Economy
Heritage Bank, RIMAN Partner on Risk Management
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
In a bid to achieve and promote global best practices in the implementation of risk management for safer and stronger financial institution, Heritage Bank Plc has entered into strategic partnership with the Risk Management Association of Nigeria (RIMAN).
Speaking recently with newsmen at the first Chief Risk Officer’s time-out/dinner organised by RIMAN, President of the association, Mr Jude Monye, noted that effective risk management implementation requires the combined efforts of institutions to tailor and implement key risk management methods and practices in the economy.
He, however, explained that Heritage Bank chose to support the first Chief Risk Officer’s time-out/dinner because the bank believes in best practices in every aspect of corporate organisation.
According to him, Heritage Bank believes that the process of economic development will remain an illusion without appropriate attention given to risk management and best practices in all spheres of life.
Based on this, Mr Monye commended the risk managers present at event for their commitment to best practices in their respective sectors.
However, he advised the new and young members of the professional body to always ensure they do not jettison standards in their respective offices.
“Whilst thanking you for the kind honour that you have done us by honouring our invitation tonight, I ask you to join us as we expand the frontiers of our activities to instil global best practice in risk management to you. We seek your support and input as we take RIMAN to the next level and by so doing, add value to you and to your organizational ideals, activities and operations,” he said.
Mr Monye pointed out that over the years, RIMAN has accomplished much, ranging from advocacy, capacity building to professional risk management certification – CRM.
In his goodwill address at the forum, the President, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Professor Olusegun Ajibola, commended the risk managers for taking the initiative to organise the event, which he said would be used by members to share ideas on how to grow the profession.
Mr Ajibola asserted that risk management is very important to growing any organisation and even aggregate economy; adding that failure to attach importance to it would do the entity more harm than benefit.
He said the Nigerian economy got to the present stage because people failed to acknowledge the importance of risk management to the private and public sectors.
According to him, as long as we fail to accord due importance to risk management, the nation stands to face the consequences.
The CIBN boss therefore advised the risk managers in the country not to play with their integrity for them to succeed in their vanguard of risk management in the country.
Again, he charged the board of each corporate organisation to be actively involved in the campaign for risk management in the country. With them taking the lead, Mr Ajibola assured that crusade would go a long way.
On why risk managers need to do more in Nigeria, the Chairman of Citibank Nigeria, Mr ‘Yemi Cardoso, noted that Nigeria’s economy is currently experiencing difficulties because risk management was not placed at its right place.
“If the risk managers do not get it right, the value of every restructuring effort made would be destroyed”, he stated.
Cardoso declared that money is kept in trust with banks; thus banks have a critical role to play if the nation’s economy would grow.
RIMAN is the foremost, non-profit professional Association of risk management professionals in Nigeria founded in 2000 in response to the gaps that existed in risk management capacity resulting in the banking crisis at the time.
Over time, the focus of RIMAN had shifted from just financial risk to the fact that risks exist in virtually all human endeavours and across all sectors. RIMAN at inception began with institutional membership and as at 2003, individual membership categories were added.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The United Kingdom via the British High Commission in Abuja has launched two flagship economic reform programmes – the Nigeria Economic Stability & Transformation (NEST) programme and the Nigeria Public Finance Facility (NPFF) -as part of efforts to support Nigeria’s economic reform and growth agenda.
Backed by a £12.4 million UK investment, NEST and NPFF sit at the centre of the UK-Nigeria mutual growth partnership and support Nigeria’s efforts to strengthen macroeconomic stability, improve fiscal resilience, and create a more competitive environment for investment and private-sector growth.
Speaking at the launch, Cynthia Rowe, Head of Development Cooperation at the British High Commission in Abuja, said, “These two programmes sit at the heart of our economic development cooperation with Nigeria. They reflect a shared commitment to strengthening the fundamentals that matter most for our stability, confidence, and long-term growth.”
The launch followed the inaugural meeting of the Joint UK-Nigeria Steering Committee, which endorsed the approach of both programmes and confirmed strong alignment between the UK and Nigeria on priority areas for delivery.
Representing the Government of Nigeria, Special Adviser to the President of Nigeria on Finance and the Economy, Mrs Sanyade Okoli, welcomed the collaboration, touting it as crucial to current, critical reforms.
