Economy
Uber Partners LSETF To Finance Lagos Entrepreneurs
By Dipo Olowookere
Uber has entered into collaboration with the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF) to provide access to finance for budding transport entrepreneurs at just 5 percent per annum.
This is 15 percent lower than any other financial institution offer.
Uber noted that access to affordable finance is critical to the success of any entrepreneur, as it frees up the cash flow for them to focus on growing their business.
It expressed confidence that the introduction of finance at a lower interest rate for driver-partners will help them thrive as they run their business on the Uber platform.
Uber has particular relevance in a city such as Lagos, where traffic congestion is an ongoing challenge.
Nigeria is a booming African economy just as Lagos is an economic hub, which makes this challenge increasingly acute for those using the city’s roads.
If more people take advantage of ride-sharing services like Uber, there will be lesser cars on the road and less overall congestion. For this reason, the platform has been welcomed and supported by the Lagos State.
General Manager for Uber in West Africa, Ms Ebi Atawodi, explained that “We are encouraged by the Lagos State’s commitment to ridesharing platforms like Uber. Their support of local entrepreneurs not only fosters the growth of sustainable businesses, but strengthens a highly-viable transport industry in Lagos.”
Uber driver-partners in Lagos will also find it easier to buy their own vehicle. Driver-partners can now buy new cars that are locally-assembled in Nigeria by Stallion Motors (Hyundai i10 and Hyundai Grand Xcent).
The partnership between Uber and LSETF has made this process simple. If they qualify for the financing provided by LSETF, Uber entrepreneurs can buy any new locally-assembled car up to a value of N3 million and only need to contribute 5 percent of the vehicle purchase price when they buy the car.
According to the Executive Secretary of LSETF, Mr Akintunde Oyebode, partnerships like this provide a platform for sustainable job and wealth creation, and demonstrate a seamless collaboration between private capital and Government.
“The partnership with Uber is proof of Lagos State Government’s willingness to support innovative solutions that solve social problems, in this case, transport, and also provide jobs to its residents,” Mr Oyebode said.
The option to purchase locally made vehicles gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to obtain the assets required to grow their business and contributes to the growth of the local economy.
Local automotive production is a priority across the country, which has been emphasised in the Nigeria Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP).
Nigeria is a promising automotive hub, given its large economy, growing urban population and a targeted drive by government to grow the industry.
Ridesharing trends and a refined automotive industry go hand in hand.
Dr Andrew S. Nevin, Advisory Partner and Chief Economist, PwC Nigeria says, “Already Uber driver-partners have made over a million trips in Nigeria in the last two years. This trend could fast-track Nigeria’s path to becoming an automotive hub potentially boosting sales of new and used vehicles as individuals take advantage of partnering with these companies to gain extra income.”
These new cars on the road are likely to replace thousands of personal cars in Lagos, as more people use Uber to move across the city. Over time as people get used to the idea that you can always push a button and get a ride — the need to own a car, or buy a second family car, goes down.
The total offering to Uber Lagos entrepreneurs includes finance at a fixed interest rate of 5 percent per annum, with a loan period of 36 months. Lagos driver-partners will be afforded the opportunity to purchase a vehicle to the value of up to N3 million, with a 5 percent deposit required.
Stallion motors are offering both the Hyundai Grand Xcent (N3m) and Hyundai i10 (N2.7m) for this deal – both cars are locally assembled and are in line with the NAIDP.
In order to qualify Lagos entrepreneurs will be required to have been operating on the Uber platform and their Uber rating should be 4.5 or higher.
The Uber and LSETF partnership begins in December with the hopes of expanding it to more Uber partners in the near future.
By Dipo Olowookere
Investors at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited have continued to show excitement for the full-year earnings of companies on the exchange so far.
On Friday, Customs Street further appreciated by 1.01 per cent as more organization released their financial statements for the 2025 fiscal year.
During the session, traders continued their selective trading strategy, with the energy sector going up by 2.47 per cent at the close of business despite profit-taking in the banking counter, which saw its index down by 0.11 per cent.
Yesterday, the insurance space grew by 2.16 per cent, the industrial goods segment expanded by 1.70 per cent, and the consumer goods industry jumped by 0.42 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased by 1,722.13 points to 171,727.49 points from 170,005.36 points, and the market capitalisation soared by N1.106 trillion to N110.235 trillion from the N109.129 trillion it ended on Thursday.
Business Post reports that there were 59 appreciating stocks and 19 depreciating stocks on Friday, representing a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
The trio of Omatek, Deap Capital, and NAHCO gained 10.00 per cent each to sell for N2.64, N6.82, and N136.40 apiece, as Zichis and Austin Laz appreciated by 9.98 per cent each to close at N6.72 and N5.40, respectively.
Conversely, The Initiates depreciated by 9.74 per cent to N19.45, DAAR Communications slumped by 7.32 per cent to N1.90, United Capital crashed by 6.55 per cent to N18.55, Coronation Insurance lost 5.71 per cent to quote at N3.30, and First Holdco shrank by 5.53 per cent to N47.00.
