Purple Real Estate Income Plc has announced growth in assets in excess of N26.4 billion in the 2021 financial year.

The company said its N10 billion Initial Public Offer which opens today at N5 per share, will last for 25 working days, closing at midnight on December 23.

The Purple intends to use the proceeds from the offer to expand the group’s existing portfolio by diversifying its new lines of business and geographies, debt refinancing, development of Lekki Retailtainment Limited to  create more inclusive homeownership opportunities for Nigerians.

Chief Executive Officer, Purple, Laide Agboola, said: “Today is a significant step for the evolution of Nigeria’s real estate sector. By opening up participation in the real estate market to a new wave of Nigerian investors, Purple is delivering on our mission to democratise access to real estate in Nigeria.”

“Additionally, by delivering on an expanded pipeline of new projects in a range of asset classes, we are providing new investment opportunities focused on stabilised, income-generating properties that respond to the fundamental changes to how communities in Nigeria want to work, consume and live,” he said.

He said that Nigeria’s real estate sector offers many prospects, particularly for consumers increasingly demanding all-inclusive living, blending high-quality lifestyle offerings with residential and commercial assets.

Purple’s subsidiaries include Maryland Mall Limited, Purple Proptech Limited, Lekki Retailtainment Limited, Cible Media Limited, and Purple Asset Managers Limited, with full ownership of all subsidiaries. In March 2022, by virtue of a Scheme of Merger, Purple merged with its subsidiary, PREDCO.

More commercial banks across Africa are currently undergoing certification integration of their processes to enable them migrate to the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) which has taken off.

Stanbic IBTC Bank, FirstBank, United Bank for Africa, Ghana Commercial Bank, among others are some of the key entrants to the PAPSS migration race.

The PAPSS, a centralised Financial Market Infrastructure (FMI) supports payment arrangements with the objective of expanding pan-African trade and driving African Central Bank’s economic and financial integration agenda. It was deployed for use in the West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) in  Nigeria, the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana and Guinea.

Stanbic IBTC Bank’s Chief Executive Wole Adeniyi described its first transaction on the PAPSS network as the organisation’s way of supporting intra-African trade while also supporting low-cost and risk-controlled payment, settlement, and clearing systems.

“This is a great opportunity for new and existing clients to take advantage of. The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System will enable interested individuals and businesses make cross border payments, thereby reducing, dependencies on foreign exchange and correspondent banks. Consequently, this will reduce requisite correspondent banking fees and mitigate central delays,” he added.

Head, Transactional Products and Services, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Jesuseun Fatoyinbo, also commenting on the rationale behind PAPSS, stated that the bank is focused on driving business growth for businesses and corporates.

“At Stanbic IBTC, we are dedicated to moving the African economy to the next level, because Africa is our home, and we drive her growth. We understand that the operating environment is fluid, but with our expertise and array of services, we have created innovative solutions such as equity capital raises, payment solutions and a wide range of working capital and trade solutions to improve businesses.”

Speaking at the flag-off of the 2022 Lagos International Trade Fair,  Deputy Managing Director, UBA Plc, Muyiwa Akinyemi, spoke on PAPSS.

He said: ” UBA is working with Afrexim Bank through the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) to promote regional trade through harmonised trade documentation, easier access to finance and timely and easy currency conversion with the PAPSS platform. Already, UBA is at the forefront of this collaboration currently at six pilot countries in West Africa – Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia and Gambia,” Akinyemi said.

The PAPSS commenced digital payment for the continent with first transactions carried out between First Bank of Nigeria Plc and Ghana Commercial Bank.

A report said Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS)  collaborated with PAPSS, Africa Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in partnership with the African Union (AU) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)  to achieve the maiden transaction.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), banks and other financial institutions are making slow but steady inroads into financial inclusion, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced on Friday. In its 2022 Article IV Consultation concluding statement, following  an official staff visit to Nigeria, the Fund said Nigeria continues to fall short of its inclusion targets, particularly in access to financial products. Assistant Business Editor COLLINS NWEZE reports. 

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has passed a verdict on Nigeria’s road to bringing financial services closer to the people, especially at the grassroots.

The Fund’s position is that  Nigeria is not meeting its financial inclusion targets, particularly in access to financial products.

The IMF, made the disclosure on Friday in its 2022 Article IV Consultation concluding statement  following  an official staff visit to Nigeria, the share of population with financial access has increased benefiting from non-banking and informal financial services, but financial exclusion rate at 36 percent remains high relative to peers in Sub Saharan Africa.

“The mission welcomed further expansion of the agent network, the rising uptake of mobile money and electronic payments, and granting of payment service bank licences to large mobile operators. The authorities have also recently launched promising initiatives to improve financial literacy and promote access to finance for women.”

