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Tag: Remita

  • Remita was selected based on merit – CBN

    Remita was selected based on merit – CBN

    The Director of Banking Services, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Hamisu Abdullahi, says the selection of Remita to provide an electronic platform essential for facilitating payments from Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to beneficiary accounts across commercial banks was based on merit.

    He said this when officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria appeared before the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee to respond to queries about leakages through the Remita platform.

    He said, “In 2011, the CBN was directed to provide an electronic platform that would facilitate payments on behalf of MDAs to beneficiaries’ accounts in the commercial banks.

    Read Also: CBN reports over $1.5b forex inflow in March

    “And as at that time, there was no platform available to use. So CBN deemed it fit to source for an alternative way of doing this and engaged two companies and out of the two, Remita Systemspec was selected based on merit and based on the fact they had been rendering similar services to commercial banks.”

    The Managing Director of Remita Payment Services Limited, Mr. ‘Deremi Atanda again underscored the importance of incorporating all Federal Government agencies within the Treasury Single Account (TSA) framework to bolster accountability and transparency.

    He said the TSA initiative was designed to create a single window through which all inflows and outflows of government can be monitored in real-time for transparency and accountability and especially for the effective management of the government’s cash assets.

    “However, some MDAs are operating outside the TSA. The investigations have unravelled that some MDAs are only partially complying with the TSA Revenue policy while some are in absolute breach,” he said.

  • Why all govt agencies must be on TSA, by Remita MD

    Why all govt agencies must be on TSA, by Remita MD

    • By: Nicholas Kalu, Abuja

    The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of REMITA, Mr. Deremi Atanda, has restated the need for all agencies of the Federal Government to be captured on the Treasury Single Account (TSA) to promote accountability and transparency.

    Atanda said this while commenting on the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee’s probe into the operations of the TSA.

    The probe was part of the committee’s oversight to examine the accounts and reports of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the Federal Government.

    Atanda noted that not capturing all agencies of the government into the TSA would reduce a culture of unaccountability and loss of revenue.

    He said: “Some MDAs are operating outside the TSA. The investigations have shown that some MDAs are only partially complying with the TSA revenue policy while some are in absolute breach.

    “The core objective of the Treasury Single Account initiative is to create a single window through which all inflows and outflows of government can be monitored in real time for transparency and accountability and especially for the effective management of government’s cash assets.”

    Read Also: Why all government agencies must be on TSA – Remita MD

    The Remita CEO stressed that the TSA was designed to create a single monitoring window for all government inflows and outflows regardless of currency.

    He said forex revenue collections still occurred outside of the TSA framework.

    According to him, the implication of this is that foreign exchange revenues earned by the Federal Government are at the risk of being diverted into the pockets of unscrupulous entities within the MDAs, especially those who receive revenues in foreign currency.

    “At a time when the Nigerian Government is looking for how to generate forex and stymie the devaluation of the naira due to increased demand for the U.S dollar, this should not be allowed to happen,” Atanda said.

    The Remita boss announced that N34 trillion had been collected through TSA since 2015.

    He said: “Since inception in 2015 under the Muhammadu Buhari regime, the government has received payments to the tune of a whopping N34 trillion through the TSA. It is the first time the country is able to have visibility and account for its cash assets in real time.

    “This was impossible before 2015 when different MDAs operated about 20,000 accounts in different banks with many things happening behind the scenes.”

  • Why all government agencies must be on TSA – Remita MD

    Why all government agencies must be on TSA – Remita MD

    The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of REMITA, Deremi Atanda, has stressed the need to ensure that all agencies of the federal government are captured on the Treasury Single Account (TSA) to promote accountability and transparency.

    He said this on the heels of the probe by the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee into the operations of the TSA part of its responsibility to examine the accounts and reports of Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government.

    Atanda stated that not capturing all agencies of the government increases the risk of unaccountability and the potential loss of much-needed revenue to the Federal Government.

    He said: “Some MDAs are operating outside TSA. The investigations have unravelled that some MDAs are only partially complying with the TSA Revenue policy while some are in absolute breach.

