Category: Money

By Collins Nweze

The Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan has reiterated that Ecobank remains the gateway financial institution for African regional trade. Akinwuntan who was speaking at the Ecobank Digital Series virtual Africa Trade Conference 2020 titled: ‘Facilitating Regional Trade in the emerging AfCFTA Era’ maintained that Ecobank, the pan – African bank was set up to be the leader in intra-Africa trade, adding that leveraging on its knowledge, footprint and digital payment platforms, the bank is set to lead the financial services support for the new Africa Continental Free Trade Area.

According to him, “while intra Africa trade provide opportunity for the growth of our economy in Africa, Ecobank is ‘the go to bank’ for Africa regional trade”. He stressed that the Ecobank Regional Trade conference was designed to “primarily explore the massive trade opportunity before us in Africa, particularly after the pandemic. Ecobank decided to set the agenda for Africa to takes its place in global trade. The opportunity is massive: with market size of 1.2 billion, estimated GDP of $2.5 billion, Africa free trade area is the largest since the formation World Trade Organization (WTO); more than 65 member state across the African union, population to reach 2.5 billion by 2050”.

Also speaking, Segun Awolowo, Executive Director/ Chief Executive, Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), said with a market of 1.2 billion people and combined GDP of $3 trillion, there is huge potential for Nigeria to increase its export to Africa. According to him, most of exports had been informal exports but with platforms, like Ecobank, it is going to be official and add real value to the economy. He said in 2018, the export value of Nigeria to Africa totaled around $6.99 billon but its export to the rest of the world totaled $45.92 billion. However, Nigeria export is majorly crude oil and natural gas which constitute 91%.

Read Also: Ecobank Digital Series: Africa Must Think Continental, Focus on Wealth Creation – Ayeyemi

Speaking on “International trade, the pan African perspective”, Tei Konzi, Commissioner, Trade, customs and free movement, ECOWAS, represented by Kolawale Sofola, Acting Director, Trade ECOWAS said 85 % of our products go outside the continent and this must be changed. “We can bring these trade back to Africa and increase activity in the continent in agriculture, mining amongst others. We are yet to conclude our tariffs, but at the moment, ECOWAS trade more with outside countries than it does with African countries and this is why we are bent on making sure the AfCFTA succeeds”.

He noted that the AfCFTA is a comprehensive trade agreement that seek to create a single market for goods and services and free movement of persons through the progressive liberation of the market for goods and services and also contribute to the movement of capital to facilitate investment. He said it is meant to be the foundation of continental customs union at a later stage.

The Ecobank Nigeria ‘Africa Trade Conference 2020’ which is part of the Ecobank Digital Series is to showcase Ecobank’s unique intra-Africa trade solutions that enable settlements of international transactions and mitigation of payment risk while providing regional solutions to exporters. Ecobank trade products and solutions are designed around two broad areas; trade finance and trade services. Trade Finance enables customers benefit from adequate and well mitigated credit facilitation in the area of Import finance, export finance, bill discounting, trade loans, distributor finance, payables and receivables finance, structured trade and commodity finance amongst others while trade services, offer our customers the advantage of speedy turn around and error free processing of their import letter of credits, import collections, avalised bills, Customs bonds, export collections as well as their local purchase orders and payment invoices, via our electronic trade platforms OMNI e-Trade and OMNI eFSC (electronic financial supply chain.

By Collins Nweze

Wife of Taraba State Governor, Anna Darius Ishaku has commended Fidelity Bank Plc for providing a three-day free medical outreach to 829 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Kona community, Jalingo Taraba State, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives.

The Hope Afresh Foundation organised the outreach, in collaboration with employees of the bank who, driven by altruistic values and an innate desire to make the world a better place, pulled their resources together to offer free qualitative healthcare to the people.

The first lady applauded the bank for identifying healthcare as an integral part of its CSR’s strategy, especially during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Addressing beneficiaries in Kona Community, the governor’s wife appealed to the indigenes to carry out regular medical checkups to reduce cases of diabetes, cancer, hepatitis, high blood pressure, among other ailments.

Fidelity Bank Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo stated that the outreach  was in line with the bank’s CSR philosophy which focuses on the environment, education, health and social welfare.

Okonkwo, who was represented by the Head of CSR & Sustainability, Chris Nnakwe, pointed out that corporate philanthropy remains an effective way of influencing the society.

By Collins Nweze

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is set to appoint a Technical Advisor for its Family Home Funds (FHF).

The fund will be for the deployment of 300,000 homes in the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The apex bank will recommend for the release of funds, monitor the delivery of the programme and utilisation of funds, including quality of the portfolio.

The apex bank said funds would be released to FHF on project basis subject to the cumulative maximum limit of N200 billion.

The CBN said the programme is designed to utilise at least 90 per cent locally manufactured input and as a result conserve foreign exchange.

