Banking
Star Lager Beer Partners 5 European Clubs
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
On Wednesday, August 31, 2016, history was made as Star Lager Beer announced an unprecedented partnership with five football clubs in Europe.
The clubs are Arsenal, Juventus, Real Madrid, PSG and Manchester City, having a combined history in football of 544 years.
Star became the ‘Official Beer Partner’ of the five clubs, which have a combined history of 87 domestic league titles, 13 Champions League titles and numerous European titles.
Marketing Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Franco Maria-Maggi described the partnerships as a commitment from Star, Nigeria’s foremost beer brand to bring new football experience to consumers and loyal fans of these clubs.
“They bring freshness and new levels of excitement to the established football order. We are happy to partner with these football clubs as we collectively want the same things; to excite football fans and give them memorable, unforgettable moments. It is what Star has always done and this is yet another way to demonstrate our commitment to creating exciting moments for our consumers”. Mr Maggi said.
The partnership bestows Star Lager beer rights to promote the brand’s association with Real Madrid; Arsenal; Juventus; Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain to millions of fans across Nigeria and beyond, supporting its vision to embrace an unrivalled passion of football.
The partnership, first of its kind in Nigeria by a beer brewery intends to see Star Lager actively engage consumers and fans with series of cross-promotional events and communication materials designed to enhance visibility of the European giants in Nigeria.
The ground-breaking partnerships with these clubs poses an exciting bright future for football development and viewing experience in Nigeria as confirmed by the Portfolio Manager, National Premium, Nigerian Breweries, Mr Tokunbo Adodo.
He affirmed Star’s accession as “Official Beer Partner” to these five clubs, has bought into important football assets across the biggest leagues in Europe – England, Spain, Italy and France.
“The partnership is all about adding more excitement to the lives of our consumers and football lovers across the country. That’s what we have done through our various sponsorships and platforms and this is yet another step in that direction. We have some really exciting plans in the works and we will be revealing them shortly. Fans of good, exciting football are in for a lot of exciting moments in the years to come.”
The established partnership will have Star organise digital amplification of the European clubs in Nigeria, including digital promotions to drive viewership as well as providing outdoor amplification of the clubs and billboards.
Advertising budgets will benefit the domestic media, as radio, television and newspaper houses will participate in Star’s amplification of matches and extended activities with their club partners.
The partnership will give access to an archive of images and content from the respective clubs with an opportunity for Star to brand its bottles with logos of these clubs. Going forward, a bottle of Star would symbolize more than just another larger, it would mean a communion between a fan and the pride, history and colours of their favourite club side; Real Madrid, Arsenal, PSG, Manchester City and Juventus FC.
A common ground Star has with the European giants is the culture of remarkable history. Since the first STAR lager beer bottle rolled out of the Lagos brewery in 1949, Star has consistently supported football initiatives and platforms such as its highly impactful campaign to rally Nigerian football fans during the World Cup in 2014.
The Star Super Fans Show also showcased and rewarded football fans for their passion and knowledge of the game. A week ago, Star announced a landmark partnership with the local league, NPFL in a similar arrangement as the “official beer partner” of the domestic league.
English giants Arsenal Football Club has won 13 League titles in its 130-year history and is loved by many Nigerians who appreciate its easy-on-the-eye style of game possession.
Arsenal’s popularity soared in Nigeria when former captain and Olympic gold medallist, Nwankwo Kanu played with the Invincible alongside the great Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera and Robert Pires in the 2003/2004 season. Thereafter, the club’s affinity with Nigerians has continued to grow even stronger with the emergence of Alex Iwobi on the squad.
Juventus, with 32 Serie A titles, is the most successful Italian club ever. They have a rich history of achievements and a big support base that extends beyond their hometown of Turin.
A record eleventh UEFA Champions League title in 2016 ensured that Real Madrid continued its leadership as European football’s most successful club. It has rich history of signing the world’s most expensive footballers that go further to win individual prizes at the Ballon d’Or. Players like Zinedine Zidane, Raul, Luis Figo, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo have added to the club’s legacy.
Manchester City has become a top name in English football over the last decade. Young Nigeria forward for the team, Kelechi Iheanacho remains a delight to watch as he finds his feet alongside Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Yaya Toure under the tutelage of the very successful coach, Pep Guardiola.
While PSG is the relatively youngest of the five but a top name in French football, winning the last four Ligue 1 titles as they push to become a major challenger in Europe. Despite the recent departure of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the presence of Thiago Silva and David Luis in defence continues to keep the capital side grounded.
Star’s partnership with Europe’s five greatest clubs may further encourage the clubs to include Nigeria in their summer pre-season tours. It is definitely an unprecedented way to launch out into the big waters by building a positive synergy between domestic and global football.
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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