The mission welcomed the imminent launch of Central Bank of Nigeria’s regulatory sandbox for fintech and encouraged the authorities to increase the number of banking agents in underserved regions, provide more targeted training in using financial products, and extend the eNaira further to the unbanked population.

“The authorities are making slow but steady inroads into financial inclusion. Nigeria continues to fall short of its inclusion targets, particularly in access to financial products”.

Understanding Regulatory Sandbox Operations

The CBN had last year released the Framework for Regulatory Sandbox Operations that would promote seamless adoption of electronic payment across the country.

The framework will also ensure the safety and stability of the Nigerian Financial System, among other benefits.

It is also to promote the use and adoption of electronic payments and foster innovation in the payments system.

The new framework would equally increase the potential for innovative business models that advance financial inclusion.

The apex bank explained that it came up with the structure to ensure new and more flexible ways of engaging with the banking industry.

This, it said, is in view of increasing consumer appetite for payment solutions and emerging disruptive technology in the financial services space.

It said that the structure would enable the Bank stay abreast of innovations while promoting a safe, reliable and efficient Payments System to foster innovation without compromising on the delivery of its mandate.

“This Framework, therefore, defines the establishment, rules and operations of a Regulatory Sandbox for the Nigerian Payments System to promote effective competition, embrace new technology, encourage Financial Inclusion and improve customer experience, with a view to engendering public confidence in the Financial System,” it said.

The bank explained also that the structure was to reduce time-to-market for innovative products, services, and business models.

According to CBN, the framework will increase competition, widen consumers’ choice and lower costs.

It also said that it would ensure appropriate consumer protection safeguards in innovative products.

The CBN said that the structure would clearly define the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders and the operations of the Sandbox for the Nigerian Payments System industry.

The apex bank added that the framework would ensure adequate provisions in regulations to create an enabling environment for innovation without compromising on safety for consumers and the overall payments system.

Views from stakeholders

The Measuring Fees and Transparency in Nigeria’s Digital Financial services report has said that high cost of financial services remains a major barrier to access for price-sensitive consumers, especially within marginalised, vulnerable, and lower-income segments of society.

In addition, the report said any lack of transparency on product pricing, departures from regulated pricing and limits trust between customers and service providers,.

According to the report, Nigeria’s digital financial services ecosystem has rapidly evolved over the last decade due to increased broadband and mobile penetration and digital payments, which boost financial access in urban, rural, and hard-to-reach areas across the country.

This progress provides underbanked populations with greater access to digital banking products, mobile payments, savings and credit facilities – transforming the financial inclusion landscape. However, between 2018 and 2020, financial exclusion in Nigeria decreased by only one percentage point, from 37 per cent in 2018 to 36 per cent in 2020.

A new collaboration between Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA) and the Inclusion for All initiative aims to address the challenges and understand the ease of accessing accurate price information from providers and their levels of compliance with the revised pricing guidelines.

It said it examined the compliance levels with existing fee structures, compliance with price transparency requirements, the reliability of transactions and the consistency of information available from customer service channels.

The report is highlighting a series of barriers that impact consumer trust in financial services.

Director, Consumer Protection Department, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mrs. Rashida Monguno, commended IPA and Inclusion for All for the study, saying:  “This groundbreaking research provides new evidence and insights on one of the most critical aspects of consumer protection which is pricing transparency. Consumers’ right to easily access and understand the cost of services they use is one of the most fundamental rights of consumers. The research provides a baseline for future audits and identifies several areas which require improvement. I trust that the results will be instrumental in exploring new conversations that will result in tangible changes in the digital financial services marketplace.”

The government regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), recognised the impact of product pricing on financial inclusion outcomes and reviewed pricing guidelines in 2019, issuing lowered pricing caps for electronic banking transactions effective January 2020. In addition, CBN encouraged financial service providers to restructure transaction fees and limits.

The action supports Nigeria’s digital financial services uptake, which increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, where government responses such as lockdown restrictions led to the temporary closure of bank branches, reinforcing digital access.

Integrated payments and digital commerce company, Interswitch, has restated its commitment to continue supporting customers to meet urgent needs through its technology-driven lending solution called Value Financing.

The Value Financing solution is designed to provide customers with credit facilities as an alternative  option for the payment for goods and services on e-commerce platforms and other digital platforms; consequently, allowing customers to meet their pressing needs with loans.

In the wake of the rising inflation across the globe, the firm said it has become necessary for customers to explore the use of credit facilities to meet their urgent needs.

Innocent Itobore, Head, Interswitch Lending and Data Services at Interswitch made these assertions at the third edition in the series of Regional Breakfast Sessions which held at the Carlton Swiss Grand Hotel, Enugu state. He said that Interswitch will continue to support customers and businesses to scale and thrive  through the provision of innovative products and solutions.

