The banking sector witnessed a significant sell-off last week ahead of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) recapitalization exercise, resulting in a staggering N1.57 trillion loss for investors.
Market capitalization plummeted from N57.865 trillion to N56.286 trillion, reflecting a 2.7 percent Week-on-Week (WoW) decline.The All Share Index (ASI) also experienced a 2.7 percent drop to 99,529.75 points, driven by profit-taking activities in the shares of tier-1 banks.
Notably, tier-1 banks such as Guaranty Trust Company (GTCo), Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, and Access Corporation suffered significant declines, contributing to an 11.5 percent decrease in the banking index.
Despite the downturn, trading activity saw a positive trend, with a 41.1 percent increase in total trading volume and a 12.8 percent rise in total trading value. Volume traded surged to 1.597 billion shares, while the value of shares traded appreciated to N32.313 billion. However, four major sectors, includingj banking, insurance, industrial goods, and consumer goods, recorded price declines, while the oil & gas sector remained flat.