Banking
Heritage Bank Trains 5,544 Pupils, Teachers on Financial Literacy
By Dipo Olowookere
No fewer than 5,544 pupils and teachers in 11 secondary schools across the country were recently empowered by Heritage Bank Plc.
This was part of efforts to support the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Financial Literacy Day, which marks the Global Money Week.
The CBN’s Financial Literacy Day is a globally celebrated event to promote savings, drive Financial Inclusion, invariably gain a higher standard of life and secure the economy, which is the crux of the Bank’s financial literacy programs.
For the fifth year running, Heritage Bank has successfully commemorated the CBN Financial Literacy Day.
This year, CBN directed Heritage Bank to adopt schools in Benue, Adamawa, Jigawa, Plateau, Imo, Bayelsa and Ogun States for Financial Literacy workshop and the day afforded 5,544 participants (teachers and students) with financial education.
The workshop was premised on the Global Money Week theme: #MoneyMattersMatter. Students and teachers were taught several concepts including; the role and management of money, needs and wants, benefit of budgeting, spending and savings.
Others include savings with a financial institution, the basics of financial education and Heritage Bank savings product for young persons (Bud Account).
Addressing some of the participants, chief executive of Heritage Bank, Mr Ifie Sekibo, reiterated the importance for young Nigerians to financially and economically equipped for the development of the nation.
According to him, Nigerian youths and those around the world need to be fortified economically via financial literacy knowledge acquisition, which will foster the importance of understanding savings culture and entrepreneurship.
In line with its mission to create, preserve and transfer wealth across generations, Mr Sekibo said Heritage Bank developed the HB Bud Savings Account to help its customers to create wealth for the children and provide them a future of financial independence.
“As a bank committed to creating, preserving and transferring wealth from one generation to the next, we have consistently maintained our position as the leading brand in financial inclusion initiatives by leveraging on CBN’s mandate to impact schools across the geopolitical zones and improve financial inclusion,” the MD reiterated.
According to him, opening a savings account for a child is one of the best ways to introduce him/her to that concept of saving at an early age.
He explained that one of the ways the bank has continued to promote savings amongst children is the introduction of “My day as a banker” which is also the Heritage Bank’s unique way of promoting financial literacy among children, which is the core of the HB Bud Savings Account, specially designed to promote savings habit among children and youths.
Meanwhile, other senior employees of the bank visited other select schools in the country as directed by the apex bank to promote financial literacy.
According to Heritage Bank, today’s children and youth should become empowered economic citizens, capable of understanding the importance of saving, and equipped with the skills to be employed and create their own livelihoods. The bank wants young people to learn to manage their money wisely. By empowering children and youth, Heritage Bank can help them create a positive wave that will expand from themselves, to their families, to entire communities and the economy at large.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
About N2 billion is expected to be used to finance renewable energy products for customers by the end of 2026 in an effort to accelerate Nigeria’s clean energy transition.
To meet this goal, Sterling Bank is launching Sterling Solar Financing Hubs inside StarTimes retail outlets to embed on-the-spot solar financing at the point of purchase.
From the N2 billion earmarked for this initiative, N600 million has already been used up.
Under this programme, customers can now walk into participating outlets, select their preferred solar solution, receive financial guidance from dedicated Sterling Solar Financing Advisors, and begin the financing process immediately, subject to the bank’s credit assessment.
The first phase of the rollout commenced this July with five Solar Financing Hubs across Lagos, located in Lekki, Ikeja, Festac, Surulere, and Victoria Island.
The network will expand rapidly to 46 StarTimes outlets nationwide before the end of the third quarter of 2026, with a view to extending the model to more than 200 StarTimes locations nationwide.
Both parties have promised to continue working together to democratise access to clean energy financing, empowering more Nigerians to solarise their homes and businesses while contributing to a greener future.
“Sterling exists to enrich lives, and we believe that access to clean, reliable energy should be within everyone’s reach. Through this partnership with StarTimes, we are democratising access to solar by bringing financing directly to the point of need, enabling more families and businesses to transition to sustainable energy without the burden of prohibitive upfront costs. This is about unlocking opportunity, improving livelihoods, and powering Nigeria’s future,” the Divisional Head of Renewable Energy and Mobility at Sterling Bank, Mr Darlington Nwankwo, said.
Also commenting, the Vice President of StarTimes Nigeria, Mr Eric Xiao, said, “With the rollout of the Sterling Solar Financing Hubs, we are doing more than just selling solar products; we are building a sustainable energy ecosystem. By integrating StarTimes’ extensive service network with Sterling Bank’s professional financial services, we are significantly lowering the barrier for Nigerian households and small businesses to access clean energy.
