Banking
Guinness Nigeria Begins Local Production Of Spirits
By Dipo Olowookere
In a move aimed at reducing the import dependent profile of the Nigerian economy, creating more jobs and boosting the local sourcing of raw materials, leading manufacturer and Nigeria’s only total alcohol beverage company, Guinness Nigeria Plc, has commissioned a new production line that will support the local manufacturing of some of its spirits brands in Nigeria.
Some of the brands to be manufactured locally include Smirnoff X1 intense chocolate vodka, Smirnoff Extra Smooth Vodka, Gordon’s Dry Gin, Moringa Citrus Blend, McDowell’s No. 1 Reserved Whisky, McDowell’s VSOP and Royal Challenge Finest Premium Whisky.
The production line, with a design capacity of 1.2 million cases, is located within the Guinness Brewery, Ikpoba Hill, Benin city.
It was commissioned by the Executive Governor of Edo state, Mr Godwin Obaseki at amidst pomp, fanfare and commendation for this landmark stride by Guinness Nigeria.
Governor Obaseki, who nostalgically recalled his long personal relationship with the brand as a stockbroker, commended the board and management of Guinness Nigeria for this feat, and urged other companies to see the current economic recession as an opportunity for backward integration and expansion of their business horizons.
“This is a company I am very close to and very fond of, and so, I am quite excited that one of my first official corporate functions as Governor is to commission the new spirits line for the company.
“We are very pleased that Guinness is part of the landscape of Benin and Edo State, and has been so since 1974.
“And so, for us, you are a partner, and as a state, we will take our partnership very seriously. Even though the economic environment in Nigeria today is quite challenging and difficult, for us in Edo State, we see opportunities embedded in those challenges,” Mr Obaseki said.
Governor Obaseki also used the occasion to announce that the Edo state government would like to partner with Guinness Nigeria to create a minimum of two hundred thousand jobs over the next four years in line with his administration’s agenda.
In his remarks, Chairman, Guinness Nigeria, Mr Babatunde Savage described the commissioning as part of the company’s rich and prestigious legacy and a testament to its long term commitment to Nigeria.
“Guinness Nigeria has a strong heritage in Nigeria and in Benin since we built our brewery here in 1974 with a robust portfolio of global brands like Guinness and Johnnie Walker to boot.
“Today, we add to that strong heritage with the commissioning of our spirits production line in Nigeria – a first for Guinness Nigeria. With this line, we are now able to produce previously imported spirits locally and we are able to offer a wider variety of products to our consumers at a more affordable price point,” Savage enthused.
Mr Savage also reiterated the company’s commitment to making a marked and positive difference in the lives of Nigerians via strategic social interventions.
“As a responsible corporate citizen, Guinness Nigeria is interested in more than running a profitable business, we are also enriching our communities with investments in the areas of provision of water, health facilities and education scholarships to mention a few.
“As an example, in the water sector to date, we have impacted over 1.5million people in Nigeria through the provision of potable water to 25 communities in 14 States across Nigeria,” Mr Savage said.
President, Diageo Africa, Mr John O’Keffe, noted that the commissioning reinforces Guinness Nigeria’s position as the first and only Total Beverage Alcohol (TBA) Company in Nigeria.
“Guinness Nigeria is now able to offer a truly broad portfolio of beer, spirits and non-alcoholic drinks to consumers at every category and price point. Innovation is a competitive advantage for us in this market and we have a strong innovation pipeline with plans to introduce some exciting new products for our consumers to enjoy.
Also our commitment to local sourcing is further strengthened by the commissioning of this plant that will produce preciously imported spirits, using locally supplied raw materials. As part of our broader local raw materials (LRM) sourcing, we are looking to increase our locally sourced production inputs to 70% in the coming years,” Mr O’Keffe mentioned.
Some dignitaries present at the occasion include Managing Director, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Mr Peter Ndegwa, British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr Paul Arkwright, Edo State Deputy Governor, Hon. Philip Shaibu, Secretary to the State Government, Barr. Osarodion Ogie, Edo State Head of Service, Mrs Gladys Idahor, the Chief of Staff, Edo State Government, Mr Taiwo Akerele.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The six edition of the Hackaholics of Wema Bank Plc has produced 20 top finalists shared equally between two streams, Ideathon and Hackathon.
