|Economy|
Despite Drop in Oil Price, FG Sets 2015 Budget Benchmark at $78/bbl: In spite of falling oil prices, the federal government has proposed an oil benchmark of  $78 per barrel for the 2015 budget, which is 0.50 percent higher than the $77.50 per barrel in the 2014 budget. The 2015 oil benchmark was reflected in the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) sent by the President to the National Assembly on Monday and read on the floor of the Senate yesterday. In the MTEF/FSP, the federal government has also proposed a budget of N4.817 trillion for the 2015 fiscal year that will be predicated on the oil benchmark of $78 per barrel and an exchange rate of N160.00 to a dollar. Source: Thisday

FG to raise N96.3bn in Treasury bills: The Federal Government plans to raise N96.26bn ($587m) with Treasury bills with maturities ranging between three months and one year on October 23, the Central Bank of Nigeria said on Wednesday. The apex bank said it would issue N34.88bn in the 91-day paper, N30bn in the 182-day note and N31.38bn in the one-year paper, using the Dutch Auction System. The results of the auction will be released the following day and settlement will be on October 25, CBN said in a public notice. Source: The Punch

|Banking|
Heritage Concludes Acquisition of Enterprise Bank: There were strong indications Wednesday night that in line with the terms of the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA) for the acquisition of Enterprise Bank Limited, Heritage Bank Limited paid the outstanding 80 percent (N44.8 billion) of the N56 billion it offered for the bridged bank. THISDAY gathered from a reliable source that Heritage Bank transferred the money into the AMCON’s escrow account at First Bank of Nigeria Limited, which was created temporarily for the transaction.  Source: Thisday

|Infrastructure|
World Bank, ICRC to address hurdles to PPP projects: The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission in collaboration with the World Bank has begun moves to address all impediments to Public Private Partnership projects in the country. The move, according to the commission, became imperative in order to bridge the prevalent infrastructure gap in the country which is estimated at about $2.9trn according to the National Integrated Infrastructure Master plan. The workshop, organised by the ICRC in collaboration with the World Bank, focused on how to create enabling environment for PPPs, payment mechanisms for PPP projects, how to manage the PPP procurement process as well as project- financing models for PPPs. Source: The Punch