Category: Money

By Collins Nweze

Winners have emerged in the Wema Bank Royal Kiddies essay competition, which was organized by the bank to commemorate the International Children’s Day Celebration last month.

The Wema Bank essay competition tagged “Write & Win”, was to test the creative writing abilities of young school children in Nigeria aged 5 – 12 years. It sought to develop the kids’ writing skills, promote their creativity, imaginative capabilities, reward creativity, as well as drive them towards excellence in their learning process.

The Retail Divisional Head, Dotun Ifebogun, said “we want to ensure we support children and help channel their thoughts towards educational and mind building activities.

According to his statement, Joanne Mosaku emerged as the overall winner having scored 78 per cent, and was closely followed by Aiman Elelu and Oshodi Inioluwa, both of whom tied at 76 percent.

He explained that the bank received over 100 entries for the essay competition and these were subjected to checks for qualification criteria of age, minimum account deposit of N20,000, and adherence to the deadline.

The essays were assessed along with key parameters of content, organisation, grammar, mechanics, and style, the bank said. A foremost online educational management company, Mind and Smith, assessed and graded the essays.

Out of the 10 winners, the top three Essays will each get Huawei tablets and Royal Kiddies branded T-shirts. The seven other finalists will each get a N20,000 prepaid gift card for school supplies in addition to a branded T-shirt.

Wema Bank Royal Kiddies Account gives your kids an early start to financial freedom. It is for kids from birth to 12 years old and provides them access to school fees advance, scholarships to fund their education.

By Collins Nweze

Nigerian Fintech startup, TeamApt, which provides financial services for the underserved mass market in Africa has announced the completion of its series B funding round.

Led by Novastar Ventures with participation from FMO, Global Ventures, CDC, Oui Capital, Kepple Africa Ventures, Soma Capital, and a syndicate of local angel investors including Gbenga Oyebode, the funding will see the company extend their offerings directly to customers and micro-SMEs, giving them access to the financial access lifelines they need to succeed, while expanding its solutions beyond Nigeria.

Over 50 per cent of Nigeria’s 99 million adult population are financially underserved, comprising 36M unbanked and 14.5 million underbanked people with distrust and access cited as key drivers of this exclusion. Operating in Nigeria’s 36 states, TeamApt is tackling this exclusion profitably with its hybrid solution – bridging the gap through a current distribution network of over 100,000 agents and reliable technology-enabled payment solutions.

TeamApt has in less than two years rapidly scaled its agent banking product, Moniepoint, overtaking long time incumbents and in the process serving 29 million previously-underserved individuals who had limited access to financial services.

Through Moniepoint – and payment gateway Monnify – TeamApt has processed $17.5 billion worth of transactions in the past 12 months, a 1,081 per cent increase from the previous year; with an average of 68 million transactions performed on its platform every month.

With this raise, it will further leverage this agent network to provide wider financial services to the underserved consumers and businesses in Nigeria. The company also has its sights on other markets in Africa where there are significant opportunities for leveraging technology and offline distribution to provide financial services to the mass market.

“Universal access to financial services is key to the advancement of any society. We built Moniepoint because we believe everyone deserves to enjoy financial happiness and this can only happen when they can access financial services effortlessly.” said Tosin Eniolorunda, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of TeamApt. According to him, “This fundraise is happening at a significant time in our growth as a company. In the past years, we have exceeded several strategic milestones without external funding, helping accelerate the Central Bank of Nigeria’s target of 95% financial inclusion by 2024, but as the hurdles of financial access are not unique to Nigeria, this funding allows us to extend our solutions to other parts of Africa”.

Speaking on the news, Head of West Africa at Novastar Ventures, Brian Waswani Odhiambo, said, “TeamApt has swiftly and successfully established its agency network to become the leading operator in Nigeria, a testament to the team’s capabilities and the platform’s superior user experience. We are glad to catalyze their vision by providing TeamApt with sufficient capital to pursue its new phase of growth.”

“TeamApt’s promise to deliver ‘financial happiness’ for the underserved mass market in Africa makes the company an excellent fit with FMO’s Ventures Program. We are excited to contribute to closing the financial inclusion gap in Nigeria – and invest in the company alongside FMO investee fund manager Novastar Ventures and other like-minded investors”, said Jaap Reinking, Director Private Equity at FMO.

