Microsoft Ends Support for Computers Running Windows 7

By Precious Olisa A Cameroon-based company, Koree, has emerged as the winner of the 2023 edition of the Ecobank Fintech Challenge, going home with a prize of $50,000. The firm was announced as the winner of the contest by the panel of judges during the competition’s grand finale at the bank’s headquarters at the Pan African Centre in Lomé, Togo. The organisations made it to the final from an initial pool of over 1,400 fintechs from 64 countries, underscoring the significant growth in popularity of the competition since its inception six years ago, as well as the wealth of innovation

By Adedapo Adesanya The Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Mr Bosun Tijani, intends to close the world’s tech talent shortage by almost a quarter with Nigerian workers. He said this would be achieved through the federal government’s plan to train 3 million technical talents over the next four years. The initiative could help achieve President Bola Tinubu’s goal of creating a million tech jobs in the first two years of his administration. “I believe, based on data that LinkedIn has projected, Nigeria can fill about 23 per cent of the current global shortage in technology talents,” Mr Tijani

By Adedapo Adesanya A new research from global payments giant, Visa, done across 17 countries in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) has revealed a disconnect between consumers’ confidence in recognising fraud and their online behaviour, highlighting the importance of staying alert and mindful of fraud attempts. The study forms Visa’s Stay Secure Campaign, focused on raising consumer awareness, strengthening education, and building confidence to combat social engineering threats. Despite more than half of consumers (56 per cent) claiming to be savvy enough to sidestep online and phone scams, it was found that 90 per cent

By Dipo Olowookere An online booking platform to allow users secure quality accommodation, great food and awesome experiences has been launched by Transcorp Hotels Plc. The new initiative called Aura is the company’s first in the alternative accommodation segment aimed to use technology to deliver true hospitality, exciting experiences, and drive shareholder value. A statement issued by the hospitality giant explained that the organisation will partner with homeowners, hoteliers, restaurateurs, tour operators and locals to redefine travel and tourism through Aura. Transcorp Hotels believes with the launch of Aura, it has further cemented its leadership in the hospitality industry and

By Dipo Olowookere The management of Nigerian Breweries has said it was making concerted efforts to scale through the harsh operating environment, though it admitted that things have not been easy. On Monday, the company’s executives were at the stock exchange update investors on the steps being taken to navigate the storm. During the event, the brewer said this year has not been easy because of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, VAT increase, FX devaluation and scarcity of foreign exchange on its business operations. “In 2020, the results of Nigerian Breweries were adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, VAT

By Aduragbemi Omiyale President Muhammadu Buhari has sought the approval of the Senate to take an $800 million loan from the World Bank to disburse to vulnerable Nigerians. The credit facility is expected to be paid into the bank accounts of some poor Nigerians identified by the government under its social investment programme aimed to assist citizens who are unable to get good jobs to fend for themselves. Recall that recently, it was reported that the World Bank was willing to give the federal government $800 million as a palliative for the removal of the petrol subsidy. In a letter

By Modupe Gbadeyanka President of Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Mr Aminu Gwadabe, has said the group would organise sensitisation workshops for over 4,500 licenced BDCs across the six geopolitical zones of the country. Addressing newsmen yesterday, Mr Gwadabe said these seminars, expected to commence in the next one week, would be put together in partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). During the workshops, participants would be trained on the obligation of registering and filling reports on the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) goAML (Anti-Money Laundering) portal. The ABCOM boss said the anti-money laundering

By Dipo Olowookere The market capitalisation of companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) closed above N11 trillion on Thursday after appreciating by N58 billion. The total value of the listed equities had slipped to the N10 trillion region this Monday, but the 0.53 percent further gained by the local bourse pushed it up above N11 trillion yesterday. At the close of business, the market cap closed at N11.023 trillion in contrast to N10.965 trillion of the previous session. In the same vein, the All-Share Index (ASI) increased on Thursday by 154.20 points to settle at 29,347.62 points from

By Adedapo Adesanya  Oil prices shed more than one percent on Monday after last week’s gains as uncertainties over the trade talks between the United States and China swayed on the market. As at 9pm Nigerian Time (GMT +1), the Brent crude futures, which rose above $63 last week, went down by $1.08 or 1.71 percent on Monday to trade at $62.22 per barrel. In the same vein, the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was also down by 92 Cents or 1.59 percent to sell at $56.80 per barrel, having traded close to $58 per barrel last Friday. The

By Jerome-Mario Chijioke Utomi Spaced out from prevailing indices/situations in Nigeria which reflects the fact that things are not as good as we might wish them to be, let me underline that this piece was inspired by two separate but related occurrences. The first was a recently held focused group discussion in Asaba by some concerned Deltans to among other critical issues shop as Governor Ifeanyi Okowa’s successor a development-minded Deltan who understands that when ‘public sector achievements pick up speed, the increased pace extends to the activities in other sectors. The second has to do with a proposition by

By Dipo Olowookere The three big pharmaceutical companies shutdown last week by the National Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) have been reopened. The three firms are Emzor Pharmaceuticals Industries Limited, Bioraj Pharmaceutical Limited and Peace Standard Pharmaceutical Limited. They were closed last Monday by the Nigerian authorities over their role in the sale of cough syrups containing codeine. BBC had released a documentary on the abuse of codeine in Nigeria, revealing the role played by big pharmaceutical firms in the menace. This got the attention of the Nigerian government and it later announced a ban on the importation