    “The core objective of the Treasury Single Account initiative is to create a single window through which all inflows and outflows of government can be monitored in real-time for transparency and accountability and especially for the effective management of government’s cash assets.”

    He also rued that Forex collections are done outside of TSA

    He stressed that the TSA was designed to create a single monitoring window for all government inflows and outflows regardless of currency.

    He however said forex revenue collections still occur outside of the TSA framework.

    Atanda said this implies that foreign exchange revenues earned by the federal government are at risk of being diverted into the pockets of unscrupulous entities within MDAs that receive revenue in foreign currency.

    “At a time when the Nigerian Government is looking for how to generate Forex and stymie the devaluation of the Naira due to increased demand for the US Dollar, this should not be allowed to happen,” he said.

    He reiterated that 34 Trillion Naira has so far been collected through TSA since 2015.

    He said: “Since inception in 2015 under the Buhari regime, the government has received payments to the tune of a whopping 34 trillion Naira through the TSA. It is the first time the country is able to have visibility and account for its cash assets in real-time. This was impossible before 2015 when different MDAs operated about 20,000 accounts in different banks with many things happening behind the scenes.”

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    He said the government can track and account for every single transaction through a unique Remita Retrieval Reference (RRR) code that is attached to every revenue inflow.

    “The RRR (Remita Retrieval Reference) is an outstanding feature of the payment gateway deployed by the CBN that enables the government to know the MDAs that received the money, the account into which the money went, the date and time the money was paid, what the money was paid for, and the name of the person that made the payment. RRR seems to have become the ultimate reconciliation reference point for all payers, banks, MDAs for all government revenue collections,” he said.

    He also pointed out the TSA collection fee is not one percent.

    He said the issue of the fee paid to the TSA service providers had been laid to rest by the House investigations.

    “This was confirmed to be N150 flat+VAT for all payments irrespective of the amount being paid. The CBN circulars of 2018 and 2020 presented at the sittings confirmed this,” he said.

    He clarified that Remita is not owned by the government.

    He said: “Remita is the name of the company and, also the name of the payment gateway adopted by the CBN for the operation of the FGN TSA. The company is a subsidiary of SystemSpecs, a Nigerian software technology investment group which also owns 4 other tech companies.”

  • House invites CBN Gov over REMITA leakages

    House invites CBN Gov over REMITA leakages

    The House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts (PAC) has invited the Central Bank Governor Yemi Cardoso to appear before it on Tuesday, March 5 unfailingly over issues with leakages on the REMITA platform.

    The Committee’s Chairman, Hon. Bamidele Salam, conveyed the invite in a letter to the CBN Governor titled RE: INVESTIGATION OF REVENUE LEAKAGES THROUGH REMITA PLATFORM AND NON-COMPLIANCE SUBSTANTIVELY WITH STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE AND OTHER ALLIED SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT 2023 (HR.373/11/2023).

    The PAC Chairman stated that the CBN Governor’s failure to appear before the Committee and address the issues has significantly hindered the investigative process on revenue leakages through the REMITA platform.

    According to him: “You are strongly advised to take advantage of this invitation and appear before the Committee on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at 10:00 am in Meeting Room 446, House of Representatives’ New Building, to respond to the issues that will arise during the hearing session.

    “You are also advised to bring along all relevant officers familiar with the issues at stake who may assist you in providing answers to any questions that could arise during the session.”

    “Please refer to your representation before the Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday, February 27, 2024, by an Assistant Director without a written letter to that effect. Be advised that the Committee does not allow representation; all Chief Accounting Officers are to appear in person to defend their office.

    “You will also recall that the Committee has sent several correspondences to your office on the same subject with Ref. Nos: HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/HR.373/11/2023/1/2, dated December 8, 2023; HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/HR.373/11/2023/1/31, dated January 19, 2024; HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/HR.373/11/2023/1/60, dated January 25, 2024, and HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/HR.373/11/2023/2/84, dated February 19, 2024. We observed your absolute disregard for its Constitutional mandate. Please find copies of the letters attached.

