Banking
Financial Inclusion: Heritage Bank Targets 1,000 Agent Banking Partners
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
In 2008, a research conducted by an international agency, Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFINA) showed that about 74 percent of Nigeria’s rural community was unbanked.
Against this backdrop, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) initiated a policy aimed to reduce the figure by 20 percent by 2020 to ensure greater participation in the nation’s financial sector, thereby offering financial services to the nooks and crannies of Nigerian communities; providing access to underserved markets.
One of the lenders in the country, Heritage Bank Plc, as part of efforts at meeting this target, took an aggressive approach with the introduction of agent banking partners.
Over the weekend, during the signing up of two agents’ corner shops, the bank disclosed that it would bring on board 1,000 agent partners by the ending of 2017.
The two corner shops opened over the weekend at High Rise Business Centre in Simawa community behind Redeemed Convention Camp and Layeni Folayemi Enterprises in Omu Ijebu, both in Ogun State.
As at June 2017, the agent base had grown at an average rate of 50 new agent sign ups monthly bringing the total number of active agents to about 450 and growing.
This lends credibility to the consistency of the service and how it is changing lives and empowering Nigerians across the country.
At this steady growth rate of approximately 17.5 percent new agent per month on can say that hitting the long term vision of 100,000 active agents in five years is well within reach.
However, to this effect, the MD/CEO of Heritage Bank, Mr Ifie Sekibo, explained that the bank has continued to set standard in the launching of ‘Corner Shop’ to cater for the need of traders and artisans at different locations across the country.
Speaking at the commissioning of the agent, Zonal Business Coordinator, South-West, South-South, Agent Banking, Heritage Bank, Oluwakemi Adewunmi, noted that there was indeed a gap in the community without any financial institution to service the need of the people.
Adewunmi assured that with the new development, accessing banking services in Omu Ijebu and Simawa areas have become easier for all the people in the community.
Her words: “It does not matter whether you have your bank account with Heritage Bank or otherwise, the mobile POS deployed by the agent will make banking at the people’s doorstep so easy and stress-free.
The latest however came with a peculiarity as a community leader and politician, Olatunde Rotimi Paseda, an indigene of Omu Ijebu released a property to the bank for the purpose of financial inclusion.
Paseda, a Governorship aspirant under the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN) in 2015 general elections, released the building to the bank in order to cushion the stress the indigenes of the locality faced anytime they wanted to transact banking business.
Before now, the people living in the neighbourhood and its environs used to travel to Ijebu Ode where banks have their branches located before they could carry out even the basic banking obligation.
Mrs Layeni Folayemi, promoter of Layeni Folayemi Enterprises, Corner Shop who made the disclosure at the launch of the agent outlet on Thursday, acknowledged that the presence of Heritage Bank in Omu Ijebu would greatly help to alleviate the pains the people hitherto experienced in accessing bank for financial transactions.
Managing Director of High Rise Business Centre, Corner Shop, Ogundayini Godwin said he set up the facility in a bid to save cost and energy for the residents of the community, adding that before the advent of the agency arrangement; people in the community used to spend about N600 to be able to withdraw any amount of money from the ATM in Redeemed Convention Camp.
He said there is high liquidity in the community with some people coming to make deposits while others come to make withdrawals.
Some of the customers were very enthusiastic with the programme and commended the bank for the bold and laudable policy.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A collaboration to enable fast money transfers into Nigeria has been entered into between Flutterwave and Xoom, PayPal’s international digital money transfer service.
The partnership allows Xoom transfers to be converted by Flutterwave and settled locally in Naira, enabling quick transfers directly into recipients’ bank accounts at Access Bank, UBA, Zenith Bank, First Bank, GTBank, and additional participating banks across Nigeria.
The deal also enables Xoom’s global network with Flutterwave’s local payout infrastructure, allowing users globally to send funds directly into Nigerian bank accounts with improved speed and efficiency.
Nigeria is the leading remittance recipient in Sub-Saharan Africa, receiving over $20 billion in personal remittances in 2024. Despite this volume, receiving international payments has historically remained complex due to FX constraints and settlement delays. This collaboration helps address those challenges in a market of more than 232 million people, where the ICT sector is projected to contribute 21 per cent of GDP by 2027.
By combining Xoom’s expansive reach with Flutterwave’s local compliance and banking partnerships, the two companies are providing a more accessible financial corridor for the continent.
Xoom, a PayPal service, is a fast and secure international digital money transfer service that enables consumers to send money, pay bills, and reload phones for friends and family in approximately 160 markets globally.
As part of PayPal’s global payments ecosystem, Xoom leverages advanced fraud protection, compliance capabilities, and a trusted global network to help millions of customers move money quickly and securely across borders.
“We’re excited to have been chosen by Xoom for their Nigeria expansion. Millions of Nigerians rely on money from abroad to support everyday needs, whether it’s families receiving help from loved ones, freelancers getting paid for their work, or individuals earning income from the global economy. This helps make it easy and more reliable for people in Nigeria to receive funds and stay connected to opportunities beyond borders,” the chief executive of Flutterwave, Mr Olugbenga GB Agboola, stated.
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.
