Business

Nigeria’s spending on imported refined petroleum products has dropped sharply by 54 per cent over the past two years, declining from $14.58bn in the first nine months of 2023 to $6.71bn in the same period of 2025, according to figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Balance of Payments (BoP) report. Data from the CBN show that fuel import expenditure fell from $14.58bn between January and September 2023 to $11.38bn during the corresponding period in 2024, before plunging further to $6.71bn within the first nine months of 2025. The figures are based on a comparative review of the full-year 2023 and 2024 BoP data, as well as the third-quarter 2025 BoP presentation released by the apex bank and analysed by The PUNCH on Monday. Overall, the data indicate a sustained slowdown in fue...

Barely days after the implementation of the new tax laws, Nigerians have raised concerns over what they describe as double stamp duty deductions by banks since January 1, 2026. DAILY POST reports that Nigerian banks began enforcing the ₦50 stamp duty charge on electronic transfers of ₦10,000 and above at the start of the year. Customers across various financial institutions received notifications informing them of the uniform ₦50 deduction in line with the new tax regime. However, less than two weeks into the policy’s rollout, many bank customers allege that their accounts are being excessively debited. Several Nigerians who spoke to DAILY POST anonymously claimed they were charged ₦100 per ₦10,000 transfer, rather than the officially stated ₦50. “It is unfair that instead of ₦50 ...

Nollywood filmmaker and actor Funke Akindele has etched her name in African cinema history as her latest film, Behind The Scenes, surpassed the ₦2 billion mark at the box office—the first Nollywood movie to achieve this milestone. Film distributor FilmOne Entertainment confirmed on X that the film has now grossed ₦2,103,039,706 in ticket sales. They hailed the achievement as a record-breaking feat, making Behind The Scenes the highest-grossing Nollywood film in Africa, and the top Nollywood release in the UK and Ireland. The milestone also reinforces Akindele’s status as Africa’s most commercially successful filmmaker. She is now the first filmmaker to top the African box office for three consecutive years, an unprecedented feat in the region. FilmOne credited the film’s success t...

UK media regulator Ofcom has opened a formal investigation into Elon Musk’s platform X over its AI chatbot Grok, following reports that the tool has been used to generate s3xualised deepfake images, including of m!nors. The regulator described the reports as “deeply concerning”, noting that undressed or manipulated images of adults may constitute intimate image abuse or p0rn0graphy, while s3xualised images of ch!ldren may constitute child s3xual abuse material under UK law. Ofcom said it first contacted X on January 5 demanding information on what measures the platform has introduced to protect UK users. The regulator confirmed that X responded within the required timeframe but did not disclose the contents of the exchange. The investigation will assess whether X has failed to...

Apple has announced a multi-year partnership with Google that will see its next-generation artificial intelligence features, including the Siri voice assistant, powered by Google’s Gemini AI technology. The collaboration, unveiled on Monday, signals a notable shift for Apple, a company long known for building its core technologies internally. According to a joint statement, Apple chose Google’s AI after a thorough assessment concluded it offered “the most capable foundation” to support the company’s AI ambitions. The agreement represents an uncommon partnership between two longtime rivals whose operating systems—Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android—dominate the global smartphone market. Despite their competition, the companies have maintained a profitable relationship for years, with ...

Heineken chief executive Dolf van den Brink resigned unexpectedly on Monday, January 12, ending a six-year tenure that began during the COVID-19 pandemic and unfolded through a turbulent period for the global beer industry. The brewer confirmed that van den Brink, who became CEO in June 2020, will step down on May 31 and remain on as an adviser for eight months thereafter. The supervisory board said it has begun searching for a successor to lead the company, which owns brands including Heineken, Amstel and Tiger. Both van den Brink and supervisory board chairman Peter Wennink said the transition comes only months after the group set out its new strategy through 2030, arguing the company had “reached a stage where a transition in leadership will best serve the company in further execu...

The Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, has clarified that the Nigerian government has not imposed a ₦500,000 limit on card payments. Olusegun explained that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) only sets limits on ATM cash withdrawals and certain POS/card transactions. These measures are intended for risk management, fraud prevention, and system integrity, and are not meant to restrict legitimate spending. “The CBN policy on ATM withdrawal limits was announced on December 2, 2025. To be clear, there is no ₦500,000 cap on card payments in Nigeria. The limits exist only for ATM withdrawals and certain POS/card transactions for safety and system integrity,” he wrote on his 𝕏 account, attaching the official communique. This clarification follows a ...

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, NDIC, has declared a first liquidation dividend of N46.6 billion in April 2025, at a rate of 9.2 kobo per N1.00, following the disposal of physical assets, recovery of debts, and realisation of investments of the defunct Heritage Bank Limited. The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, had on June 3, 2024, revoked the operational banking license of the defunct bank, triggering section 12(2) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020 and Sections 55(1 & 2) of the NDIC Act 2023. Following the revocation, the Corporation initiated procedures for claims and payments of insured deposits up to the statutory limit of N5 million from its Deposit Insurance Fund. A statement signed by the Head, Communication & Public Affairs of t...

Indonesia has become the first country to block Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot over concerns that the artificial intelligence tool is generating non-consensual s@xual deepfake imagery, including r!sky and p0rn0graphic depictions of women and children. Authorities said the decision was taken to protect citizens from what they described as a rapidly escalating digital harm. In a statement, Indonesia’s communication and digital affairs minister Meutya Hafid said the government was responding to “the practice of non-consensual s@xual deepfakes,” calling it “a serious violation of human rights, dignity, and the security of citizens in the digital space.” Hafid added: “In order to protect women, children, and the public from the risks of fake p0rnographic content generated using the artif...