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CBN reforms strengthening naira, stabilising markets - United Capital - PUNCH
Group Chief Executive Officer of United Capital Plc, Peter Ashade, has said the ongoing economic reforms implemented by the central monetary authority are successfully altering the structural makeup of the Nigerian economy, paving the way for sustained financial market stability and local currency appreciation.
Ashade made this observation on Wednesday during the United Capital Investor Relations Connect held in Lagos, themed Decoding Performance: Insights into United Capital’s Growth Drivers and Outlook.
Addressing stakeholders during the event, Ashade emphasised that policy adjustments aimed at curbing structural imbalances are opening vast opportunities across diverse economic sectors.
He said, “A few weeks ago, they ranked Nigeria as the best-performing stock market in the entire world in dollar terms, so people are taking positions.
“What are you doing? I look for opportunities within the problems, and I take a position; that is what I think every one of us should do.”
Highlighting the macroeconomic indicators, the Chief Economist at United Capital Group Plc, Ayodele Akinwunmi, noted that easing foreign exchange pressure as in-country processing capacity grows will be a major catalyst.
“Our outlook is saying N1,360 to a dollar to end the year, which means that year-on-year we are going to have an appreciation of the naira against the dollar.
“If a sector that used to contribute about 25 to 30 per cent of foreign exchange utilisation, refined petroleum products, now has local capacity, that demand has been removed. By the law of demand and supply, lower demand for foreign exchange means the value of the naira will appreciate,” Akinwunmi said.
He further stressed that structural reforms restricting raw material exports present massive value-creation opportunities.
“We should be optimistic about the Nigerian economy due to structural policy changes opening up opportunities across various sectors. The government says that we should not be exporting raw materials, and that is a huge opportunity for us to add value to the things that we produce here in Nigeria. When we export crude, we are exporting jobs, so the fact that the government is going to be very deliberate about this means that our children who are leaving university will get jobs,” he asserted.
Speaking on the group’s Pan-African expansion strategy and enterprise risk management, Akinwunmi recognised the challenges associated with regional growth but expressed confidence in the company’s risk management framework.
“The risks of expanding across Africa are real. As students of financial management know, where there is risk, there is return. What has helped us thus far is focusing on the inherent opportunities within the challenges rather than just the obstacles. We carefully review institutions that fail when moving from one country to another, and that is why we rely heavily on our research unit to continuously monitor market dynamics,” Akinwunmi added.
Sharing his thoughts on the financial performance and capital allocation, the Group Chief Finance Officer, Shedrack Onakpoma, reaffirmed the group’s commitment to strategic execution and long-term shareholder value.
He said, “We remain disciplined in executing our strategic priorities, navigating evolving operating environments, and expanding our African footprint to capture long-term value for all stakeholders.
“Our strategic decision to retain a portion of profits, such as declaring a 30 kobo per share interim dividend, is aimed at reinvesting in high-return market opportunities. By retaining capital now to fund strategic expansion, we maximise returns and drive long-term value creation for shareholders by the end of the year.”
Elaborating on operational resilience and foundational growth, the Managing Director and CEO of United Capital Asset Management Limited, Odiri Oginni, highlighted four core pillars shaping the institution’s trajectory.
“First, United Capital is in a building stage; we are building products, distribution, and expansion into new markets, and we are not leaning on an existing model because what brought us to this point cannot take us into the future.
“The second thing is United Capital has stood the test of time. How many institutions can you see in the market today that can boast having been here for this long? We’ve navigated a lot of market cycles and dynamics, and we have shown that we are building to last; we are not just building for the short term,” Oginni explained.
She also underscored the firm’s human capital and corporate governance standards as central to maintaining market trust: “The third thing is that the pride of United Capital is in its people; it’s not in the building, it’s not in the portfolio, it’s not in the assets under management, it’s actually in the people.”
“Lastly, governance is critical for us. The hallmark of being a financial institution is trust. If people don’t trust you, they will not bring their money or their business to you, so we take governance very seriously and will continue to build infrastructure that strengthens our risk management and governance architecture.”
The PUNCH reported that United Capital Plc posted an 80 per cent year-on-year growth in its profit before tax to N24.78bn for the half-year ended 30 June 2026, compared to N13.79bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2025.
According to its unaudited financial statements filed with the Nigerian Exchange Limited, the firm’s gross earnings expanded 58 per cent year-on-year to N37.49bn from N23.76bn in H1 2025.
Profit after tax surged 77 per cent to N21.10bn from N11.89bn recorded in the prior-year period, while annualised earnings per share rose 77 per cent to 234 kobo.
