CBN Bans Microfinance Banks from FX Transactions

By Bliss Okperan A digital investment platform known as AltInvest has been introduced by a new kid in the banking industry in Nigeria, Alternative Bank. According to the non-interest lender, which commenced operations in October 2023, the new product empowers individuals to navigate seamlessly the investment world, blending ethical and digital features for increased accessibility. At the unveiling of the innovative financial solution at the 44th Kano International Trade Fair, the company also launched another produced AltBiz, which it said caters to the financial needs of businesses, offering a comprehensive suite of services to fuel growth, innovation, and sustainability. “These

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A call for a comprehensive policy action to dismantle the structures that enable gender-based violence in Nigeria has been made by the Managing Director of Unity Bank Plc, Mrs Tomi Somefun. “I urge policymakers to enact stringent laws against gender-based violence, ensuring swift and severe consequences for perpetrators. Our homes and various organisations must also be a catalyst for change, inspiring others to follow suit,” the banker said at the premiere of a new movie, BECKMA, in Lagos. Mrs Somefun, represented at the event by Unity Bank’s Group Head of Compliance, Mrs Patricia Ahunanya, citing a recent

By Dipo Olowookere Some hours ago, news went viral that the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Plc has directed Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) to take down all non-deposit financial institutions from their NIBSS Instant Payment (NIP) platform because they are not authorised to hold customers’ funds. The circular, which was dated Tuesday, December 5, 2023, has generated mixed reactions as a few media platforms, excluding Business Post, listed some mobile money operators (MMOs) like Opay, PalmPay, and others are part of the financial technology (fintech) firms affected by the directive. In the disclosure sighted by this newspaper, the NIBSS specifically

By Bliss Okperan Users of neo banks like Opay, Carbon, Kuda, and PalmPay, among others, are worried over the new directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which intends to freeze bank accounts not linked to a Bank Verification Number (BVN) and a National Identity Number (NIN). Last week, the apex bank directed deposit money banks (DMBs) to place a “Post No Debit (PND)’ on any accounts with BVN and NIN from next year. For most neo banks, account numbers are opened with just users’ phone numbers without the BVN, unlike the traditional banks. However, they cannot make transactions

Professor Graham, addressing the 4th UNI Africa Conference in Dakar, Senegal, warned of the danger of ‘parasitic capitalism’ where digital companies give little back to the places where they are embedded and platform workers are left to fend for themselves. UNI Global Union General Secretary Philip Jennings’ said research into the Future World of Work followed by action was crucial, “We have to face the reality – the research that has been undertaken by Oxford University, the World Economic Forum, the OECD and others all points to a bleak future of employment which cuts across many sectors. This poses policy

By Dipo Olowookere Trading activities at the Nigerian stock market opened for a new week on Monday on a positive note with a marginal 0.02 per cent growth. Demand in financial stocks, especially those belonging to tier-2 lenders and insurance firms, supported the slight improvement in the key performance indicators of the market. At the close of transactions yesterday, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 8.00 points to 38,220.01 points from 38,212.01 points, while the market capitalisation went up by N4 billion to N19.923 trillion from N19.919 trillion. During the session, the insurance, banking and oil/gas sectors appreciated by 1.47

By Adedapo Adesanya The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange appreciated further by 0.51 per cent on Friday, June 23, following a positive price movement from FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc. The milk producer closed the session at N70.96 per share compared with the preceding day’s value of N68.27 per share after gaining N2.69. This improved the value of the NASD bourse by N5.25 billion to N1.038 trillion from N1.033 trillion, as the NASD Unlisted Securities Index (NSI) went up by 3.80 points to wrap the session at 750.82 points compared with 747.02 points recorded at the previous session. During the session, the

By Dipo Olowookere Seven Payment Service Providers (PSPs) have had their operating licences revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The affected companies lost their right to operate in the country over their failure to meet the obligations as stipulated when they were issued the authority to do financial transactions in Nigeria. The seven firms whose licences were cancelled were Easifuel Limited, Transaction Processing System (TPS), Grand Towers Limited, Paymaster Limited, E-Revenue Gateway Limited, Eartholeum Network Limited and Globasure Limited. The apex bank, in a circular issued on Thursday, stated that the revocation of the licences of the PSPs

By Dipo Olowookere Heritage Bank Plc is beginning to reap the reward for supporting agriculture and small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in the country. This is because recently, the lender carted away with three prestigious awards when it was announced as the ‘Best SME Bank Nigeria 2018’ by Capital Finance International (CFI.co) and ‘Agriculture Bank of the Year 2018’ by the Nigeria Agriculture Awards (MAA). Also, the bank was awarded the Best CIBN Chapter of the Year 2018. The best chapter in terms of members mobilisation and participation as well as sponsorship of the Institute programmes. The bank won

By Dipo Olowookere The audited financial results for the year ended December 31, 2016 released by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GTBank) to the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges revealed that the financial institution grew its gross earnings by 37 percent to N414.6 billion from N301.9 billion reported in December 2015. In the financial statements, the firm had positive performance across all financial indices, reaffirming its position as one of the most profitable and well managed financial institutions in Nigeria. It was observed that its performance was driven primarily by growth in interest income as well as foreign exchange income. Profit

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited was not two-time fortunate as it succumbed to the authority of the bears on Thursday, a day after having a lucky escape from the claws of the devourers. The stock market depreciated yesterday by a marginal 0.01 per cent on the back of a renewed profit-taking as investors awaited the release of the gross domestic product (DGP) figures. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) eventually released the numbers, though hours after the market had closed for the day’s business. The stats office said Nigeria recorded an annual growth of 3.40 per cent,

By Dipo Olowookere Two senior members of staff of Airtel Nigeria, Mr Bashir Ibrahim and Mr Oladapo Dosunmu, have been promoted by the company. The duo, Mr Ibrahim and Mr Dosunmu, have been made the Regional Operations Directors for North Region and South Region respectively. Both will ensure the growth of the telecommunications services provider in their respective regions and will also leverage on their distribution expertise to drive deeper penetration in their assigned regions. Before now, Mr Ibrahim was the Zonal Business Manager (North Midland) where he was instrumental to managing Airtel’s presence in the war-torn regions of the