“It is with great enthusiasm that we are partnering with TeamApt on their mission to bank the unbanked and underbanked across Africa. Tosin and the team’s mission-driven and product focused approach has translated into the development of an optimized POS and one of the largest agent networks in Nigeria in a relatively short span of time. We are excited to back TeamApt, alongside this consortium of investors, to support the company on its ambitious expansion plans focused on driving value across the financial services chain.” adds  Noor Sweid, Founder and General Partner of Global Ventures.

TeamApt continues to extend its impact in the lives of many Nigerians. The company has consistently improved the livelihood for its over 100,000 agents by increasing their income earning opportunity, where a majority previously had none due to the country’s high unemployment rate.

By Collins Nweze

The Group Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe has said the bank believes that Public Private Partnership (PPP) is crucial in buildings sustainable economy and  making life easier for the the people through quality services.

Speaking in Lagos at the commissioning of Access Bank office annex at the Ikoyi Passport Office in Lagos, he said the bank has for years, partnered with the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) due to its believe in PPP and creativity.

He said: “For us, immigration is key to economic development and protection of Nigerians, prevention of illegal immigrants as is done in first world countries. Customer services is very important and we are bringing quality services to NIS as  a key partner”.

He said the facility will not only aid the NIS in the execution of its duties, but ultimately add value to the lives of Nigerians.

“We recognise the importance of the NIS to national development, and are thankful for the sterling leadership of the agency, led by Muhammad Babandede, The Comptroller General Nigeria Immigration Service for driving positive reforms policies that will foster the safety of our nation, increase the attractiveness of Nigeria to foreign investors and once again position Nigeria as a strong player in the global economy,” Wigwe said.

He said Access Bank will continuously contribute to the effort of the government in providing the requisite infrastructure for parastatals to execute their responsibilities effectively.

“A couple of years ago, Access Bank donated some office equipment to the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Command and today, we will be commissioning an office annex. Indeed, this is one of the many Projects Access Bank has done for Nigeria Immigration Service and the fourth commissioning in Ikoyi passport office.  This is due to the excellent services we’ve enjoyed from all the Passport Control Officers (PCOs) that have worked here in Ikoyi and also our strong commitment to CSR,” he said.

“This is a symbolic feat as it is testament to our growth as an institution on its way to becoming Africa’s gateway to the world. We are pleased to be making this contribution and I hope that this lays down a pointer to other corporates in the execution of public-private partnerships.”

Also speaking, The Comptroller General Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammad Babandede, said Access Bank has used its resources wisely by partnering with the agency which makes great impact in the lives of Nigerians.

He said the agency is looking having closer business partnership with the bank adding that the agency is committed to having more portals for payment.

He said the agency has under his leadership brought about creativity to NIS, including the visa on arrival policy that requires people to pay on online and get visa on arrival in the country. He said timeline for passport renewal is three weeks while fresh passport application will take six weeks.

 

 

Aella App, a single-point financial service and payment solutions provider has introduced a new daily interest initiative that will see its customers getting paid for simply going about their day-to-day transactions on the App.

The new product is accessible only through the Aella App and, provides daily interest for money kept in the Aella Wallet. Aella Wallet allows customers to store value using the Aella App to perform all financial transactions while earning discounts and rewards.

Customers get rewarded with daily interest payments, with the option of cashing out at the end of the month. The buildup of interest earnings makes Aella Wallet the first of its kind in the market.

Chief Technology Officer, Aella App, Wale Akanbi, said funds domiciled in the Aella Wallet gain interest daily and empowers customers by allowing free access to their funds anytime.

“We strongly believe that our customers deserve to take credit for their hard work. This is why we focus on creating revolutionary products that put the power back in the hands of our customers, constantly rewarding them for just going about their daily lives. With the Aella Wallet, there is no need to lock funds. Our customers can access their money at any time and still cash out the interest at the end of the month.”

Aella App has also simplified loan and bills payment with quick and easy access to loans of up to N1 million, with the App working on both android and IOS platforms to deliver financial services in five minutes. Aella has been positioned to further demystify impediments to payments and quick loan services in Nigeria and Africa.

Akanbi said, “Aella is built to simplify instant credit and payment solutions for emerging markets by offering; instant loans, bill payments, micro-health insurance, and investment services.”

“Our loans range from N1, 500 to N1, 000,000 with a tenor of 91 days to 180 days, and our interest rate ranges from two per cent to 20 per cent for these tenors. Aella offers up to a 30 per cent interest cut on early repayment with no agency or convenience fees for any bill payments.

