E-Financial
Visa to Fly e-Commerce Campaign Winner to Rio2016 Games
Visa, the global e-payments platform, has rewarded Effiong Bassey and thirty other cardholders who participated in the “e-commerce campaign”.
Bassey won an all-expense paid trip to Rio 2016 Olympics while others were rewarded with fifty thousand naira (N50, 000) shopping voucher each.
The campaign, which kicked off in May 2016, was designed to encourage card holders to activate their visa cards on the Verified by Visa platform. Verified by Visa is a password-protected authentication system designed to confirm the identity of the cardholder when a Visa card is used online. A password is requested from only the cardholder to help the bank verify that the genuine cardholder is entering their card information into an e-commerce website.
The cardholders who participated in the campaign spent a minimum of N10, 000 on a local or international website.
A total of 50, 000 cardholders participated in this campaign, 31 winners were randomly selected by an electronic draw.
Representatives from Visa Nigeria, Lagos State Lottery Board, and the Consumer Protection Council were present to ensure a smooth and transparent selection process.
Emezino Afiegbe, senior business development leader, Visa West Africa, said “This campaign is aimed at encouraging the use of our cards for online payments and also to drive e-commerce transactions. At Visa, we constantly explore ways to give incentives that will drive the use of cards for payments amongst Nigerians.
Speaking about the selection process, Mr. Onifade Abideen, representative from Consumer Protection Council, said; ‘’At CPC we hold the interest of consumers in high esteem that is why we serve as an intermediary between consumers and brands to ensure that all lottery selection process is transparent’’.
Also speaking about the campaign the elated grand prize winner, Mr. Effiong Bassey a Diamond Bank customer said; “I am excited to have emerged the lucky winner of the trip to Rio 2016 Olympics through the e-commerce campaign of Visa. The campaign has improved my confidence in the e-payment platforms and in e-commerce sites Nigeria and overseas. I can assure you that Visa is a dependable financial partner for online transactions.”
The e-commerce campaign is an initiative of Visa to reward customers that make use of their cards for online payment while patronizing e-commerce sites with an assurance of security and convenience.
E-Financial
CIBN says Recapitalization will Empower Banks to Lend more to Economy
Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, CIBN, has expressed support for the ongoing banking recapitalization exercise saying it will empower banks to lend more to the economy.
CIBN President, Dr. Ken Opara stated this yesterday while speaking at the annual lecture of the institute in Lagos, with the theme “Improving Availability of Credit in the Nigerian Real Economy: The Critical Importance of Liquidity.”
Okpara noted that the volume of credit to the real sector activities namely agriculture, manufacturing and services is low compared to their critical role in driving economic growth.
Consequently, he called for more credit to the real sector, saying, “I propose that we consider offering more credit to these key sectors and particularly the agriculture sector. It is for this reason that the Recapitalization exercise is a welcome development.
“The recently announced upward review of the Minimum Capital Requirements of Nigeria by the Central Bank of Nigeria would further empower banks to extend more credit to the economy’s productive sectors.”
To address these factors impeding credit to the real sector, Okpara suggested that, “The government needs to improve further the ease of doing business and infrastructural development, such as power, roads, rail networks, etc.
“Setting up industrial centres where these companies can co-habit and share common infrastructure. Harmonize and reduce the various taxes and levies, including locating them in a single hub.
“Banks need to be deliberate in de-risking these companies via Capacity building programmes, and Advisory services.
Specialised Financial Institutions can be created in addition to the Bank of Industry (BOI), especially credit guarantee agencies and risk-sharing institutions, to further facilitate the deepening of credit as practiced in countries such as China which significantly transformed its economy.
E-Financial
Shareholders Approve $1.5bn Capital Raising for Access Holdings
The shareholders of Access Holdings Plc have unanimously approved the company’s proposed capital raising of $1.5 billion through a bond or share sale and a further N365 billion via a Rights Issue to fund its ambitious growth plans.
The shareholders also ratified the appointments of Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Olusegun Ogbonnewo, and Ojinika Olaghere as Non-Executive Directors.
The appointment of Aig-Imoukhuede as the Chairman of Access Holdings was praised by the shareholders, who pointed to his rich history of success with the institution, having transformed it into Nigeria’s biggest lender by market value alongside late Herbert Wigwe.
The shareholders stated that Aigboje’s leadership was instrumental in driving the institution’s growth during the 2004 recapitalisation of the banking industry led by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) under the leadership of its former Governor, Prof. Charles Soludo.
“We are thrilled with Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede’s return to the role of Chairman. His proven track record, experience, and strategic insights position him as the ideal leader to steer Access Holdings towards meeting its lofty targets.
During his tenure as CEO, particularly during the recapitalisation directive by the CBN, he steered Access Bank to raise an impressive $2 billion in capital, and this demonstrates his capacity to, once again, lead Access Holdings towards successfully achieving the objectives of our planned capital raise and Rights Issue targets,” said Chief Sunny Nwosu, Chairman Emeritus of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN).
In line with the Group’s strong financial performance, the payment of a final dividend of N1.80 kobo per every N0.50 kobo ordinary share for the 2023 financial year was approved, marking a 28 per cent improvement from the corresponding period in 2022.
E-Financial
Confusion as CBN Deletes, Reinstates Tweet Calling Crypto-Related Directive Fake
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been forced to deny a report saying it issued a directive requiring all banks and financial institutions to identify individuals or entities engaging in transactions with cryptocurrency exchanges and to ensure that such accounts are put on Post No Debit (PND) instruction for six months.
A “Post No Debit” instruction is a directive issued by a bank or financial institution to restrict certain transactions on a customer’s account.
When a PND instruction is in place, the account holder is prohibited from making debit transactions, meaning they cannot withdraw funds or make payments using the affected account.
Confusion occurred when the central bank denied the story on X but then deleted the denial.
The alleged circular also stated that regulated financial institutions engaged in crypto or facilitating payments for crypto exchanges are prohibited.
However, this contradicts an earlier ban lifted in December 2023, allowing banks to facilitate transactions for crypto exchanges.
The central bank lifted the ban nearly two years after enforcing a comprehensive ban on banks engaging with digital currencies.
According to a statement by the CBN at the time, it recognized that the increasing global demand and adoption of crypto make it unjustifiable to maintain the stringent restrictions imposed on financial institutions in 2021.
However, due to the swift devaluation of the naira and the subsequent inflation rate of 29.9%, the government shifted its attention to platforms offering cryptocurrency services.
It disabled websites associated with crypto trading that had gained notoriety for setting informal valuations for the naira.
Binance encountered significant scrutiny when the CBN raised concerns regarding “suspicious financial transactions” occurring through Binance Nigeria in 2023.
Olayemi Cardoso, governor, CBN, said $26 billion had passed through Nigeria via Binance in 2023 from unidentified sources and users.
Binance is facing further challenges in Nigeria, with its executive Tigran Gambaryan, who is based in the United States, being detained in the country.
He’s facing five charges linked to money laundering following a meeting with Nigerian officials regarding Binance’s regulatory compliance.
Nadeem Anjarwalla, one of the executives who met with Nigerian officials about Binance’s regulatory issues, subsequently escaped custody and was tracked down to Kenya, where he faces extradition.
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