The Hackathon finalists are Rapid DEV, Secure IT, Neurafeed, Trust Lock Babcock, Pulse Track, IlluminiTrust, Trust Lock FUTA, Fix Fraud AI, KASH Flow and VOC AI.
The Ideathon finalists include PLOY, Fertitude, VarsityScape, Mama ALERT, StockMed, Chao, All Arbitrate, FarmSlate, Sane AI and Cycle X.
They emerged after a two-day pre-pitch held on December 16 and 17, 2025, for the grand finale slated for Friday, December 19, 2025.
They grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0 will convene the top players in Africa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, creating an avenue for these finalists to not only put their creativity to the ultimate test but also give their solutions visibility to potential investors for additional funding opportunities beyond the prizes to be won.
The prizes to be won for the Ideathon include N25 million for the winner, N20 million for the first runner-up, N15 million for the second runner-up and N5 million each for two women-led teams.
In the Hackathon category, the first to fourth-place winners will receive N20 million, N15 million, N10 million and N5 million, respectively.
The pre-pitch saw the top 43 contenders battle in a game of innovation and problem solving, presenting compelling pitches for a chance to make it to top 10 in their respective streams.
After a rigorous stretch of pitches and presentations, the top 20 emerged, securing their spot in the grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0.
“Hackaholics started off as a hackathon and morphed into an ideation. For Hackaholics 6.0, the sixth edition, we decided to give both the builders of new solutions and the refiners of existing ones, an opportunity to make meaningful impact.
“For us at Wema Bank, we understand that innovation isn’t just building from scratch. Sometimes, it’s looking at what exists and developing new ways to optimise that and create more efficiency. This is the idea behind our two-stream Ideathon-Hackathon structure.
“Every year, Hackaholics shows us just how eager and motivated Nigerian youth are when it comes to exploring creativity and innovation, and we are honoured to be the institution that provides them with the platform and resources to put this drive to good use.
“We toured seven cities, indulged 1,460 participants and discovered hundreds of remarkable ideas; some of which needed some refining and some of which deserved to move to the next stage.
“For those who needed to go back to the drawing board, we provided useful guidance and for the top contenders, we were able to shortlist to the top 43, who proceeded to the pre-pitch. To every participant, Wema Bank is proud of you. This is just the beginning,” the chief executive of Wema Bank, Mr Moruf Oseni, said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it will enforce penalties against designated banks that delay the remittance of customs revenue, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency and safeguarding government earnings.
This was disclosed in a statement on the NCS official account on X, formerly known as Twitter and signed by its spokesman, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada, who said the delays undermine the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“The Nigeria Customs Service has noted instances of delayed remittance of customs revenue by some designated banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform,” the statement read.
“Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and designated banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.”
Mr Maiwada disclosed that any bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed timeline will be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the period of the delay.
He added that affected banks would be formally notified of the delayed amounts, the applicable penalty, and the deadline for settlement.
“Accordingly, any designated bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay.
“Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty, and the timeline for settlement,” the statement read.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The deputy managing director of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, Mr Ini Ebong, has offloaded some shares of FBN Holdings Plc, the parent firm of the banking institution.
A regulatory notice from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited confirmed the development on Thursday.
It was disclosed that the transaction occurred on Friday, December 12, 2025, on the floor of the stock exchange.
The sale involved about 11.8 million shares, precisely 11,783,333 units traded at N31.14 per share, amounting to about N366.9 million.
Mr Ebong, who studied Architecture from University of Ife and obtained Bachelor and Master of Science degrees, became the DMD of First Bank in June 2024. Prior to this appointment, he was Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking since January 2022.
He was previously the Group Executive, Treasury and International Banking, a position he held since 2016 after serving as the bank’s Treasurer from 2011 to 2016.
Before joining First Bank, he was the Head of African Fixed Income and Local Markets Trading, Renaissance Securities Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian registered subsidiary of Renaissance Capital. He also worked with Citigroup for 14 years as Country Treasurer and Sales and Trading Business Head.
He has a passion for market development and has worked actively to drive change and internationalisation of the Nigerian financial markets: foreign exchange, fixed income and securities.
He has worked closely with regulatory bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) in assisting with the development of fresh monetary and foreign exchange policies, to broaden and deepen markets and open them up to international practices.
At various times he has facilitated and delivered courses and seminars on a wide variety of subjects covering Money Markets, Securities and Foreign exchange trading and market risk management subjects to regulators, corporate customers, banks and market participants.
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