• SEC considers licensing cryptocurrency firms to support youths
• Local airlines ground 42 aircraft over lack of forex
• CBN takes credit for the recent reduction of inflation in the country
• 43 die of food poisoning within two weeks
• BDC operators blame CBN’s inconsistent dollar supply for the delay in Naira’s growth

Across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, these are the five top Nigerian news stories you shouldn’t miss.

SEC considers licensing cryptocurrency firms to support youths

The Nigerian Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) has backtracked on its wariness of cryptocurrencies, saying it will consider licensing virtual asset providers, including cryptocurrencies, for its opportunities and a chance to protect investors as crypto adoption rates increase in Nigeria.

In an interview with Bloomberg, the SEC director-general, Emomotimi Agama, opened up about his thoughts on cryptocurrencies. He stated the SEC wanted to issue the first licences for digital services and tokenised assets before the end of August.

He claimed that he was a crypto and fintech enthusiast and would see to it that the licensing would happen much sooner than expected.

Local airlines ground 42 aircraft over lack of forex

In almost two years, 42 local airlines have been grounded due to the lack of foreign exchange to keep the aircraft from functioning or restrictive regulations in the country’s aviation sector.

According to research, in 2022, about 107 domestic flights were going around the Nigerian airports. However, since the forex situation arose and stringent regulatory laws occurred in the country, the number of domestic active aircraft has been reduced to 65.

With fewer flights going around the country, the airfare prices have increased by 180% as the minimum amount for a one-way ticket to any destination within Nigeria now costs around ₦150,000.

CBN takes credit for the recent reduction of inflation in the country

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has come out to take credit for the decrease in inflation in the country, claiming that the reduction was a sign of the monetary measures taken in July.

The apex bank stated that the reduction in inflation was a testament to the effectiveness of the measures implemented by the bank, which are solely focused on stabilising the economy.

The CBN promised that its policies will continue to affect the lives of Nigerians in a positive light as it will also continue to stabilise the forex market.

43 die of food poisoning within two weeks 

There have been complaints in Nigeria as people begin to speculate what chemicals were put in the meals of the unlucky 43 people who have died from food poisoning within two weeks.

With the cholera outbreak still being combated and controlled by the NCDC, there have been reports of several cases suspecting that all victims had died from food poisoning.

The cases have been reported in multiple states across Nigeria, namely Anambra, Kano, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, and Sokoto. 

Health practitioners and nutritionists have taken this change to encourage healthy meal consumption and people to care more about their hygiene.

BDC operators blame CBN’s inconsistent dollar supply for the delay in Naira’s growth

The Bureau De Change (BDC) operators have blamed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s inconsistent dollar supply to the BDC operators for the delay in naira recovery.

The BDC operators discovered that the inconsistency of dollar allocation makes room for customers’ lack of confidence in the foreign exchange market, which, in turn, puts pressure on the parallel market.

The President of ABCON, Aminu Gwadebe, called out the apex bank for deserting them as the last time it sold the sum of $20,000 to BDC operators was July 18, 2024, and since then, there has been no communication from the CBN.

“The problem is the streamlining, only once. Is it on the 18th of July or so? Like you said, about three weeks, till now, not any sales again,” he queried.