deposits. However, you can still make deposits through USD domiciliary transfers or other channels. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.”

The company also sent an email stating in part as follows;

“We will like to inform you that our USD Wire transfer option is no longer available for use due to regulatory reasons. Effective immediately, no transfers made to our Silvergate or BBVA accounts will be received. We encourage you to use our USD Domiciliary Transfer option on the Bamboo app, or any other payment method you prefer.  We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.” 

The company did not provide further information detailing which regulator may issue the instruction to stop the service.

What this means

USD Wire transfers allow investors who have domiciliary accounts in the US to transfer dollars to Bamboo’s corresponding account in the US. It also allowed its users to transfer directly from Nigeria to their US Dollar accounts. This helps investors avoid some of the local USD transfer restrictions from one domiciliary account in a bank to a third party account in another bank.

The is often convenient for investors who have dollars abroad and want to avoid the hassles of sourcing forex locally. Whilst no reason was provided for the regulatory requirement, Nairametrics believes it may not be unconnected with several unscrupulous.  activities associated with wired transfers or a Nigerian regulators trying to block a loophole which would allow investors transfer fx out of the country from their domiciilary accounts.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that the Coalition Alliance Against COVID-19 (CACOVID) has so far incurred an expenditure of N43.27billion on the acquisition of, not only medical equipment and supplies but also food palliatives for vulnerable Nigerians.

The recent press release noted that the funds raised by CACOVID was used to support 3 key priorities – Medical facilities and equipment, food relief programs and communications plans.

The breakdown of the expenditure in the aforementioned areas are:

• Medical Facilities and equipment: In collaboration with other stakeholders, CACOVID developed 39 fully equipped isolation centers across the 36 States of the Country including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The sum of N4.19billion was spent in Building Isolation Centers. In addition, medical equipment such as PCR test kits for suspected cases of COVID-19 were procured along with other required medical items at a cost of N9.02billion.
• Food relief programs: As a way of cushioning the impact of the lockdown on vulnerable citizens, CACOVID provided palliatives in the form of essential food items to 1.7million households, which is equivalent to supporting 8 million Nigerians. A total of N28.76billion was spent procuring these food supplies.
• Communication plans: CACOVID also worked to improve awareness in rural communities on the COVID-19 virus, and the measures community health workers and other members of society should take when someone in the community is suspected of having symptoms similar to that of COVID-19. In lieu of this, expenses were incurred on Print, TV, radio, and social media as part of CACOVID communication plans.

Why this matters

The recent disclosure is in line with the principle of accountability and transparency, as the organization seeks to lay bare facts regarding expenditure incurred so far; thereby, nipping in the bud, suspicions and unfounded rumor.

What you should know

Due to the sudden global health challenge (COVID-19), which wreaked havoc on most economies of the world, coupled with declining oil prices and declined government revenue; the Bankers Committee, comprising the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Deposit Money Banks, as well as key stakeholders in the private sector came together to set up an alliance in March 2020, known as the Coalition Alliance Against COVID-19 (CACOVID).

The ultimate objective is working with the government to provide support in areas that would result in improved health and welfare for vulnerable Nigerians.

FCMB Group plc has posted a revenue of N48.3 billion for the third quarter of 2020 (Q3, 2020), as Year-To-Date earnings appreciates by +7.8% to hit N146.43 billion as at September 2020.

This is according to the latest financials of the group sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange Market today.

Key highlights of Q3 2020 results are:

• Gross earnings increased to N48.3billion, +4.8% Y-o-Y.
• Pre-tax profit increased to N4.8billion, +10.2% Y-o-Y.
• Profit After Tax (PAT) grew to N4.2billion, +16.4% Y-o-Y.
• Net interest income grew to N22.7billion, +30.03% Y-o-Y.
• Net fee and commission income increased to N5.2billion, +0.29% Y-o-Y.
• Net trading income grew to N1.82billion, +39.4% Y-o-Y.
• Personnel expenses declined to N6.9billion, -7.9% Y-o-Y.
• General and administrative expenses declined to N7.6billion, -7.52% Y-o-Y.
• Earning Per Share increased to N0.21, +16.7% Y-o-Y.
• Between December 2019 and September 2020, loans and advances to customers grew to N793.14 billion, +10.8%
• Total assets between the period under view also grew to N2.04 trillion, +22.12%
• Deposits from customers between December 2019 and September 2020 crossed the trillion mark, as it hits N1.2 trillion, indicating a gain of +26.7% within the period under view.

Bottom Line

The bank posted impressive growth across key financial metrics, with major income yielding components increasing over time, coupled with a drastic reduction in expenditure items. This reflected in the growth recorded both in the pre and post tax profit levels.