“In that regard the programme will deliberately aim to revitalise local manufacture of construction materials, including doors and windows, ironmongery, sanitary fittings, concrete products, tiles, glass, electrical fittings/fixtures and bricks etc. For example, it is estimated that the programme will require up to 1.7 million doors, seven million door hinges and locks among others,”it said.

By Collins Nweze

The Chief Executive Officer, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), Ade Ayeyemi has reiterated that African countries must adopt a continent wide approach to business and also focus on wealth creation to be relevant in the global value chain.  According to Ayeyemi, for the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) to become a reality, there must be commitment and readiness for trade facilitation by the individual nations. He noted that African governments must unequivocal commit to the agreement and their preparedness as  individual nations with their implementation strategies, commitment to free movement-signing and ratification of protocol on free movement of people and country’s Visa openness, readiness for trade facilitation – quality of trade infrastructure and efficiency of ports/Customs, which is still work in progress in nearly all countries.

Ayeyemi who was speaking at the Ecobank virtual  Regional Trade Conference 2020, noted that Ecobank is fully committed to Africa as the foremost Pan-African Bank to Unequivocally support the implementation of AfCFTA, readiness to use its unique pan-african platform to facilitate trade, payment and business and deployment of its  strong Africa knowledge to support governments and businesses. The Ecobank CEO emphasized that  “no country is so poor that it has nothing to give and no country is so rich that it has nothing to receive. All of us must come together to become better.”

Also speaking, Segun Awolowo, Executive Director/ Chief Executive, Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC), said with a market of 1.2 billion people and combined GDP of $3 trillion, there is huge potential for Nigeria to increase its export to Africa. According to him, most of exports had been informal exports, but with platforms like Ecobank, it is going to be formal and add real value to the economy.  He said in 2018, the export value of Nigeria to Africa totaled around $6.99 billon but its export to the rest of the world totaled $45.92 billion. However, Nigeria’s export is majorly crude oil and natural gas which constitute 91%.

Mr Awolowo revealed that using the international trade center export’s tool, NEPC has identified areas of untapped potential for Nigeria in Africa such as fertilizer, ginger and sesame, as these are what other African countries are buying. “Nigeria must, and can, live in a world where it no longer sells oil. Nigeria is working on key game changers in infrastructure in order to achieve this, especially in the area of ease of transportation and also in the area of incentives, export expansion grant like pre-shipment incentives and  export development fund, which serve to prepare , facilitate and support exporters to the global market”. He stated

Speaking on “International trade, the pan African perspective”, Tei Konzi, Commissioner, Trade, Customs and Free Movement, ECOWAS, represented by Kolawole Sofola, Acting Director, Trade ECOWAS said  85% of our products go outside the continent and this must be changed. “We can bring these trade back to Africa and increase activity in the continent in agriculture, mining amongst others.  We are yet to conclude our tariffs, but at the moment, ECOWAS trade more with outside countries than it does with African countries and this is why we are bent on making sure the AfCFTA succeeds”.

He noted that the AfCFTA is a comprehensive trade agreement that seek to create a single market for goods and services and free movement of persons through the progressive liberation  of the market  for goods and services and also contribute to the movement of capital to facilitate investment. He said it is meant to be the foundation of  continental customs union at a later stage.

The  Ecobank virtual Nigeria ‘Africa Trade Conference 2020’  which is part of the Ecobank Digital Series is to showcase Ecobank’s unique intra-Africa trade solutions that enable settlements of international transactions and mitigation of payment risk while providing regional solutions to exporters. Ecobank trade products and solutions are designed around two broad areas; Trade Finance and Trade Services. Trade Finance enables customers benefit from adequate and well mitigated credit facilitation in the area of Import finance, export finance, bill discounting, trade loans, distributor finance, payables and receivables finance, structured trade and commodity finance amongst others while trade services, offer our customers the advantage of speedy turn around and error free processing of their import letter of credits, import collections, avalised bills, Customs bonds, export collections as well as their local purchase orders and payment invoices, via our electronic trade platforms OMNI e-Trade and OMNI eFSC (electronic financial supply chain.

By Collins Nweze

FBNQuest Funds Limited, the alternative investments subsidiary of FBN Holdings Plc, is raising awareness on the opportunity of private equity for portfolio enhancement.

This was one of the key messages delivered at a virtual interactive session with financial reporters focusing on the alternative investments/private equity business, the financial markets, and the broader economy.

Managing Director of FBNQuest Funds Limited, Ijeoma Agboti, spoke of the organisation’s focus on developing a platform that will provide diversification and return-enhancing products for clients through various alternative asset classes. She stated: “Since we were established in 2003, FBNQuest Funds Limited has deployed in excess of N20 billion in over 70 companies and assets across various portfolios, and we have continued to partner with our portfolio companies to deliver growth, capital and provide value-creation support.

“We believe in working closely with our clients to deliver solutions that fall within their specific risk tolerance boundaries and meet their overall portfolio objectives.”

