The Significance of Mergers and Acquisitions of Banks to Performance: Evidence from Nigeria

In an attempt to reposition the Nigerian banking sector and move the nation’s economy forward, the then Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Professor Charles Soludo, came up with a landmark consolidation policy. The options open to Nigerian banks to beef up their capital base were to capitalize their reserves, raise fresh funds from the capital market or embark on mergers and acquisitions which appear the most appealing and most feasible. The objectives of the study therefore were to examine the state of Nigerian banks before mergers and acquisitions, to assess the quality of the Nigerian banking sector after the mergers and acquisitions of banks and to investigate the significant relationship between mergers and acquisitions of banks and the performance of Nigerian banks. Data were collected through primary source and the method adopted in analyzing the data included t-test statistic and correlation analysis. The study found that there is a significant difference between the performance of banks before and after the introduction of mergers and acquisitions and that there is a significant relationship between mergers and acquisitions and bank performance in Nigeria. Keywords: Mergers and Acquisitions, Consolidation, Capital Base, Capital Market, Banking Sector, Perfomance, Central Bank of Nigeria

Assessment of the Ameliorative Effect of Ruzu Herbal Bitters on the Biochemical and Antioxidant Abnormalities Induced by High Fat Diet in Wistar Rats

Background and Objective: Ruzu herbal bitters (RHB) is a poly-herbal preparation that is widely taken in Nigeria and it is used as an anti-obesity medicinal concoction. The concoction is an aqueous composition of different plant parts of Curculigo pilosa , Uvaria chamae and Citrullus colocynthis and so far, there has been no published scientific verification on the health enhancing claims of RHB’s intake. This study is aimed at evaluating the anti-obesity and the biochemical and antioxidant effects of RHB’s consumption, using an albino Wistar high-fat dietary model rats. Materials and Methods: A total of thirty-six (n = 36) rats were divided into six groups of six animals each. Group 1: The negative control animals (NEC), received the high-fat diet, group 2: The normal control animals (NC), was fed on standard rat chow and distilled water, groups 3-6 were placed on the high-fat diet and then dosed orally with the following: Pioglitazone (PIO) (30 mg kgG1 b.wt.,), RHB (0.3 mL kgG1), vitamin E (Vit. E) (10 IU kgG1) and a combination of PIO and Vit. E, respectively for 8 weeks. The animals were then sacrificed and antioxidant and biochemical tests on blood and other tissue samples were carried out by standard methods. Statistical analysis of the results was carried out by one-way analysis of variance with the SPSS. Results: The group 4 RHB administered animals had a significant reduction (p<0.05) in total body weight, in comparison with group 1 animals. As well as a significant (p<0.05) reduction the plasma activities of alanine aminotransaminase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransaminase (AST) and concentrations of LDL-cholesterol, triglyceride, fasting blood glucose, total and indirect bilirubin when compared with group 1. A significant (p<0.05) increase in the concentrations of plasma HDL-cholesterol and reduced glutathione in the brain, spleen and liver of rats were also observed in group 4 while a significant (p<0.05) increase was observed in the activity of peroxidase in the liver and brain of rats in the RHB group in comparison with group 1. Conclusion: These findings validate the anti-obesity and antioxidant claims of RHB and these activities were attributed to its plant’s constituents

Fuel Subsidy Reform and Environmental Quality in Nigeria

The study examines the existence of a long run effect of fuel subsidy reform on environmental quality in Nigeria for the period of 1970-2012 using the Johansen and the Engle-Granger two step co-integration procedure techniques. The study developed a three case scenarios including i) a case of subsidy payment, ii) a case of effective subsidy and, iii) a case of no subsidy payment. Findings from the study supported evidence of a long run sustainable equilibrium model. Also, our estimation results showed that the first and the last case scenario do not significantly influence environmental quality. This implies that subsidy payment in Nigeria does not enhance access and consumption of liquid fuel. On the other hand, the interaction of sound regulatory framework with subsidy payment (the case of effective subsidy) significantly exerts a responsive influence on environmental quality

TRENDS AND PROSPECTS OF DIGITAL TWIN TECHNOLOGIES: A REVIEW

© Quantum Journal of Engineering, Science and Technology (QJOEST). This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND licence, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/The plethora of technologically developed software and digital types of machinery are widely applied for industrial production and the digitalization of building technologies. The fourth industrial revolution and the underlying digital transformation, known as Industry 4.0 is reshaping the way individuals live and work fundamentally. However, the advent of Industry 5.0 remodels the representation of industrial data for digitalization. As a result, massive data of different types are being produced. However, these data are hysteretic and isolated from each other, leading to low efficiency and low utilization of these valuable data. Simulation based on the theoretical and static model has been a conventional and powerful tool for the verification, validation, and optimization of a system in its early planning stage, but no attention is paid to the simulation application during system run-time. Dynamic simulation of various systems and the digitalization of the same is made possible using the framework available with Digital Twin. After a complete search of several databases and careful selection according to the proposed criteria, 63 academic publications about digital twin are identified and classified. This paper conducts a comprehensive and in-depth review of this literature to analyze the digital twin from the perspective of concepts, technologies, and industrial applicationsPeer reviewe

Changes in antioxidant status associated with haemodialysis in chronic kidney disease

Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis, progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and development of cardiovascular complications. Hemodialysis (HD) has also been described to contribute significantly to oxidative stress in CKD patients, though reports are conflicting.Objective: We evaluated the effects of one session of HD on the antioxidant capacity and lipid peroxidation in CKD patients.Method: Thirty-six CKD patients requiring HD were recruited into this study. Participants were naïve to HD and each completed a session of three hours using polysulfone membrane dialyzers. Blood samples were collected before and after dialysis. Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) was measured by ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) while malondialdehyde (MDA) was measured using thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS). Comparison was made between pre-HD and post-HD values of TAC and MDA respectively, p value of &lt;0.05 was taken as significant.Result: Mean age and estimated glomerular filtration rate of subjects were 45 ±15 years and 6.3± 4.7mls/1.73m2 respectively. There was significant decrease in the mean TAC from 1232.2 ± 495.6 μmol Trolox equiv/ to 832.4 ±325.7 μmol Trolox equiv/L post-dialysis (p&lt; 0.001) while MDA values were similar before and after HD (11.8 ± 1.8 vs 11.8 ± 2.331)μmol/L (p&gt; 0.05). There was no significant association between changes in antioxidant status following HD with blood flow rate, ultrafiltration volume nor dialyzer per size.Conclusion: A session of HD in patients with CKD is associated with significant reduction of the total antioxidants capacity; and no effect on MDA levels.Funding: No external funding receivedKeywords: oxidative stress, antioxidants capacity, hemodialysis, chronic kidney diseas