Aella just secured a ‘Triple B’ investment-grade rating in the Nigerian bond markets as well as securing additional funding and has grown by 624 percent in revenue in the last three (3) years. With its 2024 Initial Public Offering (IPO) target date, Aella focuses on a disciplined debt strategy to aid organic business growth. The app can be downloaded on the App Store (IOS) or Google Play Store (Android).

 

From the loss of education to the impact on businesses, jobs and the flow of finance for development, European Investment Bank says the economic scars of the pandemic will take time to heal, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

 

 

Few report by the European Investment Bank argues that the long-term effects of the pandemic could weaken the prospects for development in poorer countries for decades to come, in a process that economists call “scarring.”

The authors, in the bank’s Development Report 2021, said: “The pandemic has exposed investment needs in public health systems and digital infrastructure, and vulnerabilities due to a lack of fiscal space and low economic diversification”.

The report  explains that vulnerable groups such as those in precarious or informal employment, economic migrants and women are most exposed to the economic fallout, exacerbating inequalities.

It adds that the world was not doing enough for sustainable development, even before the pandemic.

The gap in financing for the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals has been estimated at around $2.5 trillion. Growth in developing and emerging economies was, however, steadily reducing the number of people in extreme poverty. The recession caused by COVID-19 has reversed that process, pushing some 120 million people back into extreme poverty.

Judged by the number of positive COVID tests, many developing countries, particularly in Africa, seem to have weathered the pandemic quite well. But even where infection rates have been lower, the report notes that not all countries have the same capacity to cushion the social and economic impacts.

The report notes a range of negative economic impacts from COVID-19 on developing countries. For example, African banks have seen an increase in bad loans and, in a survey of firms in seven African countries, the bank found 24% of companies were in arrears on their loans.

The report, however, puts particular emphasis on the troubling impact of the pandemic on education.

At the peak of the pandemic in 2020, some 1.5 billion children were out of school due to school closures. The average child lost around half of their normal annual contact time with teachers. UNESCO estimates that the number of children not reaching an age-appropriate level of reading proficiency could rise by nearly 100 million to 581 million.

“The impact of this learning loss will last decades,” says the report. “Not only might it take years for children to catch up with what they have missed, but lost learning may have long-term implications for earnings potential and economic development. Inequalities are likely to be exacerbated.”

It added that one factor is that poorer children are less likely to have access to the internet and less likely to be able to benefit from online classes.

Another is the rise in poverty triggered by the pandemic is likely to cause more children of very low-income families to drop out of school. Girls are often more likely to be withdrawn from school, so the negative impact on the education of girls may be even greater than that for boys.

“An end to this disruption of education,” says the report, “cannot come soon enough.”

 

By Collins Nweze

 

 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in its bid to moderate and control the prices of maize in the Nigerian market, has approved the release of 50,000 metric tonnes of maize to Obasanjo Farms and 11 other major feed producers.

The CBN listed other recipients of the grains as Premier Flour Mills, Crown-Olam, Grand Cereals, Animal Care, Amobyn and Hybrid Feeds, Zartech, Wacot, Sayeed Farms, Pandagri Novum and Premium Farms.

The maize was released from Strategic Maize Reserve (SMR) under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP).

Spokesman, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Osita Nwanisobi said the release of maize to the companies, which is the third of such releases, is intended to check the activities of middlemen aimed at causing hoarding the product and causing artificial scarcity.

He expressed optimism that the release would crash the price of maize, reduce pressure on the market, and make the product directly available to feed producers, thereby reducing the price of poultry feed in the country.

According to him, as part of the bank’s financing framework, the CBN would continue to facilitate the funding of maize farmers and processors through the ABP commodity association, private/prime anchors, state governments, maize aggregation scheme (mas), and the commercial agricultural credit scheme (CACS).

Also speaking on the development, National President of the Maize Association of Nigeria (MAAN), Bello Abubakar urged middlemen to desist from taking advantage of the supply gap to hike the price of the grains.

He also assured that farmers in Nigeria would maintain reasonable pricing of the products.

It will be recalled that the CBN, responding to the activities of middlemen in January 2021, released 300,000 metric tonnes of maize, which forced the substantial reduction in the price of maize per metric tonne.

Similarly, the bank, in a renewed move to address the rising cost of food prices in the Nigerian market, collaborated with the Rice farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) to distribute 27,000 metric tonnes of rice paddies directly to millers nationwide on Thursday, June 24, 2021.

The direct allocation from RIFAN warehouses across 16 States of the Federation followed the earlier sale of paddy aggregated as loan repayment under the ABP to millers from the rice pyramids unveiled in Niger, Kebbi, Gombe and Ekiti States.

