Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) on Tuesday disclosed that it posted 343 per cent growth in total comprehensive income in 2020.
NSIA is the federal government agency charged with managing the country’s Sovereign Wealth Fund.
In its 2020 audited financial statement, it said it grew income from N36.15 billion in 2019 to N160.06 billion in 2020, attributing the performance to its investments in international capital markets, improved contribution from subsidiaries and affiliates and exchange gain from foreign currency positions.
The financial report further revealed that the agency 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.
Chief Executive Officer of NSIA, Uche Orji, said the 2020 fiscal year was characterised by high volatility and global market uncertainty on account of Covid-19 in the first half.
“However, the Authority’s 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.”
It, however, said other investments in healthcare royalties, commodities, and real estate, including commitments to aircraft leasing funds, remain underperforming asset classes due to COVID-19 disruption, even as it reduced impairment on financial assets to N774.9 million from N1.21 billion in 2019.