    “Your failure to appear before the Committee and respond to the issues has significantly stalled this Committee’s investigative process on revenue leakages through the REMITA platform.

    “Consequently, the Committee wishes to draw your attention to previous letters on various subject matters, to which you are yet to respond. Please find references below:

    “HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/QUE.2/29 dated January 23, 2024; HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/FA/1 dated January 23, 2024; HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/SE.3/34 dated January 30, 2024, and HR/PAC/SCO5/10NASS/SE.3/35 dated February 22, 2024. Please also find copies of the letters attached.

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    “The Committee frowns at this and wishes to remind you of the relevant constitutional provisions in Sections 62 and 89(1) (a, b, c & d) & (2) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). The Public Accounts Committee has the power to summon any person in Nigeria to give evidence, produce any document in his possession and under his control.

    “It may also interest you to note that under Sections 89 (1) (d), the Committee has the power to issue a warrant to compel the attendance of any person who, after being summoned, fails, refuses, or neglects to do so.

    “Failure to comply with this civil invitation may leave the Committee with no choice but to issue a warrant of arrest against you in line with Legislative Houses (Powers & Privileges Act 2017) (Sections 2 & 3) and the 1999 CFRN (as amended) in line with House Procedures.

    “Consequently, the Committee resolved to grant you one last opportunity to appear.”

  • ‘Federation Account gets N34. 311tr via REMITA in 7 years’

    ‘Federation Account gets N34. 311tr via REMITA in 7 years’

    About N34.311 trillion revenue was generated through REMITA platform into the Federation Account between 2015 and 2022, Managing Director of REMITA, Deremi Atanda has said.

    Atanda spoke yesterday when he appeared before the House of Representatives Committee on Public Account during an investigative hearing on ‘alleged revenue leakages through REMITA platform and non-compliance with standard operating procedure and other allied service agreement’.

    However, to ascertain the veracity of the agreement between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Systemspec/REMITA on the revenue collection, the Committee headed by Bamidele Salam  resolved to invite the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy,  Wale Edun and CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso to give account of the roles played by each of the institutions in the contract.

    According to documents presented to the Public Accounts Committee, instead of the N343.109 billion fee income due to the company at a contracted rate of one per cent flat, only N23.922 billion actual fee income was applied.

    Based on the 2018 circular on the chargeable fees’ guidelines on e-collection, the sharing formula showed that the stakeholders are to share N150 per transaction – Banks 33 per cent, CBN – 11 per cent, NIBBS – 10.5 per cent, Office of Accountant-General of the Federation (oAGF) gets 2.5 per cent, while REMITA and other stakeholders including card issuers are entitled to 43 per cent of the chargeable fees.

    Dismissing insinuation that REMITA imposed additional fee apart from the approved N150 on the revenue-generating MDAs, Atanda said the REMITA payment gateway platform provides additional technology services to the government at no cost, despite paying in foreign exchange for hosting the platform on cloud based platform.

    According to him, N1.5 trillion was remitted through the platform in 2015, N2.8 trillion in 2016, N3.7 trillion in 2017, N4.6 trillion in 2018, N4.6 trillion in 2019, N4.2 trillion in 2020 being COVID year, N6 trillion in 2021 while N6.8 trillion was realized in 2022 fiscal year, respectively.

    While confirming that CBN engaged REMITA to provide the service as part of efforts geared towards shoring up revenue accrued to federation, he confirmed that relevant agreements were signed and standard operating procedures were followed.

    He said the one per cent agreement fee payable to all the stakeholders involved in the contract agreement was reached in 2020 following an earlier investigative hearing conducted where CBN, Banks, REMITA and other staff involved were asked to refund the chargeable fees collected from the services provided since inception.

    He maintained that CBN and office of the Accountant General of the Federation have 100 percent access to the platform while all revenues accruing into each of the 1,137 MDAs that pay through the REMITA platform get the funds immediately and such revenues are accessed by the apex bank on daily basis.