By Collins Nweze

 

BANKS profitability has improved over time and their stock values are cheap compared to Ghanaian and Kenyan bank stocks, a report by Coronation

Asset Management  has stated.

The report, entitled: “Nigerian Banks, Resilience Built In” captured the developments in the banking sector in the past 10 years.

The report shows that  banks’ earnings have been resilient over the interest rate cycle.

The report, written by Ope Ani and Guy Czartoryski of Coronation Research, examined what has happened within the banking industry during the decade of coverage. It focused on six listed banks.

The report is a unique study of the margins and profitability of six listed banks namely Zenith Bank, GT Bank, Access Bank, FBN Holdings, UBA, and Stanbic IBTC.

“These banks have adapted successfully to many changes in interest rates over the 10 years from 2010 to 2020. Therefore, they are well-positioned for the rise in rates in 2021,” the report said.

“While underlying growth in assets has been elusive, especially when data are adjusted for inflation, profitability has generally improved. The return on average equity (RoAE) and return on average assets (RoAA) of the six banks studied have both converged and improved over 10 years.

“This trend appears to be under-appreciated by investors, and the report shows the positive investment potential in the sector” says Czatoryski, a Senior Research Analyst.

 

United Bank for Africa’s (UBA) Plc loans to businesses in the first quarter of the year stood at N178 billion. This kept it ahead of other lenders within the quarter. UBA says it recognises the growth impact of sustained loans on small businesses and other major players in the economy. For the bank, more loans to the private sector would quicken businesses’ recovery from the COVID-19 impact and accelerate economic development, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are seen as critical segments of thriving economies.

For SMEs to achieve its goals of creating jobs, stimulating growth and industrialisation, operators’ easy access to credit must be promoted and guaranteed.

Several businesses with innovative ideas that later blossomed into thriving organisations/conglomerates were aided or supported by financial institutions.

Such financial institutions saw the viability of their innovation and wasted no time in helping them actualise that dream to success.

Findings also showed that banks’ lending is the most common source of external finance for many SMEs and entrepreneurs.

Access to credit has, therefore, become very important, especially in a time of crisis, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, with economies all over the world badly hit.

Hence, many businesses across the world needed significant credit to return their economies to the path of sustainable growth.

Nigeria was no exception as the economy slipped into recession for the second time in four years as oil prices plunged in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While bank financing will continue to be crucial for the SME sector, there is a broad concern that credit constraints will simply become “the new normal” for SMEs and entrepreneurs.

To guard against this occurrence, experts called on financial institutions to expand the range of financing instruments available to SMEs and entrepreneurs.This, they said, would enable them continue to play their role in investment, growth, innovation and employment.

During the turbulent economic situation where businesses suffered under the weight of COVID, insecurity and other economic challenges, a few banks were upstanding and served as adequate life-line to businesses helping the economy surmount its economic challenges.

One of the banks worthy of mention was United Bank for Africa. The bank was innovative enough to help businesses weather the storm with several loan facilities that helped change the narrative and eventually catalyse growth.

The granted loan analysis in the first quarter of the year covered Access Bank Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, FCMB Holdings Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc and Wema Bank Plc.

The analysis showed that N178 billion loan granted by UBA to its customers in the three months under review put its loan portfolio to customers at N2.733 trillion, from N2.555 trillion. The loan extended by the bank in the quarter kept it ahead of other lenders during the period.

Also, Stanbic IBTC gave out N105 billion loans to customers, making its total portfolio as at the end of first quarter to be at N730 billion, up from N625 billion in December.

FBN Holdings Plc gave out N82 billion as loans to customers, raising its portfolio from N2.217 trillion to N2.299 trillion, while FCMB loaned N63 billion during the review period, thereby bringing the bank’s loan portfolio to N886 billion, up from N823 billion in December.

Access Bank Plc accounted for N38 billion to bring its loan portfolio to N3.256 trillion compared to N3.218 trillion, while Wema Bank Plc gave out N8 billion in the first quarter to end with a loan portfolio of N368 billion, from N360 billion.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele has also reiterated the gains of sustained loan extension to the economy.

Commenting on the credits to customers by banks, a financial expert and securities dealer, David Adonri of Highcap Securities Limited, said short-term credits were required by businesses to finance their working capital.

“Banks are the source of this type of finance. As a result of risk management considerations, bankability of requests is a major factor in credit creation. Of course, banks will usually observe the canons of lending when granting credits. If the economic environment is conducive and prospect is bright, the confidence to grant credit to borrowers will be high because repayment is guaranteed,” he said.

