Companies
Regency Alliance announces AGM date, with focus on capital raise
National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) recently directed all insurance firms in the country to recapitalise.
Regency Alliance Insurance Plc said it will hold its 26th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos on July 6th, 2020. The time is 11 am, and shareholders are advised to elect proxies to represent them so as to minimise the number of attendees, amid the virus scare.
Meanwhile, the main business that will be discussed during the AGM is the company’s bid to raise capital in order to increase its share capital from N6 billion to N11 billion. According to a statement that was signed by the Company Secretary, Anu Shobo, this will be done through various means, including the issuance of 10 billion additional ordinary shares of N0.50 each.
During the AGM, shareholders would also be authorising the company’s directors to raise additional capital through a special placement, public offer, rights issue, or a combination of all three funding options. These funding bids could be conducted either within the country or outside of the country.
READ ALSO: Due to lack of ‘process’, NAICOM says no insurance firm has met recapitalisation requirement
“To authorise the increase of the authorised share capital of the Company from N6,000,000,000.00 to N11,000,000,000.00 by the creation of 10,000,000,000 additional ordinary shares of 50kobo each ranking pari-passu in all respect with the existing shares in the Company’s equity.
“To authorise the Directors to raise additional capital for the Company up to the amount of the authorised share capital by way of special placement, public offer with or without a preferential allotment or rights issue or a combination of any of them within Nigeria or internationally and upon such terms and conditions that the Directors may deem fit in the interest of the Company subject to Regulatory compliance and approval,” the statement said in parts.
Also during the meeting, shareholders would be voting to grant power to the company’s directors to be able to allot additional shares, in the event that the company’s proposed public offer or rights issue is oversubscribed by investors, thereby raising excess capital. Such a move would, however, be subject to the necessary regulatory approval, the statement said.
It should be recalled that earlier this month, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) extended (till September next year) the deadline for the insurance companies in the country to recapitalise.
READ ALSO: NSE fines NEM Insurance for contravening its Rulebook
NAICOM is requiring life insurance firms to meet a minimum paid-up capital of N8.0 billion, up from their previous paid-up capital of N2.0 billion. In the same vein, general insurance companies are required to raise their minimum paid-up capital to N10.0 billion from N3.0 billion.
Also, the regulatory capital for composite insurance was raised to N18.0 billion from N5.0 billion previously while reinsurance businesses are now required to have a minimum capital of N20.0 billion from a previous N10.0 billion.
The recapitalisation programme was first announced in May 2019 and has since been extended more than twice. This is because many of the insurance companies have been struggling to meet these requirements. At the moment, only the top insurance firms have been able to meet the capital requirements. The deadline extension is, therefore, expected to help them comply.
Companies
NB Plc to raise additional N20 billion from its N100 billion Commercial Paper
Nigerian Breweries has announced the continuation of its N100 billion Commercial Paper (CP) Issuance Programme.
Nigerian Breweries has announced the continuation of its N100 billion Commercial Paper (CP) Issuance Programme in a bid to raise up to N20 billion to support its short term funding needs. The company has launched Series 9 and 10 of the programme for this purpose.
This information was disclosed in a notification signed by the Company’s Secretary, Uaboi G. Agbebaku, and sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
The notification reads;
“[Nigerian Breweries Plc] is pleased to inform the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the investing public of the continuation of its “CP” (Commercial Paper) programme with the launch of Series 9 and 10 of the programme.
“Series 9 of the Commercial Paper programme would be for a tenor of 180 days, while Series 10 would be for 270 days. However, the launch of the CP opens today 23rd October 2020.”
(READ MORE:Nigerian Breweries stock up by 58% since August )
What you should know
According to data obtained from Financial Market Dealers Quote (FMDQ), Nigerian Breweries has raised up to N90.12 billion since the start of the year.
- N52.76 billion was raised from Series 6 between February 12 to November 6, 2020.
- N13.03 billion was raised from Series 7 from April 15 to October 14, 2020.
- N24.33 billion was raised from Series 8 from April 15 to January 8, 2021.
- The recent issuance of the Series 9 and 10 CP will bring the total funds raised to N110.12 billion.