    Responding to questions on possible area of leakages, he urged the Parliament to ensure that all dollar related revenue are captured into the revenue collection gateway, as focus has been strictly only the naira revenue over the past eight to nine years.

    Read Also: Remita okays more commissions, incentives for JAMB ePins agents

    He however noted that the number of MDAs that pay through REMITA has been inconsistent as some get approval to pull out at various times, and dismissed allegation that REMITA has some unaccounted for revenue, adding that there is no N29 billion accrued from National Housing Fund (NHF) trapped on Remita payment platform as alleged by one of the lawmakers.

    While responding to question on the contract signed with Remita, Director Single Treasury, Mr. Mohammed Bello in the office of the

    The Accountant General of the Federation said that the 2.5per cent fee accrued to oAGF goes directly into the Federal Government’s account, not OAGF’s account.

    He also said that efforts are ongoing to capture revenue being paid through foreign exchange into revenue payment platform, adding that the pilot scheme arrangement being worked out in collaboration with Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs will come up in the next few weeks.

    Chairman of the Committee Bamidele Salam who underscored the need for physical appearance of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, CBN Governor and Accountant General of the Federation before the Committee, on Tuesday, 20th February, 2024.

  • Remita okays more commissions, incentives for JAMB ePins agents

    Remita okays more commissions, incentives for JAMB ePins agents

    Remita, a leading indigenous payment company, is empowering prospective students to take control of their academic journeys by offering a seamless registration  for the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) and Direct Entry (DE) registrations.

    As recently announced by the Joint Admission and Matriculations Board (JAMB), the sale of ePINs for this year’s UTME and DE registrations commenced on Monday, January 8,, and will end on Monday, February 24, this year.

    According to Chinedu Alisa, the Retail Manager at Remita, prospective candidates can now purchase their ePINs on the Remita platform, which offers a hassle-free registration process and multiple payment options. 

    “We are committed to empowering young people across Nigeria to achieve their academic dreams, The sale of 2024 JAMB Registration ePINs on our platform simplifies the registration process and eliminates any inconvenience that candidates may face during their JAMB registration. We are proud to play a part in helping prospective students take control of their academic journeys”.

    Explaining the process of purchasing the ePINs, Alisa said candidates are required to register with their National Identification Number (NIN) by sending an SMS to 55019 or 66019 with the word ‘NIN,’ followed by a space and their 11-digit NIN. They will then receive a 10-digit profile code via the phone number that should be used to purchase their ePINs. Candidates can proceed to the Remita website on Remita.net/JAMB, then choose ‘UTME’ or ‘Direct Entry’ and input their profile code, registered phone number, and other necessary details. Once payment is completed, the PIN will be delivered to the candidate’s registered phone number and displayed on their Remita receipt. 

    Read Also: Remita offers results checker PIN

    Remita has introduced the widest range of payment options, including bank transfer, debit or credit card, USSD, eNaira, mobile wallet, bank account, and internet banking. Prospective candidates can also walk up to any Remita agent or any bank branch to purchase their ePINs with Remita or pay through Remita on the JAMB’s e-facility website. 

    As the payment platform continues to streamline processes, provide exceptional support, and deliver personalised experiences, Remita also aims at empowering agents, schools, and other partnering organizations across Nigeria who resell JAMB ePINs, with increased commissions when they purchase on Remita. “We are making sure that candidates benefit from a hassle-free registration process, while agents and schools enjoy the most competitive commissions per transaction”. 

    He, however, warns that agents are prohibited from selling the ePINs above JAMB’s approved sales price, saying any agent caught will immediately be blacklisted from the system and handed over to the authorities. 

    With the sale of UTME ePINs ending on Monday, February 24, 2024, prospective students seeking admission into higher institutions across Nigeria are encouraged to purchase their ePINs on the Remita platform before the deadline and embark on an exciting journey towards a brighter future.

  • Criticisms over Remita fees borne out of ignorance, says Obaro

    The Chief Executive Officer of SystemSpecs, John  Obaro, at the weekend, attributed the criticisms that greeted the collection of fees by Remita, the software driving the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account (TSA) scheme, to ignorance.