According to him, the volume of credit granted in first quarter 2021 by banks rose because of increase in economic activities.

“Fund users demanded more credits during the period to ramp up their products and services to cover increased consumer pull.The demand on banks for credit also resulted in increased borrowing by banks from the CBN during the period.

“The supply gap in the economy is still huge and this will increase demand for bank credit. As a result, banks like UBA are poised to create more credit this year to meet the rising Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate revised from 1.5 per cent to 2.7 per cent,” he added.

Speaking on the bank’s recent loan position and consequent determination to buoy the nation’s SME sector, Group Managing Director, UBA, Kennedy Uzoka said: “Our passion for small businesses and great ideas has never been in doubt and is evident in the firm support given the business community as our loan products are tailored to meeting the varying needs of all our customers.

Continuing, Uzoka said: “Despite the tumultuous impact of COVID-19 pandemic globally and across our 23 countries of operation, we created N519.0 billion additional loans as we continued to support our customers and their businesses. Customer deposits grew by 48.1 per cent to N5.7 trillion, driven primarily by additional N1.8 trillion in retail deposits.

“As a global bank, we remain well-capitalised and determined to successfully drive financial inclusion on the continent through our innovative products and vast network. Our capital adequacy and liquidity ratios came in at 22.4 per cent and 44.3 per cent, well above the regulatory minimum of 15 per cent and 30 per cent.”

Speaking on the bank’s strategy, he said: “Our primary strategy will continue to focus on providing excellent services from our customers’ standpoint, putting the customer first always. Looking ahead, I am inspired by the achievements we have made since the launch of our transformation programme.We have expanded market share considerably across the geographies where we operate and are consolidating our digital banking leadership in Africa. We will continue to leverage our diversified business model and dedicated workforce to further strengthen our position as ‘Africa’s Global Bank.”

Also on the performance, the Group Chief Financial Official, Ugo Nwaghodoh, said: “The persistent low interest rate environment in 2020 exerted significant downward pressure on margins. Notwithstanding, our interest income for the year grew by 5.7 per cent (to N427.9 billion), driven by 8.2 per cent and 7.5 per cent year-on-year growth on interest income on loans and investment securities. Our interest expense declined by eight per cent (to N168.4 billion) driven largely by a 34.2 per cent decline in interest expense on customer deposits in our Nigerian operations, bringing down the Group’s cost of funds to 2.9 per cent, from four per cent in 2019.’’

While giving an insight to the bank’s array of loan products changing the dynamics in the industry, Group Head Consumer Lending, Anant Rao recently spoke about some of the products and benefits to customers as he said Click Credit is one of the bank’s vibrant facility, which supports customers.

“It is an automated loan with no form of documentation, paperwork or queue. Customers can get up to N1 million instantly and pay through a period of 12 months.This loan product of UBA is known for speed, efficiency and competitive rate.This product is available to all salaried customers. Customers can apply by dialing *919*28#, sending “Loan” to Leo and clicking on the “Click Credit” feature on the mobile app or Internet banking.

UBA said no document was required to access the loans. There is also the UBA Structured Loans, Personal Loans, Auto Loans, Asset Finance Mortgage.

As for Personal Loans, it said: “It is a product designed to aid the finance of the daily  needs of our customers. Available to employees of enlisted counter-parties whose salaries and other emoluments are being paid through UBA or are willing to transfer their accounts to UBA.

“Here, required documents include letter of introduction and awareness from employer, copy of customer’s staff ID, copy of customer’s Valid ID,  duly accepted offer letter and duly filled loan application form.’’

UBA explained that Asset Finance, one of its products, was designed to facilitate the purchase of physical assets ranging from household appliances to alternative power solutions and devices by our retail customers through approved partnering vendors, giving them the convenience to pay over a period.  Customers must be employees of bank’s approved counterparties.

The bank listed the required documents as letter of introduction and awareness from employer, copy of customer’s staff ID, copy of a customer’s valid ID, proforma invoice in UBA/customer’s name and duly filled loan application form as well as accepted offer letter.

Mortgage UBA Mortgage Loan is a product designed to part-finance the acquisition of residential real estate by salary earners whose employers are listed on the bank’s approved counterparty list.

“The product is targeted at High Net Worth Individuals (HNIs) with predictable and sustainable income. The product is to enable customers buy fully developed properties or draw equity from their home as loans for specific purposes,” the bank said.

