Brands/Products
IWG Plans Flexible Working Spaces in Lagos Amid Growing Demand
By Adedapo Adesanya
International Workplace Group (IWG), the world’s largest provider of hybrid working solutions with notable brands like Spaces and Regus, is opening two state-of-the-art flexible workspaces in Lagos to meet the rising demand.
The addition of IWG’s latest locations, HQ Lagos Lekki Link Bridge and Regus Lagos Mansard Place, followed the business posting its highest-ever revenue, cashflow and earnings growth in its history and achieving rapid network growth, signing 465 new locations in the first half of 2024 alone.
According to the company, the adoption of hybrid working rapidly is accelerating across Nigeria and these new locations in Lagos are part of the drive by IWG to meet the sharply rising demand for top-class flexible working space in the area.
Its unique offering will enable local people to experience living in a “15-minute” city, allowing workers to work close to their homes without commuting far from where they live.
The HQ workspace is set to open in Lekki in March 2025 and will It will be located on the 2nd and 3rd floor while the Regus location at Mansard Place (situated at Plot 928, Bishop Aboyade Cole Street, Victoria Island) will be on the 3rd floor of the six storey building and will open in February 2025.
The buildings will provide space for established firms and start-ups across a range of industries, while IWG’s Design Your Own Office service allows companies to tailor their space entirely to their requirements. The new locations will include facilities including private offices, meeting rooms, co-working and creative spaces.
With explosive market growth as companies of all sizes adopt hybrid working for the long-term, it is predicted that 30 per cent of all commercial real estate will be flexible workspace by 2030 and IWG believes that partners will be able to capitalise on this fast-growing sector,
The potential for further growth is exponential with an estimated 1.2 billion white collar workers globally and a total addressable market of more than £1.57 trillion. Conventional office occupancy will continue to fall as businesses require less traditional space and turn to flexible workspace instead.
Last year alone, IWG welcomed over 800 new partner locations and counts 83 per cent of Fortune 500 companies among its customer base.
Speaking on this, Mr Mark Dixon, CEO & Founder of International Workplace Group Plc, commented: “We are establishing a stronger and much-needed footprint in Nigeria with this these latest openings.
“As an important business hub Lagos is a fantastic place for us to boost our expansion plans. The need for high-quality flexible workspaces continues to soar as hybrid working becomes the new normal.
“We are very pleased to work in partnership with Sterling Bank and APD Mansard Place to develop the brand under a management agreement that will add a cutting-edge workspaces to their the buildings.
“Our openings in Lagos comes at a time when more and more companies are discovering that flexible working boosts employee happiness and satisfaction, while helping the environment. Our workplace model is also proven to increase productivity and allows for a business to scale up or down at significantly reduced costs.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
To make finding the right service provider or reaching the right customer seamless, popular local information portal, Connect Nigeria, has introduced a Quote Request platform.
Connect Nigeria described the new system as “a digital solution designed to make connecting with service providers faster, easier, and more reliable.”
It said the Quote Request was built for consumers who need services quickly and want trusted options without the stress of searching endlessly; and service providers and businesses looking for real, high-intent customers without spending heavily on marketing.
“Whether you need a caterer for an event, a plumber for your home, or a designer for your brand, the platform is designed to connect you with the right people,” Connect Nigeria added.
“By connecting demand directly with supply, the platform creates a more structured and dependable marketplace,” it further stated.
At its core, the Quote Request simplifies the entire process of finding and offering services.
To use the service, users have to submit a request describing the service or product needed, which is then sent to verified vendors on the platform. Interested providers respond within 1–2 days, and users compare offers and choose what works best for their needs and budget.
“Instead of searching for vendors, the vendors come to you, with relevant, tailored responses,” Connect Nigeria explained.
The company expects this new platform to eliminate the stress of endless online searches, delayed or vague responses, and uncertainty about service quality.
As for businesses, it solves poor visibility, inconsistent customer flow, and lost opportunities due to slow response times.
Connect Nigeria Quote Request mobile app is now available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An institutional investor, First Ally Capital, has strengthened a leading Nigerian financial technology company, Mathesis Analytics, to scale its proprietary credit decisioning infrastructure.
It made this possible by injecting fresh capital into the firm, which specialises in AI-powered credit decisioning infrastructure, an action that will directly support the growth and scaling of Mathesis’ core mission of providing the intelligence and infrastructure needed to bridge the credit gap for millions of unscored or underscored individuals across Nigeria.
With this investment, Mathesis will enable financial institutions to confidently assess and extend credit to borrowers who lack a formal credit history by leveraging an expanded pool of alternative behavioural and transactional data.
To date, Mathesis’ systems have supported more than 8 million loans for over 2 million unique borrowers in Nigeria, and the company is actively deploying its infrastructure to establish a growing pan-African footprint.
With the investment from First Ally Capital, Mathesis is well positioned to transform how the credit ecosystem operates, driving financial inclusion in partnership with lenders across the continent.
A significant barrier to credit access in Nigeria, which prides itself on being Africa’s largest economy, is data fragmentation. Borrowers frequently build positive financial behaviours across multiple digital platforms by repaying microfinance loans, saving through fintech wallets, or servicing Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) facilities.
However, under traditional credit infrastructure, these achievements remain invisible to new lenders.
Mathesis addresses this challenge through the concept of Personal Equity—the quantified expression of an individual’s financial behaviour aggregated across every institution with which they have transacted.
By translating these disparate signals into a precise, portable measure of creditworthiness, Mathesis creates a comprehensive credit identity that reflects the full breadth of a person’s financial life.
“True financial inclusion cannot be achieved in a vacuum; it requires structural collaboration in which lenders and fintech companies work as partners within the ecosystem.
“This investment from First Ally Capital validates our approach to reshaping credit infrastructure. By quantifying Personal Equity, we empower lenders to safely look beyond the constraints of formal credit histories and recognise a borrower’s true creditworthiness. This capital enables us to accelerate our pan-African expansion while maintaining the robust, institutional-grade infrastructure our partners rely on,” the chief executive of Mathesis Analytics, Winston Osuchukwu, stated.
On his part, the chief executive of First Ally Capital, Mr Ebenezer Olufowose, said, “At First Ally Capital, we pride ourselves on being a one-stop destination for financial solutions, offering a diverse portfolio of services ranging from investment banking and asset management to trusteeship, inclusive banking, and real estate.
“Our investment in Mathesis Analytics reflects our strong belief in the company’s vision and our commitment to supporting forward-thinking enterprises that deliver excellence.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The chief executive of Canal+ Africa, Mr David Mignot, has disclosed that MultiChoice is now fully integrated into the media group.
Mr Mignot disclosed this via a statement issued on Thursday, noting that this development marks a new phase in the evolution of one of Africa’s leading pay television operators.
He noted that the integration positions MultiChoice within a global media organisation with an extensive international footprint.
“MultiChoice is now a full subsidiary of a truly international media group operating in 70 countries. The group was founded in France, is listed in London and Johannesburg, and has a strong African presence with operations in more than 45 countries,” Mr Mignot said.
The statement underscores the scale of the combined business, highlighting Canal+’s global reach alongside its significant investments across Africa.
The completion of the transaction is expected to strengthen MultiChoice’s position in the African media and entertainment market by giving it access to the broader resources, expertise and international capabilities of the Canal+ Group, while reinforcing the group’s commitment to the continent.
MultiChoice operates across sub-Saharan Africa through platforms including DStv and GOtv, serving millions of subscribers with entertainment, sports and news content.