    Obaro spoke after his induction into the BoICT Hall of Fame and upon receiving the Indigenous Software Provider of the Decade awards at this year’s Beacon of Information and Communication Technology Awards in Lagos. He said Remita in itself is 14 years old.

    He said: “We are in a business where we will always have one issue or the other and we take it as it comes; we resolve one problem and another problem comes up. The issue about our fees came because of ignorance but today, many more people are aware of the use of IT; that they can use their mobile phones to make payments; make transfers. When we started all these four years ago, that was when the use of electronic transfer was just coming up. So, many people didn’t understand what it was. Once there was a little spark, it easily became a wild fire, but with time, when people started understanding it, the confusion calm down and cleared. The issue of fees is being negotiated with government and it will be sorted out.

    “Not many people know that the product was there. We were operating at the corporate level; it was TSA that brought us to limelight and many people assumed Remita is TSA. Remita has always been there, but the government showing interest was a good opportunity and in the past two years, a number of state governments have shown interest; so      \                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       you find a diffusion of the use of technology across board, now from national to the states and there are not many businesses today that would have think of starting up without using computers.  That was not how it used to be. There was a time you needed to sell the use of computers by allaying the fears of people you needed to educate people.”

    He said the software quality in Nigeria has improved significantly, especially in the last two to three years, ading that a lot of things have happened. “We have a good number of Nigerians who trained abroad. Some of them have come back; yes, a good number of them are going out, but you also have quite a number who are able to work in a borderless manner. They have worked in different parts of the world. They have support software development technology. I believe we are rising up to the challenge. Yes, there are challenges here and there. If there no challenges, there will be no businesses. So, we take on these challenges as they come,” Obaro said.

  • Systemspecs says Remita is right choice for digital payment

     

    With so many payment solutions out there, pundits already fear cash may soon be dethroned as ‘king’. Digital payment systems are now so ubiquitous. It is becoming increasingly difficult for consumers—businesses and individuals—to make the right choice. Ideally, this right choice is based on payment needs.

    Irrespective, it should be one that is seamless, easy to use, efficient, fast and secure. A few brands that have been able to deliver these qualities are leading globally. By now, almost everyone in Nigeria, who is averagely financially literate, can mention one or two of such payment providers, mostly foreign (If you can’t we are working on you, never mind). What many do not know is this- from Nigeria, developed at the very heart of Lagos, is one payment solution on its way to becoming a global brand. It is called Remita.

    What makes Remita tick would not only be that it is taking the lead in helping individuals and corporates redefine their financial transaction experience, it is the fact that it was developed by an indigenous company, SystemSpecs, one of the country’s longest-standing fintech firms.

    There is a good chance you have used Remita without realising, especially if you have ever paid to a federal government ministry or parastatal. Yes, Remita has made a name for itself having been tested and trusted by the Nigerian government in its drive towards transparency in the public sector, but it is important to note that Remita is everywhere, not just in the public sector as often misconstrued.

    SystemSpecs have been in the software business for over 26 years, delivering superior human resource and payment solutions across the country. And unlike newer types of payment solutions developed by most startups, SystemSpecs’ Remita has worked so well for users. It has won several national and international awards for the innovativeness it brings to the diverse payment processing needs of Governments, Organisations, SMEs or Individuals. Remita has the most robust payment facilitation options in Nigeria and has become a one-stop financial shop for all payment needs.

    Those very familiar with Fintech products emanating from Nigeria and the rest of Africa have described Remita as one of the most remarkable yet. It’s developers, SystemSpecs is a company that has always been ahead of the curve in the Nigeria’s payments industry. Remita boasts of a large clientele and it processes over $30 billion worth of transactions annually. With Remita, anyone can start receiving payments on their website in less than 48 hours with ZERO activation fee.