The activity chart showed an improvement in the activity level, with the trading volume, value, and number of deals up by 33.77 per cent, 93.27 per cent, and 10.63 per cent, respectively.
This was because traders transacted 953.8 million shares worth N43.1 billion in 51,005 deals compared with the 713.0 million shares valued at N22.3 billion traded in 46,104 deals a day earlier.
Fidelity Bank was the most active with 92.4 million units sold for N1.8 billion, Chams transacted 69.2 million units valued at N310.9 million, Deap Capital exchanged 59.1 million units worth N382.7 million, Access Holdings traded 57.2 million units valued at N1.3 billion, and Tantalizers transacted 48.6 million units worth N228.2 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The value of the Naira contracted against the United States Dollar on Friday by 13 Kobo or 0.01 per cent to N1,366.19/$1 in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) from the previous day’s value of N1,366.06/$1.
According to data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Nigerian currency also depreciated against the Pound Sterling in the same market window yesterday by N2.37 to N1,857.75/£1 from the N1,855.38/£1 it was traded on Thursday, and further depleted against the Euro by 57 Kobo to close at N1,612.52/€1 versus the preceding session’s N1,611.95/€1.
In the same vein, the exchange rate for international transactions on the GTBank Naira card showed that the Naira lost N8 on the greenback yesterday to N1,383/$1 from the previous day’s N1,375/$1 and at the black market, the Nigerian currency maintained stability against the Dollar at N1,450/$1.
FX analysts anticipate this trend to persist, primarily influenced by increasing external reserves, renewed inflows of foreign portfolio investments, and a reduction in speculative demand.
In the short term, stability in the FX market is expected to continue, supported by policy interventions and improving market confidence.
Nigeria’s foreign reserves experienced an upward trajectory, increasing by $632.38 million within the week to $46.91 billion from $46.27 billion in the previous week.
The Dollar appreciation this week appears to be largely technical, serving as a correction to the substantial losses experienced from mid- to late January.
Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market slightly appreciated, with Bitcoin (BTC) climbing near $68,000, up nearly 5 per cent since hitting $60,000 late on Thursday after investor confidence in crypto’s utility as a store of value, inflation hedge, and digital currency faltered.
The sell-off extended beyond crypto, with silver plunging 15 per cent and gold sliding more than 2 per cent. US stocks also fell.
The latest recoup saw the price of BTC up by 4.7 per cent to $67,978.96, as Ethereum (ETH) appreciated by 6.3 per cent to $2,021.10, and Ripple (XRP) surged by 9.5 per cent to $1.42.
In addition, Solana (SOL) grew by 7.3 per cent to $85.22, Cardano (ADA) added 6.1 per cent to trade at $0.2683, Dogecoin (DOGE) expanded by 5.4 per cent to $0.0958, Litecoin (LTC) rose by 5.2 per cent to $53.50, and Binance Coin (BNB) jumped by 2.3 per cent to $637.79, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Oil prices settled higher on Friday as traders worried that this week’s talks between the US and Iran had failed to reduce the risk of a military conflict between the two countries.
Brent crude futures traded at $68.05 a barrel after going up by 50 cents or 0.74 per cent, and the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures finished at $63.55 a barrel due to the addition of 26 cents or 0.41 per cent.
Iran and the US held negotiations in Muscat, the capital of Oman, on Friday to overcome sharp differences over Iran’s nuclear programme.
It was reported that the talks had ended with Iran’s foreign minister saying negotiators will return to their capitals for consultations and the talks will continue.
Regardless, the meeting kept investors anxious about geopolitical risk, as Iran wanted to stick to nuclear issues while the US wanted to discuss Iran’s ballistic missiles and support for armed groups in the region.
Any escalation of tension between the two nations could disrupt oil flows, since about a fifth of the world’s total consumption passes through the Strait of Hormuz between Oman and Iran.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the strait, as does Iran, which is a member of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
According to Reuters, Iran objected to the presence of any US Central Command (CENTCOM) or other regional military officials, saying that would jeopardise the process.
The current confrontation was sparked by more than two weeks of unrest in Iran that saw authorities launch a deadly crackdown that killed thousands of civilians and shocked the world. As reports of the deaths trickled out of Iran, US President Donald Trump threatened to strike Iran if any of the tens of thousands of protesters arrested were executed.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s planned oil exports could fall by as much as 35 per cent this month via its main route through Russia, as the country’s top oil company, Tengiz oilfield, slowly recovers from fires at power facilities in January.
ING analysts have pointed out Iran’s neighbour, Iraq, and a disagreement with the US as another bullish factor for oil prices. It seems Iraqi politicians favour Mr Nouri al-Maliki as the country’s next Prime Minister, but the US thinks Mr al-Maliki is too close to Iran. President Trump has already threatened the oil producer with consequences if he emerges as PM.
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