READ ALSO: COVID-19: First Bank supports C’River govt. with N30m

On the financial markets and the economy, the FBNQuest research team shared their views on the outlook for the economy and public markets. Overall, analysts projected a moderate economic recovery in 2021 for Nigeria as influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, but also pointed to the undervaluation of several banking and telecom companies as attractive investment opportunities for stock market investors.

“Information drives an investor’s ability to read and monitor the market. We think our research capability sets us apart in the market and underpins our value approach to investing in private and public companies. We are delighted to share our views and add value to the socio-economic discourse’’.

Stakeholders in the  education sector have advocated more private sector investment, tax concession, import duty waivers for educational equipment and special intervention funds to revamp the sector in the face of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The stakeholders comprising public and private sector participants, who spoke during the Ecobank Digital Series entitled: “Education in Nigeria – The role of private investment”, noted that education is a critical sector that contributes to human capital development and sustainable future for the country and must, therefore, not be overlooked. They called on the private sector to invest more in education  in the form of corporate social responsibility (CSR), scholarships, provision of palliatives, support to reconstruction and rehabilitations of schools across the country.

In his presentation, Professor Olabode Ayorinde stressed the need for the government to place high priority on the education sector when providing intervention funds, urging commercial banks to also  lend more to this sector at low interest rate.

He added: ”The private sector has played a significant role in education development. However, funding has been a major issue. A critical analysis shows inadequate infrastructure, lack of equipment and teaching aids, high teacher to student ratio, all of which requires a loan facility to solve. Regrettably, we see the government and its agencies providing intervention funds to the aviation sector, agriculture, creative sector without considering the education sector.”

Also, Suleiman Ramon-Yusuf, of the National Universities Commission (NUC), attributed the poor  state of the economy to the inability of the private sector in making the right impact on the education sector, noting that endowments, scholarships and bursaries would create access for schools to admit more students.

By Collins Nweze

THE Polaris Pearl account will equip women entrepreneurs with the requisite knowledge and skills to run their businesses.

The bank’s Acting Managing Director/CEO Innocent Ike, said: “Polaris Bank is a member of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) and hence a critical stakeholder in the global conversation about gender inclusion and women empowerment, especially in enhancing their access to finance and business opportunities.”

He said the empowerment of women constitutes one of the six pillars of the bank’s corporate citizenship and sustainability focus.

The bank’s Group Head, Products and Market Development, Mrs. Adebimpe Ihekuna, said lack of proper guidance on access to opportunities is also a major hindrance to women in their entrepreneurial ventures.

Read Also: Polaris Bank appoints new Managing Director

“We have designed Polaris Pearl Account for women or groups of women entrepreneurs who initiate, organise, and operate a business enterprise to fulfill an existing need for the purpose of making profit.”

She added: “With Polaris Pearl, women entrepreneurs do not only have access to collateral-free loans but are also regularly supported in understanding vital aspects of business development such as business training, business tips and positioning for new opportunities. We also support them with requisite skills on emerging local and global trends that may impact their businesses.

She continued: “Many women entrepreneurs who have embraced the Polaris Pearl products have so far enjoyed numerous incentives such as business name registration, health check, business plan development, and a host of other value-adding benefits.”

By Collins Nweze

Global bitcoin marketplace, Paxful has plans to strengthen operations in Nigeria with a presence in Lagos.

Head of African & Middle East for Paxful, Tugba Abadan, said the company’s decision to expand Nigeria’s operation enables it to listen to its users more carefully, and continually address their concerns.

The expansion is part of its strategy to deepen use of financial services and get more Nigerians embrace the cryptocurrencies market.

The expansion will be manned by employees dedicated to the market, which is the company’s leading market in terms of volume and number of users.

Nigeria Regional Manager for Paxful, Nena Nwachukwu, an expert in the Bitcoin industry, will be responsible for managing business operations, strategic partnerships, improving awareness, and creating educational content for the business.

Nwachukwu said: “We have several sponsorships planned. To start, we are the premium sponsor of the BLOCKDeFi-2020 conference, a virtual live conference.  Paxful’s co-founder and Chief Product Officer, Artur Schaback, and I spoke at the conference.”

Read Also: WorldRemit unveils cash transfer app

Also, the company will be putting extra efforts into educating the market about the opportunities in crypto through conferences.

Abadan said: “We’re excited to appoint a Regional Manager to take charge of the operations in Nigeria. This does not only allow us to actively look for local fintech partners to work with, but also creates better accessibility for users and execute our plans for the market effectively.”

Paxful began operations in 2015 and is an escrow service, marketplace, and digital wallet in one.

The company facilitates commerce, enabling users to buy and sell bitcoin via more than 300 different  payment methods, including gift cards, cash deposits, online wallets, debit and credit cards. On their expansion in Nigeria, Head of Africa & Middle East for Paxful, Tugba Abadan,  said, “Our decision to expand operations in Nigeria enables us to listen to our users more carefully and to continually ensure that their concerns are addressed.” The company has already appointed a Regional Manager for Nigeria while other positions are being filled.