    It also makes it easy for customers and service users to pay you using any of the following channels: Online Banking site, Remita (on app, mobile & web), Debit/Credit cards (Visa, Verve, MasterCard, UnionPay); Branches of any commercial bank nationwide; Microfinance Banks; POS, Direct Debit and Digital Wallets. What’s more? Remita has a full suite of comprehensive payment solutions to meet different business or personal transactions needs. Here are some of the packages of this leading brand:

    Remita Payment Application (Mobile and Web)

    Remita online and mobile payment application enables Governments, Businesses, NGOs & Individuals to manage bill payments, funds transfers, invoicing & real time tracking of all transactions on a single platform.

    The mobile app version of Remita, which is available on Android and iOS, is loaded with a lot of features to have consumers experience the best of transactions with their phones. The mobile app helps users aggregate all their bank accounts across different banks on a single screen and make payments seamlessly.

    This app is perfect for you if you are tired of overburdening your phones with many bank apps, each eating up storage space and slowing down processes. Also, if you have a hard-time remembering a thousand and one passwords and usernames from your many bank accounts, you can easily download a Remita app and connect all your bank accounts on a single screen. It is as simple as it sounds.

    Thousands of public and private sector organisations, as well as individuals, consider the Remita Online and Mobile Payments and Collections App as one of the best that has ever happened to them. Apart from being able to pay almost any biller in Nigeria’s private and public sector, the mobile and web platforms also incorporate an integrated payroll processing solution. More interesting features include scan/tap to pay, standing orders, e-invoicing and comprehensive expenses and transactions reporting.

    Remita Payment Gateway

    Remita provides payers with a wide range of payment channels on a SINGLE platform, including Debit/Credit Cards, Bank Branches, POS Terminals, Micro-Finance Banks, Internet Banking, Collection Agents, Mobile Wallets, Account Payment and Direct Debit. lt can be used by Billers, Merchants, e-Commerce sites etc.

    The Federal Government of Nigeria adopted the Remita integrated multichannel Payment Gateway as a one-stop solution for the collection of all revenue types through different transaction channels under its national Treasury Single Account (TSA) initiative.

    The Remita Payment Gateway that drives the TSA is integrated with other payment technology solutions at the core of its design. This has always been one of the very unique and verifiable features that has distinguished the Remita solution in the marketplace.

    Remita Payment Infrastructure

    For clients who need more than just a payment gateway, SystemSpecs deploy Remita as a complete end-to-end payment infrastructure that facilitates seamless funds transfer, settlement and reporting between financial scheme operators (Central Bank, Commercial Banks, Mobile Money Operators, Micro-Finance Banks, etc.).  It also provides visibility over the entire payment ecosystem.

    Remita Payroll

    Remita payroll is ideal for any organisation with 2-200,000 employees. It is a powerful and comprehensive Payroll and Human Resource Management solution, which has been effectively deployed across private companies, and governments in Nigeria.

    Remita Payroll & HR is based on SystemSpecs’ highly successful HumanManager solution that has been a market leader for more than 20 years.

    Among other things, it allows organisations to save costs, detect ghost workers, compute all staff allowances and deductions, and automatically send electronic Payment Notification, Payslips and Tax analysis slips to each staff at the end of every pay run. It also allows them to pay salaries without the need to upload salary schedules from a separate software to the e-Payment platform.

    Although the need to automate payroll processes end-to-end inspired the birth of Remita, it has grown beyond just salary payroll to include payment of taxes, loans, pensions, cooperative deductions, among others. Today, Remita does beyond salaries and vendor payments system; it does financial collections.

    Recently, SystemSpecs formed a strategic collaboration with Access Bank to offer salary earners ‘PayDay’ loans, without human interaction, the need for collateral or guarantor, or the need to visit a bank. This has been made possible through Remita’s robust database.

  • From Payroll to Remita: The Story of Nigeria’s FinTech Giant

    Till Financial Technology, FinTech, became a buzzword a few years ago, it was all about Information and Communications Technology (ICT). And in the Nigeria of the 1990s, everything could be linked to ICT, even the remotest of things. Indeed, ICT was the miracle worker and at the root of some of humanity’s greatest achievements. Every era has its own “ICT”.