Why it matters
- The CP will help the company navigate through the recent impact of COVID-19 and other trade disruptions.
- The programme will strengthen the balance sheet of the company, and enable the brewer to execute its plans while delivering value to customers and creating wealth for shareholders,
- In like manner, the CP programme is expected to provide opportunities for non-equity investors to invest in the company and support its cost management initiatives.
Companies
MTN shareholders have made approximately N1 trillion since April 2020
Shareholders of MTN Nigeria gained close to a trillion naira in less than 7 months.
MTN Nigeria shareholders have gained N986.58 billion since the first trading session in April 2020.
This was uncovered by calculating the difference in the telecommunication giant’s market capitalization of ₦1.832 trillion at the open of trade, for the first trading session in the month of April 2020, and the market capitalization of ₦2.646 trillion at the close of trade in the first trading session in the month of October.
READ: Shell to cut 9,000 jobs globally due to oil price crash as it shifts to clean energy
This gives a whopping N814 billion increase in market capitalization, and this with the dividend the company has paid to shareholders on two occasions between this time period, brings the total gains both realized and unrealized to approximately N1 trillion.
READ: FUGAZ; Nigerian banks considered too big to fail
Hence, the N814 billion increase in market capitalization translates to the joint gains MTN investors have made from the increase in the shares of the company, as the share price of the company has increased by 44.44% or ₦40.00 between April 1, 2020, and October 2, 2020, with the share price of increasing from ₦90.00 to ₦130.00.
However, the gains MTN NG investors have made from their investments in the telecommunication company, is not limited to the gains driven by the increase in the price of the shares.
READ: World Bank says Nigerian banks are at risk of being destabilised by COVID-19
Recall that the company declared payment of dividends to its shareholders on two occasions, as investors/shareholders of the company, whose names appear in the Register of Members, as of the close of business on April 17, 2020 and August 14, 2020 were paid a cumulative dividend per share of ₦8.47, for all the outstanding shares of 20,354,513,050 held by the shareholders, and this translates to a total dividend payout of N171 billion by the company to its shareholders.
It is noteworthy that the realized and unrealized gains MTN investors have made from holding the shares over this period stands at N986.58 billion.
Companies
LASACO Assurance Plc Chairman, Aderinola Disu resigns from the Board of Directors
Aderinola Disu resigned her position as a Director on the Board of LASACO Assurance.
Lasaco Assurance Plc has announced the resignation of its former Chairman, Mrs. Aderinola Disu, as a Director on the Board. The resignation took effect from the 8th of September, 2020.
The following information is contained in a press release made available to the public, signed by the company Secretary, Gertrude Olutekunbi, and verified by Nairametrics.
The notification also revealed that, the aforementioned firm has received a provisional approval from the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to appoint two other directors.
READ: 3 bank directors resign from NESG in protest to CBN immunity letter
The two newly appointed directors are; Dr (Mrs.) Maria Olateju Phillips, and Prince Jamiu Adio Saka, both appointed to a Non-Executive Director role.
Profile of the two newly appointed Directors
Chief (Mrs.) Teju Phillips, is a successful Chartered Accountant, who holds an ACCA from England and Wales. She is multilingual and has extensive experience in Management/Consultancy services, that spans across many years in both the public and private sectors. She has served as a Director in Keystone Bank; Director, Lagos State Lottery Board; Honorable Commissioner for Special Duties & Inter-Governmental Relations in Lagos State; Managing Director of Alma Beach Estate Ltd (a subsidiary of Rims Merchant Bank Ltd); Managing Director, Maridot Ventures Ltd. among others.
READ: FIRS retires coordinating directors, appoints new ones
Prince Jamiu Adio Saka, is an accomplished Insurance professional, having practiced in Canada and Nigeria. He brings to the board over 30 years of experience as a Broker.
Lasaco Assurance Plc, is a listed Nigerian firm that provides life and general insurance services, which includes motor, bond, contractors-all-risk, fire, burglary, aviation, marine, general accident, life, pension schemes, engineering, and oil and gas. The company has a market capitalization of about N2.05 billion and it share price currently trades at N0.28 kobo.
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