OPay Gets Fresh $400m to Raise Valuation to $2bn

By Adedapo Adesanya Google and the Kaduna State Government have announced a partnership to train 5,000 women and girls in data science, artificial intelligence, and entrepreneurial application of digital technologies. Google’s Director for West Africa, Mr Olumide Balogun, said in a statement that the partnership was a significant move towards promoting technology inclusivity. Mr Balogun said that this initiative was part of a broader skills development programme supported by Google which aims to empower 20,000 more women and young people across Nigeria. He said that the women and girls would be empowered with 21st-century skills, positioning the trainees for opportunities

The pinnacle of technological innovation and thought leadership, Art of Technology Lagos (AOT), returns for its fifth edition, AOT 5.0. With an unwavering commitment to progress, this year’s conference dives into two crucial pillars that are shaping Lagos’s future: “The Creative Economy” and “A Digital Lagos.“ Curated by the Eko Innovation Centre in collaboration with the Lagos State Government, AOT 5.0 promises to be an unparalleled gathering of visionaries, industry leaders, and changemakers. Lagos’s creative economy sector is a dynamic force that fuels the state’s economic growth, encompassing diverse industries such as film, music, fashion, design, and advertising. This ecosystem

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said Nigeria now ranks seventh in terms of mobile phone usage globally while it takes the 11th spot in terms of internet penetration. The NCC Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Mr Umar Danbatta, disclosed this while speaking at the opening ceremony of a two-day workshop on emerging technology forum for the telecommunications industry in Abuja on Thursday. Mr Danbatta, who was represented by Mr Abraham Osahadami, the NCC’s Head of Spectrum Database Management, said 82 per cent of the country’s 200 million+ population are telecom subscribers while just 29 per cent

By Dipo Olowookere The management of Pensions Alliance Limited (PAL Pensions) on Tuesday launched a new campaign tagged ‘Retire with a Smile’ to encourage more individuals to save towards retirement. The campaign, unveiled yesterday at the Oriental Hotel, Lekki, is also part of efforts of the company to deepen its market penetration. During the event, a new TV Commercial was launched by the firm, which was warmly accepted as it sparked up positive conversations among media correspondents on the giant stride embarked on by PAL Pensions. The TV Commercial shows an exciting musical that depicts PAL Pensions’ clients smiling from

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Poultry business will be given necessary government attention so as to maximise the potentials of the industry, the Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo has promised. Speaking with a delegation of Poultry Association of Nigeria which paid him a courtesy visit this week in his office, the Acting President wondered why poultry business seemed to have been ignored even as agriculture is resurgent. He acknowledged the need to address some of the challenges facing the industry, because it is a significant contributor to the country’s economy. During his own remarks, the National President of the association, Dr Ayoola

By Dipo Olowookere The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited ended the first trading session of the week on a positive note, as it appreciated by 0.95 per cent amid encouraging Q4 earnings of companies on the stock exchange. Analysis of the market performance showed that investors saw the need to buy more shares during the session, leading to a significant increase in the level of activity. A total of 201.4 million equities worth N5.7 billion exchanged hands in 4,332 deals yesterday, in contrast to the 171.1 million equities worth N2.3 billion transacted last Friday in 3,599 deals, indicating an improvement in

By Adedapo Adesanya The Union of European Football Association (UEFA) has announced that this season’s Champions League, suspended in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will resume on August 7 and be completed with an eight-team mini-tournament which will take place in Lisbon, Portugal. This was made known by UEFA Deputy General Secretary, Mr Giorgio Marchetti, on Wednesday, adding that the decision was finalised after an executive committee meeting held by video conference. The quarter-finals and semi-finals will be played over one leg, instead of the usual two, with the final to be held on August 23. There are still

By Adedapo Adesanya For the third trading session, the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) remained in the bearish zone after it depreciated by 0.53 per cent on Wednesday, June 1, driven by negative price movements from Niger Delta Exploration and Production (NDEP) Plc and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc. NDEP Plc made a N14 or 6.67 per cent loss to close at N196.00 per unit as against N210.00 per unit of the last session, while CSCS Plc saw depleted by 64 kobo or 3.77 per cent to close at N16.36 per unit compared with Tuesday’s closing price of N17.00 per unit.

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The attacks carried by hoodlums on churches in Rivers and Kwara States have been condemned by the World Council of Churches (WCC). On New Year day, some Christian worshippers were attacked by some suspected hoodlums, which led to the death of some people. General Secretary of WCC, Rev Olav Fykse Tveit, in a statement issued today, specifically condemned the attack that occurred at the Rivers church in Omuku town, southern Nigeria. No fewer than 16 persons were killed by gunmen who opened fire after a New Year’s Day church service, according to police reports. The group had

With a rapidly growing population and a younger generation of tech-savvy workers, Africa is poised to become the next global market leader. Today, the continent’s population is over 1.4 billion. The advancement in technology, propelled by the urgent need to reconcile demand and supply has led Africa to work towards being increasingly competitive on the international scene. Despite tremendous advancements in trade and improved financial accessibility and communication technologies, a huge part of the continent is still unbanked. The circuit of internet accessibility and reliability is growing exponentially on the continent, but nevertheless, the majority of consumers still don’t have

By Dipo Olowookere The year 2017 has shown a steady flow of transactions and activities in the Naira-settled OTC FX Futures market. This market, which was borne out of the desire to address the need for risk management in the Nigerian FX market has continued to show appreciable potential as an effective hedging product for investors (local and international), businesses and government institutions alike. To date, $10.38 billion worth of OTC FX Futures contracts have traded so far with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) remaining steadfast in its commitment to ensuring the success of the market. As it has