Banking
Access Bank Kicks Off Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Season 3
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
One of the leading financial institutions in Africa, Access Bank Plc, has unveiled the third edition of its Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa programme.
The initiative is part of the lender’s mandate to empower female entrepreneurs on the continent with financial and business skills.
The Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa programme was designed to provide female-owned businesses across Africa an opportunity to access finance, world-class business trainings as well as mentoring opportunities.
It was also designed to create an enabling environment for female entrepreneurs to grow their businesses.
“Access Bank has been a leading advocate for women’s economic empowerment in Africa and this is the key motivation for the ‘W’ Initiative which caters to the women economy particularly in the areas of financing, capacity building and creating networking opportunities for women,” the Group Head of W Initiative, Ms Ayona Trimnell, stated at the launch of the third edition of the scheme.
She further stated that “we launched the first Womenpreneur pitch-a-ton initiative in 2019 in line with our value proposition to be the No. 1 Bank of Choice for women in Nigeria, and we have received over 100,000 applications over the last 2 years.”
“In 2020, despite the pandemic, we were able to expand the programme to other female entrepreneurs across 7 African countries with 3 winners emerging from Sierra Leone, Ghana and Zambia out of 50 finalists.
“This year we are making the programme bigger and better by increasing the numbers to 100 women entrepreneurs who will emerge as finalists.
“The programme will also be opening up to a total of 9 African countries – Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, Rwanda, Mozambique, Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone and the Gambia,” Ms Trimnell added.
The 2021 Womenpreneur Pitch-a-ton Africa programme officially kicked off on Monday, June 21 – August 13, 2021, and will offer financial grants, an exclusive certified capacity building program and business coaching aimed at empowering women entrepreneurs.
Interested female entrepreneurs who meet the criteria of having an existing business for at least one year with at least 50 per cent female ownership and between the age range of 18-45 years are eligible and required to fill an online application on www.womenpreneur.ng.
All online applications will be reviewed and screened by independent business experts to 500 candidates who will be required to send in a sixty-second video pitch for the opportunity to be selected as part of the final top 100 candidates who will benefit from an exclusive and certified Mini-MBA and grant prizes.
“The programme is designed as a 3-month period comprising 12 weeks of mini-MBA training in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and pitching sessions to a Pan-African Jury panel where the top 100 finalists will pitch their businesses, infusing learnings from the mini-MBA and will stand an opportunity to win financial grants and other consolation prizes,” she said.
As a leading commercial bank in Nigeria, Access Bank has made significant investments aimed at enhancing growth in the Small and Medium-size Enterprise sector.
The bank is also a major advocate for women in business through innovative offerings like the W Power Loan, a discounted financing at 15 per cent interest per annum, for women to grow their business as well as other Business Support Services.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An initiative known as Nigeria Lightning Rounds, designed to expand funding opportunities for Nigerian startups and small businesses by connecting founders with local and international investors, has been launched by ProvidusUnity Bank, in partnership with US-based global venture firm and accelerator, gener8tor.
Scheduled to be held on July 15, 2026, Nigeria Lightning Rounds will feature carefully selected startups engaging with targeted investors who have expressed interest in supporting Nigerian innovation.
Participating founders will have the opportunity to pitch their businesses through focused 15-minute virtual sessions facilitated by gener8tor and ProvidusUnity Bank’s networks.
The program will focus on high-growth sectors including fintech, healthtech, manufacturing, sustainability, and AI, but welcomes SMEs from all industries, with intending participants urged to apply via https://www.gener8tor.com/lightning-rounds/nigeria.
“We recognise that access to capital remains one of the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Through our partnership with gener8tor, we are creating a platform that connects promising Nigerian founders with investors who can provide the support required to scale their businesses,” the Head of Business Development at ProvidusUnity Bank, Mr Ernest Elue, stated.
“The partnership reinforces ProvidusUnity Bank’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by supporting innovation, enabling access to opportunities, and creating pathways for businesses with high-growth potential,” he added.
Also commenting, the Director of Lightning Rounds at gener8tor, Ms Elizabeth Larios, said, “gener8tor is thrilled to partner with ProvidusUnity Bank to extend the Lightning Rounds model into Nigeria.
“This collaboration reflects our commitment to building equitable ecosystems and driving capital to the most promising and underrepresented entrepreneurs.”
Lightning Rounds are a signature initiative of gener8tor’s investment platform, which has facilitated thousands of investor-startup meetings globally. The format is optimised to eliminate friction, reduce bias in early-stage fundraising, and help founders secure capital from investors aligned with their mission and stage. gener8tor’s previous Lightning Rounds for Nigerian Founders in 2025 featured 18 participating Investors and led to 50 investment meetings facilitated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The verification of the depositors of the 46 microfinance banks, whose operating licenses were revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over a week ago, has commenced.
The exercise, aimed at refunding those whose funds were trapped in the small lenders, is being conducted by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).
In a statement on Thursday, the agency said its staff members have been positioned at the offices of the affected banks across the country to attend to depositors.
It was disclosed that depositors of the defunct banks, who had their Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) linked to their accounts in the failed banks, will be paid through their alternative accounts in existing banks.
However, depositors whose BVNs were not linked to their accounts in the failed banks have been encouraged to visit the affected banks’ offices with proof of account ownership, a passport photograph, verifiable means of identification (Driver’s Licence, Permanent Voter’s Card, International Passport or National ID Card) and BVN.
NDIC also stated that depositors can alternatively file their claims online through its website: www.ndic.gov.ng, to complete the Pre-Verification Claims Form by clicking on the Search Bar, and typing Pre-Verification Claims Form; opening the Form and filling in their details. They can also do so by clicking the link: https://ndic.gov.ng/ndic-pre-verification-claims-form/ or by visiting any of the NDIC offices closest to them to file their claims.
For further enquiries, the corporation can be reached on any of the following lines: 09037273810, 09038197064, 08104220807, 09064657140.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s Bank Verification Number (BVN) enrolment has slowed significantly in 2026 following the introduction of a stricter regulatory framework by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), with the latest data from the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) showing that registrations are on course to fall well below last year’s record.
The BVN database stood at 69.55 million as of July 5, 2026, up from 69.32 million in June, indicating that only 228,947 new registrations were recorded over the period. Since the end of 2025, when the database stood at 67.8 million, total enrolments have increased by 1.75 million.
At the current pace, however, BVN registrations are unlikely to match the 4.3 million new enrolments recorded in 2025, suggesting a sharp deceleration in growth this year.
The slowdown comes after the CBN introduced a revised BVN regulatory framework in March, with the new rules taking effect on May 1, 2026. The framework tightened controls around enrolment, identity verification and fraud monitoring as part of efforts to strengthen the integrity of the banking system.
Among the key changes was the introduction of a minimum enrolment age of 18 years, effectively preventing minors from registering for a BVN.
The new framework also limits customers to a one-time change of the phone number linked to their BVN and requires financial institutions to place BVNs linked to suspected fraudulent transactions on a temporary watch-list for up to 24 hours while investigations are carried out.
The stricter rules contrast with last year’s surge in registrations, which was largely driven by the introduction of the Non-Resident Bank Verification Number (NRBVN) initiative that enabled Nigerians in the diaspora to complete BVN enrolment remotely, removing physical barriers and expanding access to the financial system.
Launched on February 14, 2014, the BVN scheme was introduced by the CBN in collaboration with the Bankers’ Committee, NIBSS and German technology firm Dermalog to assign every bank customer a unique biometric identity that can be verified across Nigeria’s banking industry.
