Economy
Nigeria’s Paga Gets $10m to Grab Market Share from PayPal, Others
By Dipo Olowookere
Foremost digital payments start in Nigeria, Paga, has received a huge funding package that would enable it spread its tentacles across the global to give leading players in the industry like PayPal, M-Pesa, Alipay, Payoneer and others a run for their money.
Chief executive of Paga, Mr Tayo Oviosu, confirmed to TechCrunch at Disrupt San Francisco, USA, the firm has secured $10 million from Global Innovation Fund and other investors interested in the company.
With the funds, Paga is already planning to begin operations in Ethiopia, Mexico, and the Philippines, giving it presence in Africa, America and Asia, where the population in very huge.
As part of the $10 million round (which brings Paga’s total funding up to $35 million), Global Innovation Partners will take a board seat. Other round participants include Goodwell, Adlevo Capital, Omidyar Network, and Unreasonable Capital.
Paga will use the Series B2 to grow its core development team of 25 engineers across countries and continents. It will also continue its due diligence on global expansion—though no hard dates have been announced.
According to Mr Oviosu, since the firm started in 2012, it has processed 57 million transactions valued at $3.6 billion.
It has created a multi-channel network and platform to transfer money, pay-bills, and buy things digitally that’s already serving 9 million customers in Nigeria, including 6000 businesses. All of whom can drop into one of Paga’s 17,167 agents or transfer funds from one of Paga’s mobile apps.
Paga has also built out considerable scale in home market Nigeria, which boasts the dual distinction as Africa’s most populous nation and largest economy.
The company carries out its operations via mobile apps as well as basic USSD phones and has remittance partnerships with Western Union and Moneytrans and allows for third-party integration of its app.
Armed with the huge success it has recorded in Nigeria, the chief executive believes Paga will not compete with players in the industry but go “beyond them.”
According to Mr Oviosu, “Our goal is to build a global payment ecosystem across many emerging markets.”
He believes Paga will not struggle to take the industry as he said, “People sit in California and listen to Spotify that was developed in Sweden. And Uber started somewhere before going to different countries and figuring out local markets.”
“The team behind this business has worked globally for some of the top tech names. This platform can stand shoulder to shoulder with any payments company built somewhere else,” Mr Oviosu stressed.
Economy
Zichis Confirms Intention to Borrow from Capital Market
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
One of the newest members of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, Zichis Agro-Allied Industries Plc, has confirmed its intention to approach the capital market to raise funds, subject to shareholder and regulatory approval.
However, it denied reports suggesting it’s “set to undertake an Initial Public Offering (IPO) or related capital raising activity.”
In a notice on Monday, the firm affirmed proposing “to seek shareholders’ approval at its forthcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) to raise additional capital, which may be through equity, debt, or a combination of both, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions.”
“At this stage, the structure, timing, and details of any such capital raising have not been finalised, and no specific transaction has been concluded,” a part of the statement signed by the company secretary, Solomon Itsede, stressed.
Zichis expressed its commitment to upholding “the highest standards of corporate governance, transparency, and timely disclosure.”
“Accordingly, any material corporate actions or capital market activities will be formally communicated through the appropriate regulatory channels,” it said, advising shareholders and the investing public “to rely solely on official disclosures and filings made by the company through the NGX and other authorised regulatory platforms when making investment decisions.”
Zichis welcomed the “continued interest of investors and market participants in its operations and performance,” promising to remain focused on delivering sustainable value through disciplined strategic execution.
It also lauded the continued support of its shareholders, saying it remains committed to maintaining transparency in all its communications.
Economy
NERC Orders Transparent Reporting of Transmission Loss Factors
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has issued a directive to ensure transparency in reporting the Regional Electricity Transmission Loss Factor, as it remains above the 7 per cent threshold.
In a public notice posted on its official X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, the order, contained in No. NERC/2026/026 is aimed at improving transparency and efficiency in Nigeria’s power grid through enhanced reporting of Regional Transmission Loss Factors (TLF).
The regulator disclosed that the order is backed by the provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, which enables the commission to regulate, monitor, and ensure efficiency in the power sector.
According to the statement, the Data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) indicate that the national average TLF was 8.71 per cent in 2024 but was reduced to 7.24 per cent in 2025.
The statement added that the report exceeds the 7 per cent benchmark approved by NERC in the Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO).
The statement reads, “The Order dated 8 April 2026 establishes a formal framework for reporting transmission losses across regions operated by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN).
“Taking effect from 13 April 2026, the Order is backed by provisions of the Electricity Act 2023, which empower NERC to regulate, monitor, and ensure efficiency in the electricity market.”
The directive reads, “NISO to install smart meters at all boundary regional interconnection points by December 2026 to accurately measure energy flows for each region of the transmission network.
“NISO to measure and document all energy flow of power transformers at transmission substations.
“NISO to file quarterly reports on TLF to NERC on a regional basis.”
It added, “TCN to file an action plan by July 2026 on the reduction of TLF to a value within the 7 per cent approved benchmarks in the regions.
“TCN to ensure that TLF across transmission regions shall not exceed 6.5 per cent by December 2026.”
NERC concluded that the order is designed to strengthen accountability in transmission operations and support better grid performance through structured loss reporting.
Economy
Dangote Refinery Plans Cross-border Listing of Shares
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian businessman, Mr Aliko Dangote, is planning to list shares of his $20 billion oil refinery on multiple African stock exchanges.
The landmark cross-border public offering on the continent was disclosed by the chief executive of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE), Mr Frank Mwiti, following a meeting held last week in Lagos between Mr Dangote and several heads of African exchanges.
Last year, Mr Dangote unveiled plans to list a 10 per cent stake in his Lagos-based refinery on the Nigerian Exchange this year.
According to a Bloomberg report, citing an email from the chief executive of FirstCap, Mr Ukandu Ukandu, Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, Vetiva Advisory Services Limited, and FirstCap Limited have been appointed as advisers for the initial public offering of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE.
Mr Mwiti said the proposed listing is designed to cut across multiple markets and deepen investor participation across the continent.
“The plan is to structure a pan-African IPO,” he said.
Bloomberg also reported that a spokesman for the Dangote Group confirmed that discussions had taken place between Mr Dangote and exchange officials but declined to provide further details.
In February 2026, Mr Dangote said that the IPO could be launched within the next five months.
“But individually Nigerians too will have an opportunity in the next maximum four or five months, they will actually be able to buy their shares,” he said at the time.
He added that investors would have flexibility in how they receive returns.
“People will have a choice either to get their dividends in naira or to get their dividends in dollars because we earn in Dollars.”
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