“Moving forward, we will continue to deepen this partnership, ensuring that more Nigerians can enjoy reliable, affordable, and smart energy solutions, ultimately turning our vision of energy accessibility into a reality for all.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Nigeria Business Summit Regional Tour of Stanbic IBTC Bank made a detour to Jogor Centre, Ibadan, Oyo State, on Wednesday, July 15, 2026, to empower Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
The event brought together business leaders, development partners and government representatives to discuss pathways for sustainable enterprise development across the South-West.
Participants engaged in practical masterclasses on export opportunities; access to finance and business growth strategies; gaining actionable insights into market expansion; trade documentation; credit readiness; financial record-keeping; and structured financing solutions designed to support long-term business success.
The Head of Enterprise Banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank, Ms Olajumoke Bello, informed participants that the programme is part of the lender’s commitments to supporting MSMEs through practical business education, strategic partnerships and improved access to growth opportunities.
The Executive Director of Business and Commercial Banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Remy Osuagwu, on his part, said, “Our ambition is to be more than a financial institution to Nigerian businesses. We want to be a trusted growth partner, providing the financing, business insights and advisory support entrepreneurs need to build sustainable enterprises and unlock new opportunities.”
Similarly, the chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Wole Adeniyi, who reinforced the company’s commitment to enterprise development, highlighted the importance of providing businesses with the right support structures to enable sustainable growth and long-term competitiveness.
“At Stanbic IBTC, we believe that sustainable economic growth depends on the success of small and growing businesses. That is why we are focused on providing access to finance, practical advisory support and the connections businesses need to move from ambition to scale,” he stated.
The Oyo State Commissioner for Investment, Trade, Cooperatives, and Industry, Professor Soliu Adelabu, said the initiative was designed to support businesses and strengthen the state’s entrepreneurship ecosystem, praising the bank for its support for traders, entrepreneurs, and artisans in the state.
The Permanent Secretary in the Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion, Mrs O.M. Shotonwa-Roagess, highlighted the importance of strategic partnerships in expanding economic opportunities for women and vulnerable groups across Oyo State. She noted that the ministry remains open to collaborating with organisations such as Stanbic IBTC, development partners and the private sector to drive financial inclusion, entrepreneurship and sustainable economic empowerment.
The Nigeria Business Summit Regional Tour forms part of Stanbic IBTC’s broader commitment to empowering entrepreneurs through capacity building, financial inclusion and strategic business support, helping enterprises unlock new opportunities for growth and long-term success.
The Ibadan leg built on the momentum of previous tour stops in Katsina and Aba.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Yemi Cardoso, says Nigeria anticipates remittances from citizens living abroad to increase by two-thirds in 2026 as it seeks to bolster its foreign-exchange reserves to $1 billion monthly.
“We are expecting that by the end of the year, we will hit about a billion Dollars a month from diaspora remittances,” he said at the 14th Annual BusinessDay CEO Forum in Lagos on Thursday, themed From Stability to Shared Prosperity.
Mr Cardoso said remittances are expected to be boosted from more than $600 million currently, banking on the CBN’s deliberate target at remittances to diversify reserve sources beyond oil earnings.
According to him, the apex bank engaged Nigerians abroad, banks and international partners to identify barriers to official remittance flows.
He said the lender subsequently reviewed policies to ensure easier movement of funds into and out of the country.
Mr Cardoso described the approach as providing free entry and free exit for foreign exchange.
He said the reforms helped double diaspora inflows within one year and exceeded initial expectations, also projecting annual remittances could reach about $8 billion if the current momentum was sustained, adding that the development reflected growing confidence in Nigeria’s financial system and foreign exchange market.
Mr Cardoso said reforms introduced by the apex bank had restored stability in the foreign exchange market and improved investors’ confidence.
He identified exchange rate unification as one of the central bank’s major achievements under the reforms programme.
According to him, replacing multiple exchange rate windows with a market-driven system eliminated distortions and improved transparency.
Mr Cardoso said improved foreign exchange liquidity and stronger reserves were among the gains from the reforms.
He said Nigeria’s net external reserves had risen from about $3 billion at the start of the reforms to above $40 billion currently, noting that gross external reserves had grown to about $52 billion, representing about 10 months of import cover.
According to him, the reserves are designed to shield the economy from external shocks and excessive market volatility.
He said the reserves were not meant for routine interventions or day-to-day exchange rate management.