    FinTech, as an expression that describes how technology is transforming the financial world, has been traced to as far back as the 1950s when the world knew and experienced its first credit cards. From then till present-day, one element has remained constant about FinTech in all its manifestations: it is a breakaway from the norm, a’la disruption. This disruption is not unto chaos but onto the advancement of services across the value chain.

    And that is the very root of SystemSpecs, one of Nigeria’s leading financial technology firms. Founded in 1991, the Nigerian firm has moved from merely being an ICT player to becoming a game-changer in FinTech. But till 2006, SystemSpecs was known only as a frontline payroll firm and developer of HumanManager, the human capital and payroll management solution that set the standard and remains a reference point globally for other players.

    The firm always sought to meet market yearnings for software that reflect the realities of Nigerian employment, incentives and taxation systems. “I must say we were not conscious of the impact we were going to make, especially with HumanManager. We were just concerned with developing an application that works. Now, we find it having a strong impact on organisations and society,” says John Obaro, the Managing Director of SystemSpecs.

    HumanManager undeniably launched the firm onto a new pedestal. The solution has successfully managed the payroll and human capital processes of more than 300 organisations in Nigeria and across the African continent for more than two decades.

    “The big break for us came with payroll, when we had the opportunity of working with the World Bank, to manage payroll for the federal government. It was a pilot study on about 50,000 workers,” Obaro adds.

    2006 was defining in the history of the company. Remita, a name that has become even better known than SystemSpecs, was launched to the world. It was the first time ever that a single solution would allow anyone access their account balances across different banks on a single screen. It was significant marker of SystemSpecs’ entry into FinTech.

    But Remita isn’t just about the ability to view account balances across different banks, it also enables its users—whether individuals, businesses or governments—to make payments through nine channels including the business’ website, internet banking, PoS, credit/debit cards, and any bank branch.

    With Remita, anyone anywhere can make payments easily and businesses can expand their marketing reach, knowing that getting paid is no longer a thing to worry about. They could also track every transaction real-time and benefit from comprehensive reporting across multiple platforms and formats. That goes without mentioning the capability of the solution to bring unparalleled ease to the HR needs of organisations.

    Speaking about the impact of Remita on government payments, Obaro adds that with solution, “people are now conscious that for whatever they do, there are footprints that can easily be traced. This has brought some discipline to the society and we’re delighted to be part of that change process.”

    Now in its 26th year, SystemSpecs has been able to stand the test of time, despite the turbulence along the way. Perhaps that is attributable to the premium place its customers occupy and the visionary management it has in place. Whatever it is, SystemSpecs, Nigeria’s leading FinTech, seems to have a winning formula.

  • Remita wins e-Payment Innovation Awards

    Remita wins e-Payment Innovation Awards

    Payment gateway provider, SystemSpecs, was recently named winner of the “Most Innovative e-Payment Company of the Year” at the Top 25 Most Innovative Companies & Institutions Award 2017 organised by BusinessDay Media Limited, the publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers.
    The award is in recognition of Remita’s continued leadership and innovation of the financial technology space through the facilitation of secure and seamless financial transactions. In the last decade, the brand has been fuelling transactions in the financial system and in the last five years has provided the backbone infrastructure for the implementation of the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account (TSA).
    In a statement, the organisers of the awards said that the BusinessDay Top 25 Most Innovative Companies & Institutions Awards celebrates “the achievements of those who are spurring growth, development, creating new economic opportunities, and inspiring the new generation of innovators in shaping Africa’s future.”
    Receiving the awards, David Okeme, SystemSpecs’ Chief Marketing Officer, said:“SystemSpecs is delighted to receive this award which recognises the pivotal role of Remita in driving the transformation of the payment system in Nigeria and Africa. This could not have been achieved without the visionary leadership of Mr. John Obaro our MD, and the help of all our employees who worked together to ensure that Remita becomes the number one payment processing platform in Nigeria.
    “Coming after the unveiling of the beta version of our Remita App, this recognition, in no small way, reinforces our commitment to transforming how payments are made and received in Nigeria and across the African continent.”