The UBA Personal Loan – Direct is a variant of UBA Personal Loan product targeted at civil servants whose salaries are not domiciled with UBA. The product is designed to offer personal loans to civil servants who have difficulties in changing their salary accounts from other banks to UBA.

This loan is available to Federal civil servants that are enrolled on IPPIS platform, state civil servants (this will be limited to states whose salaries are managed by ICT firm). The required documents include duly filled loan application form, a copy of customer’s staff ID, a copy of customer’s valid ID and customer’s instruction letter.

The UBA FX Cash Backed Loan is a term loan designed for Nigerians that operate FX accounts with the bank. Customers can get up to N10 million for investment or to meet the financial needs of relatives in Nigeria.

Also, the UBA Working Capital loan offers up to N50million to help business owners meet their cash flow needs and expand their business. A flexible collateral cover will be required depending on the loan amount and the nature of customer’s business.

This loan product is targeted at customers with verifiable credit networth whose cash flow patterns meet the requirement for lending and other structured groups/business clusters

There are also the UBA Asset Finance for SMEs, the UBA School Loans and the UBA Health Loan.

“It is a medium-to-long term facility aimed at meeting working capital, asset and mortgage needs of registered privately-owned schools. The bouquet comprises a four-month time loan, a three-year asset finance loan and a 10-year mortgage loan.”

“The UBA Health Loan is designed to provide financing to registered hospitals, pharmacies, medical laboratories, diagnostic centres, optical and dental clinics for their business expansion/upgrade, equipment purchase as well and support their cash flow needs,” the bank said.

 

 

By Collins Nweze

Chaka Technologies, a digital investment platform, has secured Financial Technology (Fintech) licence from Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria (SEC).

The tech company received the Digital Sub-Broker/Sub-Broker Serving Multiple Brokers from the SEC, in line with its commitment to regulatory compliance.

The new licence  makes Chaka the first recipient of this new licence by the SEC, as part of the commission’s efforts to foster regulation within the investment-tech space.

The SEC is, also through the licence, ensuring the safety of the public  and encouraging innovation within the sector.

Co-founder & Chief Executive Officer, Chaka Technologies, Tosin Osibodu,  said the company is committed to achieving borderless investment and make Nigeria’s investment climate safe and future bright for investors.

He said the company has a digital first philosophy, and will continue to promote financial inclusion in the country.

Osibodu said:  “We are honoured to be the foremost fintech company to receive SEC’s first Fintech licence in Nigeria, the Digital Sub-Broker licence. For us, this is an important step towards achieving our vision to level the playing field for African investors, and a defining moment for the future of digital investments in Nigeria, and Africa at large. Receiving this new licence will enable us to continue to power on our mission to enable digital investing for businesses and individuals in the country and beyond.”

He explained that as Nigeria remains an attractive hive for fintech innovation, the  new licence from the SEC is the much-needed guide to help safeguard the investing public amid the ever-evolving landscape.

This licence represents a significant milestone for all players within this industry.

“We are proud to set this precedent and are excited for the long-term impact of this new regulation and what it signals for the future. We are also thankful for the continued trust from our investors and partners, as we remain committed to fulfilling their needs,”  Osibodu stated.

By Collins Nweze

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) has named its new edifice after its late Managing Director Tayo Aderinokun.

Aderinokun, the co-founder and former Managing Director of the bank, died a decade ago.

The bank stated that the Tayo’s Plaza  would be dedicated to the  screening and on-boarding programmes for its employees on delivering the best customer experience in financial services.

The plaza, an eight-storey building in the heart of Abeokuta, Ogun State was inaugurated at the weekend.

Aderinokun was one of Africa’s most influential and renowned bankers. Born in 1955, his passion for excellence, entrepreneurial acumen and dedication to service led to his co-founding of GTBank in 1990.

He became GTBank’s Managing Director in August 2002, leading it to the enviable position of one of Nigeria’s best managed financial institutions until his passing on Tuesday, June 14 2011.

The plaza has 105 ensuite residential rooms, six lecture halls, two  libraries, an amphitheatre and a banking hall with 24 teller terminals, among other facilities.

The bank’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Segun Agbaje, said: “Through our new training complex, we will continue to nurture and empower young people to think critically and break new grounds in excellence.”

Former Ogun State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, said Aderinokun left a great legacy that should be sustained by his family.

He said infrastructure was needed for sustainable economic development to be achieved.

He said the impact of the new training centre on the state would be massive.