Economy
Leveraging Intellectual Property for Business Growth
By Otori Emmanuel
In a fast-paced business world, intellectual property is the foundation of every business. It forms an integral part of a business, so the lack of understanding of its significance may lead to a catastrophe.
What is intellectual property?
Intellectual property is the original creative tool developed by a business. They are mostly intangible assets such as literary works, brand names, logos or designs, and invented products and services.
Every original brand of products and services brought into the limelight by a business owner into a marketplace falls under the intellectual property of the business.
Intellectual property helps to set apart a business from its competitors. Therefore, every business needs to protect these intangible assets in order not to always encounter legal problems.
What is Intellectual Property Rights?
Intellectual property rights refer to the legally approved rights that protect the intangible assets of the business.
Intellectual property rights are the catalyst tool for innovation sustainability, strategic growth, revenue influx, and partnerships.
Types of Intellectual property rights of a business
A. Trademark Registration: This is the most popular type of intellectual property rights. It is the registration that helps to distinguish a brand of products and services from other similar brands in the business environment.
Trademark helps the brand of a business to gain a brand identity in the marketplace. One can easily identify a fake product from the original product because of the distinctive registered mark.
B. Patent Registration: Patent registration is the protection of business inventions. This invention must be unique and exclusive to the originator otherwise, there will be no registration.
C. Copyrights: This is the protection of the original literary works of a business. These literary works could be originally developed adverts, lyrics and songs or movies, journals and articles on social media platforms that solely belong to the business.
The Importance of Leveraging Intellectual Property for Business Growth
A. Brand Identity: Building a unique brand of products and services that can serve the needs of customers or a percentage of customers, helps it to stand out from other general products and services in a saturated market. The business will have to carve out a brand name or design that can be used to differentiate the brand from other products.
Customers would always want to deal with a trusted brand rather than imitations if they are able to spot the difference.
B. Trust: Protection of intangible assets will always lead to trust of the business by customers. It shows the product or services are authentic.
C. It will lead to the removal of product imitations from the marketplace:
We all know that most products or services always have adulterated product packages waiting in line to be sold to buyers. These fake products are sold way cheaper than the original products and without the protection of the trademarks that cover these products, the business may run into financial losses.
D. Franchising: Intellectual property rights can allow the sale of the same model of business to another person. This type of business operation is called a Franchise. A franchiser simply sells his or her business to a franchisee who in turn must follow every detail of the existing business inclusive of the intangible assets the business owns in exchange for a fee.
E. It helps to keep the business out of court cases: When businesses fail to protect their intangible assets on time, they may not get the opportunity to use the same name or logo when a competitor in a similar line of business decides to use the same trade name as its trademark. So, it’s always important for a business to seek the services of an intellectual property expert for proper advice.
Conclusion
Intellectual property is part and parcel of a business. Trade secrets must be fully protected in order not to get exposed to competitors. The protection of intangible assets of a business will always improve the brand reputation and increase revenue inflow.
Only a handful of business owners seek the protection of their original brands and literary works. Therefore, it is always important for all stakeholders to always seek expert advice from an intellectual property practitioner. Also, enforcement of these intellectual property rights through the institution of legal actions can lead to the removal of mischief makers of fake products and services from the market.
Emmanuel Otori has over 10 years of experience working with 100 start-ups and SMEs across Nigeria. He has worked on the Growth and Employment (GEM) Project of the World Bank, GiZ, and Consulted for businesses at the Abuja Enterprise Agency, NNPC, Oriental Energy, Eko Electricity, FCT-IRS, Nigerian Navy and NITDA. He is the Chief Executive Officer at Abuja Data School.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc has declared the first interim dividend in its history after posting its financial results for the first half of 2026, reflecting robust earnings growth, improved operating efficiency and stronger capital market activity.
The board approved an interim dividend of N1.00 per ordinary share for the six months ended June 30, 2026, citing the company’s strong cash generation, resilient balance sheet and confidence in the sustainability of its earnings.
The interim payout represents about 56 per cent of the total dividend of N1.78 per share paid for the 2025 financial year, underscoring its strong earnings momentum while preserving financial flexibility to invest in technology, innovation and future growth.
CSCS recorded one of the strongest financial performances in its history during the review period, with total operating income rising by 92 per cent to N18.51 billion from the corresponding period of 2025.
The growth was driven by higher transaction fee income as capital market activity strengthened, continued expansion in depository services, increased collateral management revenues and stronger contributions from data and technology-enabled services. Investment income also improved as the company optimised its investment portfolio.
Despite the sharp rise in revenue, operating expenses increased by only 38 per cent, reflecting disciplined cost management and the scalability of the company’s business model.
As a result, operating profit surged by 186 per cent to N10.11 billion, while profit before tax climbed by 115 per cent to N13.21 billion. Earnings per share also rose significantly to 190.1 kobo from 109.1 kobo in the corresponding period of 2025.