He said “At Interswitch, we understand the peculiar needs of our customers, hence we continue to design products that will allow financial institutions and merchants meet the urgent needs of customers with loans, leveraging our cutting-edge technology systems. These solutions will, in turn, expand the lending offerings for financial institutions and give merchants the ability to grow their businesses as they get more purchases from customers, who can buy now and pay later.”

He said Interswitch organised the Regional Breakfast Session to provide insights and discuss robust opportunities for businesses to enable them to get first-hand information about Interswitch products and solutions.

Itobore further explained “The Regional Breakfast Session is an opportunity for us to introduce our customers to new, game-changing products that promise a range of digital competencies that will drive growth and profitability for their organisations. Essentially, these solutions will help remove costs that businesses would have incurred to develop enabling systems that foster seamless collection and disbursement of funds.”

During the course of the event, participants were onboarded on to other new Interswitch products which include; Tokenization, Fintech-in-a-box, Interswitch-Security-as-a-Solution, Banking-as-a-Service, Payment-as-a- Service, Mobile Banking-as -a-Service and Biometrics on POS.

The Regional Breakfast Session series has been organized to gather financial industry players to discuss critical issues within payment ecosystem with the goal of deepening digital payments in the country and beyond. After successfully hosting the events in Ibadan, Port Harcourt and Enugu, the event train is expected to move to Abuja and Lagos.

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) has called for more deployment of technology in accounting practices to reduce human error and tackle fraud.

Speaking during an informal stakeholders’ engagement organised by ACCA in Lagos, ACCA Global President, Joseph Owolabi, said that technology is crucial in accounting practice.

According to him, gone were the days when accountants work with big books.

“Now, we have simple systems like Finacle, Flexcube and so on, where people can process transactions seamlessly. Technology is important because there are many transactions that take place daily. For instance, millions of people use Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), imagine trying to reconcile those transactions manually!

“That’s where systems come in. Systems also help prevent human error. Someone processing transactions can get tired and make mistakes. But if you set the computer or systems right, there is reduced error and sometimes, it helps prevent fraud,” he stated.

Continuing, he said: “Technology is crucial, but there are challenges around the quality of data. In large organisations, technology will continue to play a vital role in transaction processing and internal controls. I think there are roles and responsibilities for accountants and technology in every organization”.

Owolabi, who is the first-ever President of the ACCA Global Council from Africa, took questions from members on the state of the economy, and exchange rate among others.

He said accountants do not need to be technology experts, but they know the right questions to ask pertaining to the transactions.

“There are lots of cyber-frauds happening, and will continue to happen but as accountants, we need to ensure they have the right training to identify unusual transactions and ask questions that will help check such transactions. What we do is to provide the right skills that people need to succeed through continuous professional development,” he said.

He said ACCA trains members about machine learning, cybersecurity, Fintech, climate change, exchange rates, and so on to ensure they remain acquainted with changes in the local and global environment.

He said: “We are developing accountants for a long time. One of the things we have done for the last two years is to ensure that the curriculum gets updated regularly. Internal control is an important part of the accountant’s job. As an accountant, you have to understand the internal control system, and unusual transactions and ask questions.”

According to him, ACCA members sign up to ethical codes, which guild the way they do their work.

He said that integrity is part and parcel of the ethical codes for ACCA members who, aside from having the qualifications, need to pass the codes of conduct ethics component.

Owolabi said passing such code of conduct ethics tests shows they have the moral compass to professionally carry out their duties.

He said the ACCA Council is the highest governance body for the group.  “As a Nigerian, I represent the interest of all our members in the council. The drive is to serve our people.  The ACCA Council has a five-year strategy, which will be implemented during my tenure”.

“Our plan is to drive that strategy, and more importantly, our passion is to connect and meet the expectations of our communities in 171 countries where we have members or future members,” he stated.

Owolabi said there is the required ratio of accountants that a country should have per population, to effectively cover the institutions and reduce incidences of corruption. Nigeria and indeed Africa is still very far from such ratio and so need many more chartered certified accountants to support its growth potentials.

New report from Boston Consulting Group (BCG) finds environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-related initiatives in core business lines could generate $300 billion revenue for retail banks in five years.

“In addition to promoting sustainable behaviors by customers, ESG-related products could generate considerable returns for retail banks.

“A 20 per cent ESG-related share in new retail banking revenues in the next five years, for example, would result in about a 10 per cent share of total retail banking revenues—or about $300 billion—in 2025,” the report said.

The report, titled Global Retail Banking 2022: Sense and Sustainability, reveals that one-quarter of retail banks report that ESG is a primary focus area for their digital transformation, and another 38 per cent say that ESG is a key criterion in selecting and prioritizing digital transformation initiatives.

It said that interest in sustainability has been rising for several years, and concerns over climate change have become decision drivers for customers, investors, and policymakers.

