Operators Express Concern Over Inability to Hedge against Currency Depreciation

Raheem Akingbolu 

The Group Chief Operating Officer of Waltersmith Group, Alex Osho, alongside other business leaders has said that Nigeria’s economic environment has made it a tall order for firms to hedge against the continued depreciation of the local currency.

He spoke last week in Lagos during a panel session at the Lagos Business School Chief Financial Officer Conference.

According to him, even though firms usually have a number of tools to hedge against currency depreciation, these tools are often incongruent within the context of Nigeria’s economy.

Osho said, “Even though the tools are there, there is no liquidity. All the companies declared huge foreign exchange losses. It is not as if the CFOs didn’t know what to do or have a way around it. It is just that they were helpless to a large extent.”

Similarly, when asked what his company was doing to cushion the impact of the recent forex illiquidity, the Chief Executive Officer of IHS Nigeria, Mohamad Darwish said, “We don’t know how to cope.”

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer of Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, Boye Olusanya noted that companies must explore business alternative business models such as import substitution to insulate themselves from forex-related shocks.

Representing the CEO of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Wole Adeniyi, the bank’s Executive Director, Personal and Private Banking Nigeria, Olu Delano advised firms to find ways to adapt to the currency devaluation and “keep moving forward.”

In his opening remarks, the Dean of the Lagos Business School, Prof Chris Ogbechie stated that in today’s rapidly evolving landscape, the role of a CFO has never been more pivotal especially because businesses were grappling with inconsistent government policy and a vast array of challenges in the macroeconomic environment.

Ogbechie also noted that CFOs are stewards of financial health who offer strategic insights and financial acumen that are indispensable in navigating today’s complex and dynamic business environment.

The Group CEO of Dangote Industries Limited, Kunle Alake, who was represented by DIL’s Technical Lead, Finance Office of the Vice President, Isah Aruwa emphasised that the CFO has to be at the forefront of driving sustainable growth and managing risks such as currency risks, security risks, among others.

He also underscored the point that the CFO has to be the middleman between the business and the stakeholders with a view to understanding what they want.

The Vice President of Financial Controls & Budget at Africa Finance Corporation, Yeside Onafuye spoke on Maximising Stakeholder Value through Strategic Synergy of the CEO and CFO

She noted when the CEO-CFO relationship is symbiotic, the organisation will have strong leaders capable of navigating through tough times.

According to her, the success recorded by some of the world’s most successful companies such as Amazon and Apple have been a function of seamless CFO-CEO relationships.

On his part, the CEO, Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRCN), Rabiu Olowo, represented by the Council’s Coordinating Director, Accounting Standards and Sustainability Reporting Unit, Iheanyi Anyahara, said that to unlock FDI and attract FPI in Nigeria companies must incorporate sustainability reporting in their annual reporting.