The organisation also recorded improvements in operating efficiency. Its cost-to-income ratio declined to 45.4 per cent from 63.2 per cent a year earlier, while operating profit margin improved to 54.6 per cent from 36.8 per cent.
According to the company, the results demonstrate not only the benefits of stronger market activity but also the resilience of its operating model and its ability to convert revenue growth into higher profitability, improved shareholder returns and sustainable long-term value creation.
Commenting on the interim dividend, the Chairman of CSCS Plc, Mr Temi Popoola, said the board’s decision reflected confidence in the firm’s financial strength, earnings quality and long-term strategic direction.
He said the strong performance was driven not only by increased market activity but also by sustained improvements in operational efficiency, disciplined cost management and the continued diversification of revenue streams.
Mr Popoola noted that the Board remained committed to balancing shareholder returns with investments in technology, innovation, resilience and new growth opportunities that would strengthen CSCS’ position as Nigeria’s leading financial market infrastructure and one of Africa’s foremost post-trade institutions.
The chief executive of CSCS Plc, Mr Shehu Yahaya Shantali, attributed the strong performance to the resilience of the entity’s business model, the dedication of its workforce and the confidence of market participants.
He said the first-ever interim dividend demonstrated the company’s ability to translate strong earnings growth and improved operating efficiency into enhanced shareholder value.
Mr Shantali added that CSCS would continue to strengthen its core market infrastructure, invest in technology and innovation, diversify its revenue base and enhance value creation for stakeholders while supporting the development of Nigeria’s capital market.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The national scale long-term issuer rating of Axxela Limited has been upgraded by GCR Rating to A+(NG), just as its short-term issuer rating was affirmed with a stable outlook.
The rating firm upgraded the long-term issue rating for Axxela Funding 1 Plc’s N16.4 billion series 1 senior unsecured bond to A+(NG), while the N11.5 billion series 1 senior secured bond was lifted to A+(NG)(EL).
GCR noted in a note that the actions reflect the leading gas and power portfolio company’s robust business model, strong earnings performance, and sustained financial profile, reinforcing its ability to deliver long-term value while maintaining financial discipline.
Axxela’s recent achievements have been driven by its continued focus on responsible growth, customer satisfaction, and creating lasting value for national development.
“The ratings upgrade by GCR is a strong endorsement of Axxela’s disciplined approach to business. Beyond recognising our financial strength, it reflects the resilience of our business model and the confidence in our strategic direction.
“Over the past few years, we have continued to make significant strides across the business by expanding our natural gas infrastructure, strengthening our operational footprint, advancing our sustainability agenda, and maintaining an unwavering commitment to operational excellence and safety,” the chief executive of Axxela, Mr Moshood Olajide, commented on the development.
As the company continues to advance its long-term growth strategy, the upgraded ratings reinforce confidence in Axxela’s credit profile, financial resilience, and ability to create enduring value for investors, customers and other stakeholders.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) have strengthened their partnership to deploy digital identity technology, aiming to combat illegal mining and enhance security in Nigeria’s mining sector.
Speaking while receiving the Director-General and management of NIMC on a courtesy visit to his office in Abuja, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Mr Dele Alake, described the commission as a critical institution in Nigeria’s development architecture, stressing that effective governance could not be achieved without a credible identity management system.
“NIMC occupies a critical position in translating policy into reality. It is pivotal to the development of any nation because governance today is driven by data, technology and credible identity systems,” he added.
He noted that inadequate identification systems had weakened enforcement efforts over the years, allowing illegal mining activities to flourish in mineral-rich communities.
“Without identification, we cannot trace or track, and insecurity will flourish. In the solid minerals sector, we need effective monitoring of both legal and illegal operations.
“A credible identity ecosystem will strengthen regulation, improve enforcement and support our efforts to sanitise the sector,” Mr Alake said.
The minister identified technology, statistics, data gathering and digital identity as critical enablers for evidence-based policymaking, improved regulatory oversight, efficient licensing, investment promotion and national development.
On her part, the DG of NIMC, Mrs Abisoye Coker-Odusote, highlighted several opportunities for collaboration between both institutions, noting that the newly enacted NIMC Act has positioned Nigeria to fully embrace a digital governance ecosystem.
She explained that deeper integration of identity management into the solid minerals sector would facilitate database integration across government institutions, enhance regulatory compliance, strengthen security and law enforcement, improve monitoring of operators, and provide stronger support for the implementation of Community Development Agreements (CDAs) in mining host communities.
Mrs Coker-Odusote added that NIMC’s upgraded digital infrastructure is capable of supporting government institutions in building reliable databases, improving transparency and delivering more efficient public services.
Both institutions said they would immediately begin implementing technology-driven initiatives under the partnership, expressing confidence that expanding access to trusted digital identities for miners and other eligible residents would enhance accountability and strengthen governance in the solid minerals sector.