“We welcome the United Kingdom’s support through these new programmes as a strong demonstration of our shared commitment to Nigeria’s economic stability and long-term prosperity. At a time when we are implementing critical reforms to strengthen fiscal resilience, improve macroeconomic stability, and unlock inclusive growth, this partnership will provide valuable technical support. Together, we are laying the foundation for a more resilient economy that delivers sustainable development and improved livelihoods for all Nigerians.”
On his part, Mr Jonny Baxter, British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos, highlighted the significance of the programmes within the wider UK-Nigeria mutual growth partnership.
“NEST and NPFF are central to our shared approach to strengthening the foundations that underpin long-term economic prosperity. They sit firmly within the UK-Nigeria mutual growth partnership.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A strategic partnership aimed at accelerating the growth, digital capacity, and sustainability of Nigeria’s 40 million Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) has been signed by MTN Nigeria and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN).
The collaboration will feature joint initiatives focused on digital inclusion, financial access, capacity building, and providing verified information for MSMEs.
With millions of small businesses depending on accurate guidance and easy-to-access support, MTN and SMEDAN say their shared platform will address gaps in communication, misinformation, and access to opportunities.
At the formal signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Thursday, November 27, 2025, in Lagos, the stage was set for the immediate roll-out of tools, content, and resources that will support MSMEs nationwide.
The chief operating officer of MTN Nigeria, Mr Ayham Moussa, reiterated the company’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s economic development, stating that MSMEs are the lifeline of Nigeria’s economy.
“SMEs are the backbone of the economy and the backbone of employment in Nigeria. We are delighted to power SMEDAN’s platform and provide tools that help MSMEs reach customers, obtain funding, and access wider markets. This collaboration serves both our business and social development objectives,” he stated.
Also, the Chief Enterprise Business Officer of MTN Nigeria, Ms Lynda Saint-Nwafor, described the MoU as a tool to “meet SMEs at the point of their needs,” noting that nano, micro, small, and medium businesses each require different resources to scale.
“Some SMEs need guidance, some need resources; others need opportunities or workforce support. This platform allows them to access whatever they need. We are committed to identifying opportunities across financial inclusion, digital inclusion, and capacity building that help SMEs to scale,” she noted.
Also commenting, the Director General of SMEDAN, Mr Charles Odii, emphasised the significance of the collaboration, noting that the agency cannot meet its mandate without leveraging technology and private-sector expertise.
“We have approximately 40 million MSMEs in Nigeria, and only about 400 SMEDAN staff. We cannot fulfil our mandate without technology, data, and strong partners.
“MTN already has the infrastructure and tools to support MSMEs from payments to identity, hosting, learning, and more. With this partnership, we are confident we can achieve in a short time what would have taken years,” he disclosed.
Mr Odii highlighted that the SMEDAN-MTN collaboration would support businesses across their growth needs, guided by their four-point GROW model – Guidance, Resources, Opportunities, and Workforce Development.
He added that SMEDAN has already created over 100,000 jobs within its two-year administration and expects the partnership to significantly boost job creation, business expansion, and nationwide enterprise modernisation.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited is seeking review of the controversial Capital Gains Tax increase, fearing it will chase away foreign investors from the country’s capital market.
Nigeria’s new tax regime, which takes effect from January 1, 2026, represents one of the most significant changes to Nigeria’s tax system in recent years.
Under the new rules, the flat 10 per cent Capital Gains Tax rate has been replaced by progressive income tax rates ranging from zero to 30 per cent, depending on an investor’s overall income or profit level while large corporate investors will see the top rate reduced to 25 per cent as part of a wider corporate tax reform.
The chief executive of NGX, Mr Jude Chiemeka, said in a Bloomberg interview in Kigali, Rwanda that there should be a “removal of the capital gains tax completely, or perhaps deferring it for five years.”
According to him, Nigeria, having a higher Capital Gains Tax, will make investors redirect asset allocation to frontier markets and “countries that have less tax.”
“From a capital flow perspective, we should be concerned because all these international portfolio managers that invest across frontier markets will certainly go to where the cost of investing is not so burdensome,” the CEO said, as per Bloomberg. “That is really the angle one will look at it from.”
Meanwhile, the policy has been defended by the chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, who noted that the new tax will make investing in the capital market more attractive by reducing risks, promoting fairness, and simplifying compliance.
He noted that the framework allows investors to deduct legitimate costs such as brokerage fees, regulatory charges, realised capital losses, margin interest, and foreign exchange losses directly tied to investments, thereby ensuring that they are not taxed when operating at a loss.
Mr Oyedele also said the reforms introduced a more inclusive approach to taxation by exempting several categories of investors and transactions.
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