Economy
Nigerian Business Owners Now Accept BitMinutes as Payment
By Adedapo Adesanya
Consumers can now pay for services at gas stations, salons, and food retailers with a popular cryptocurrency known as BitMinute (BMT) in Nigeria because some merchants have begun to accept it as a medium of payment.
This initiative is a brainchild of Atlanta-based BitMinutes Incorporated, a financial services technology company that leverages blockchain and pre-paid minutes tokenization to help its partners deliver secure, affordable financial services to their customers.
Among the business owners who accept BitMinutes are the AYKAY Fuel Station, Barber Q-Salon and QDS Resources (a food and gift item retailer), all of which are in Abuja, as well as Stellytee Ventures, (a makeup salon) in Nasarawa.
According to Tom Meredith, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, more merchants are being added every week as “a direct result of the company reaching a tipping point in Nigeria, where we have more than 6,000 citizens who have purchased BMTs and saving them in their mobile wallets for use as airtime minutes or to pay for other products and services.”
It was revealed that the growth in the adoption and acceptance was made possible through its Trusted Area Network (TAN) business model that involved the company recruiting existing small business owners in Nigeria, who help citizens exchange BitMinutes for cash and cash for BitMinutes, and as a result becoming TAN agents.
Also, the entrepreneurs are rewarded for their participation by earning BitMinutes for the services they provide. There are more than 1,000 Nigerians enrolled in the TAN program.
BitMinutes technology said it has been able to do this by harnessing the decentralized power of the blockchain by leveraging the digital ledger behind user data for making purchases, transferring money, generating loans and using airtime minutes.
The company also said selling and lending BitMinutes-based micro-loans will create a business opportunity for entrepreneurs globally. BitMinutes will turn the corner retailer into the corner banker, delivering banking services to the smallest of villages and towns worldwide while doing it profitably.
BitMinutes is an early stage fintech company, founded in the U.S. Its token, the BitMinute, is exchangeable into universal prepaid airtime minutes. Prepaid minutes are already traded informally globally by billions of mobile phone owners.
Its tokens also allow peer-to-peer value transfer to over 1.2 billion bank accounts in 70 countries and prepaid top-up to over 4 billion mobile accounts in over 200 countries. The company also facilitates the expansion of micro-credit lending in communities where lending is rare and too expensive for most individual borrowers.
BitMinutes’ projects that its ownership and transactional records will establish a new type of consumer credit score for emerging market consumers who currently struggle with limited access to capital and a lack of traditional banking services.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The pre-registration training and examination for capital market operators (CMOs) for the second quarter of 2026 has been postponed.
Business Post gathered that the new date for the exercise is now Monday, June 15, 2026.
This information was disclosed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through a circular on Monday, June 8, 2026.
The Nigerian capital market regulator stated that this postponement has also resulted in the extension of the deadline for registration to Friday, June 12, 2026.
In the notice today, the SEC expressed its regret for the inconvenience this action may cause operators, who had prepared for the initial date of the training and examination.
“Further to the recent circular on Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) hereby informs all eligible applicants for the Q2 2026 Pre-registration Training and Examination that the commencement date has been postponed to Monday, June 15, 2026.
“Registration on the designated portal has also been extended to Friday, June 12, 2026. All other conditions contained in the circular remain unchanged.
“The commission regrets any inconvenience this postponement may cause and appreciates the understanding of all applicants,” the disclosure noted.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the leading healthcare firms in Nigeria, Fidson Healthcare Plc, has listed additional shares on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The new stocks absorbed into the stock market were 600 million units, raising the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each from 2,400,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
The fresh equities came from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share.
They were issued to existing investors on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as of the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
Confirming the development, the regulator in a notice said, “Trading licence holders are hereby notified that an additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each of Fidson Healthcare Plc were on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, listed on the daily official list of Nigerian Exchange Limited.
“The additional shares arose from the company’s rights issue of 600,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N35.00 per share on the basis of one new ordinary share for every existing four ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Wednesday, November 12, 2025.
“With the listing of the additional 600,000,000 ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid-up shares of Fidson Healthcare Plc have now increased from 2,400,000,000 to 3,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.”
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
This news will surely excite local contractors with verified claims of N100 million or less, as the federal government has approved their payments.
This approval for the disbursement was given by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele.
This followed a verification and reconciliation exercise designed to ensure only validated claims qualify for payment.
The beneficiaries cover contractors across multiple ministries, departments and agencies. The release of the funds is expected to enable contractors to return to project sites, pay workers, settle suppliers and meet outstanding financial commitments.
In an announcement on Monday, the Federal Ministry of Finance also said this latest batch of payments would ease liquidity pressure on small businesses and accelerate economic activity nationwide.
It was noted that the payments for verified claims of N100 million below were strategically done to spread economic impact broadly rather than concentrate disbursements among a handful of large firms.
The payments form part of a broader push to clear inherited contractor obligations, with over N700 billion verified in recent months.
“For many beneficiaries, the release of funds represents more than a financial transaction. It provides the certainty needed to sustain operations, preserve jobs, complete ongoing projects, and contribute to economic recovery and growth,” the ministry said in a statement.
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