TheCable

Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), the agency saddled with the mandate of managing the country’s sovereign wealth fund, says it posted 343 percent growth in total comprehensive income in 2020.

In its 2020 audited financial statement released on Tuesday, the investment institution said it grew income from N36.15 billion in 2019 to N160.06 billion in 2020.

NSIA attributed the performance to its investments in international capital markets, improved contribution from subsidiaries and affiliates and exchange gain from foreign currency positions.

According to the financial report, NSIA recorded N109 billion as core income compared to N33.07 billion recorded in 2019, excluding devaluation gain of N51 billion.

It also posted a 33 percent growth in net assets to N772.75 billion from N579.54 billion recorded the previous year.

Uche Orji, chief executive officer of NSIA, said 2020 fiscal year was characterised by high volatility and global market uncertainty on account of Covid-19 in the first half.

“However, the Authority strategic investments generated respectable returns despite the impact of Covid-19. Notably, NSIA has invested in various private equity and venture capital investment funds to tap into the high-growth sectors. NSIA expects that the outlook for 2021 would be positive; however, we expect bouts of volatility as global markets adjust and recover from the impact of the pandemic.”

On the flip side, the authority said other investments in healthcare royalties, commodities, and real estate, includes commitments to Aircraft leasing funds, remain underperforming asset classes due to COVID-19 disruption.

It also reduced impairment on financial assets to N774.9 million from N1.21 billion in 2019.

Last year, the federal government withdrew $150 million from the NSIA stabilisation fund to augment disbursements by the federation accounts allocation committee to the three tiers of government for July 2020.