The report said retail banks are responding by building sustainability into their digital transformation programs. Three-quarters of retail banks plan to increase spending on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives, almost 20 per cent of them significantly.

Nearly half of retail banks are primarily focused on environmental sustainability issues, such as reducing energy consumption in offices, and 60 per cent are prioritizing governance issues, including managing critical risk incidents, building cyber-resilience, and developing predictive risk analytics to ensure improved preparedness and mitigation.

“Sustainability has moved up the priority list for all stakeholders, making it the next frontier of competitive advantage for retail banks and a pillar for future growth,” a BCG partner and director and coauthor of the report, said Thorsten Brackert, said.

“In Nigeria, banks are exploring opportunities to leverage sustainability to address current and systematic challenges. For example, many banks are substituting diesel-powered generators with solar panels and driving lower carbon emissions at their operational branches. Banks in Nigeria are also using sustainable finance as a growth lever with benefits oriented towards delivering client value.

“Access Bank’s recently issued green bond demonstrates the high demand and potential for green capital in Nigeria and on the continent. Going forward, a more structured approach will be critical to anchor “Sustainability as an Advantage” and deliver long-term value for banks,” Principal, BCG Nigeria, Phillipa Osakwe-Okoye, said.

BCG’s 2021 retail banking consumer sentiment survey, which covered 25 countries, found that 20 per cent more people voiced increased trust in their bank during the COVID crisis than at the start of the pandemic in 2020.

According to the report, global retail and private client revenues are expected to grow at more than six per cent a year through the 2020-2025 period. Payments and deposits will be the leading drivers of revenue growth globally, with payments expected to grow at an annual rate of 6.3 per cent as more people opt for online, credit card, and other non-cash transactions.

Banks have many opportunities to innovate sustainable practices and products along the customer lifecycle and to practice good business in the process. One opportunity is through green mortgages, which provide discounts on interest rates or fees to purchasers and builders of energy efficient properties. Banks can also use the daily banking relationship as well as their personalized engagement capabilities to support customers in environmentally friendly and ethical living. In the US and UK, almost nine in ten consumers would like brands to help them become more environmentally friendly.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said the remodeling of the National Arts Theater presents endless possibilities for the creative industry.

CBN Deputy Governor, Financial System, Stability, Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, disclosed this yesterday during the commissioning of the renovated National Theatre in Lagos.

She said the theatre is now a good place for Information Technology, fashion, music and relaxation as well as unleash creativity across the world.

The commissioning is the first phase of the CBN-led rehabilitation of the National Arts Theatre, Iganmu.

CBN Director, Corporate Communications Department, Osita Nwanisobi, recalled that the CBN and the Bankers’ Committee, in 2020, collectively agreed to invest over N65 billion to rehabilitate the National Arts Theatre and return it to its former glory.

They are working closely with the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture (FMIC), the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, and the Lagos State Government.

“Over the past 18 months, a complex rehabilitation project has rebuilt the heart of the National Theatre. More than 70 historic sculptures, mosaics, resin, brass and wood friezes, and stained-glass artworks form part of the original design, with each needing to be protected during renovation or, in some cases, removed and restored before being replaced,” he said.

According to him, “when the second phase of the rehabilitation works is complete in March 2023, the National Theatre will be restored to its original glory. A 5,000-seater main amphitheatre comparable to anything else in the world will sit at its heart, flanked by two world-class cinema rooms, banquet halls, and a library.

Read Also: CBN, Bankers’ Committee complete first phase of National Theatre remodeling

Nwanisobi said the project was not just about restoring a building; but about creating an ecosystem of support for the creative sector as part of what is called the Lagos Creative & Entertainment Centre (LC&EC).

“The theatre will be at the heart of a more significant development of hubs focused on supporting emerging talent in the music, film, fashion, and IT sectors,” he added.

The creative hubs are built on portions of land within the 44Ha site. The first phase, known as the “Signature Cluster” consists of a building each for Fashion, Music, Film, and IT and support facilities, including a 250-car park block, a police station, a fire station, and a visitors’ Welcome Centre which will house commercial and retail facilities, administration and management offices.

Also commenting on the completion of phase 1, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele said: “The National Theatre is one of the symbols of Nigeria’s culture and heritage and must be at the heart of our work to enhance and celebrate the creative industries. The completion of phase 1 is a demonstration of the outcomes we can achieve when we work together as the public and private sector.

“The Central Bank has been able to bring together the diverse set of stakeholders required to ensure that this project is delivered, from the Bankers Committee to the Ministries of Information and Culture, and Youth and Sports Development, and the Lagos State Government. We thank Mr. President for his overwhelming support that has made the restoration of this national iconic symbol of arts and culture a reality.

“Together, we are not just restoring the National Theatre to its former glory, but we are establishing the wider foundations on which we can build a truly world-class creative sector, at home,” Emefiele added.