E-Financial
Creating International Growth Opportunities for Tomorrow’s Unicorns
By Stephen A. Newton, Managing Director at Aleph, Africa
It’s become increasingly impossible to deny that we live in an increasingly global world. Today, nearly 65% of world -wide consumers are connected to the internet. Africa having around 570 million internet users, combined with various technological advancements, is driving a wave of change in how entrepreneurs and businesses operate.
Stephen Newton, Managing Director, Sub-Saharan Africa, Ad Dynamo by Aleph
Decades of innovation – culminating in the launch and widespread adoption of social media; the availability of high-speed internet globally; and the rapid integration of generative artificial intelligence; have created new channels for local entrepreneurs and advertisers to grow their businesses. Entrepreneurs, who were once confined to trading within their local community, or best, their single market, can now leverage technology to access opportunities available through global, cross-border trade.
The nature of cross-border trade is already having a seismic effect on emerging economies. According to the World Bank, the digital economy contributes more than 15% of the annual gross domestic product (GDP) globally, and in the past decade has been growing at two and a half times faster than physical world GDP. In several African countries, the digital economy is becoming a main driver of growth, accounting for more than 5% of GDP. Helping to ease the pains associated with cross-border payments, Aleph has built and is now offering its own service, Aleph Payments. Aleph Payments, has managed over $2bn worth of total cross border credit and payments across multiple international markets. Building on Aleph’s near 20 years of experience as a trusted operator, Aleph Payments provides an end-to-end, cross-border credit underwriting and payments solution that supports global expansion.
For ambitious entrepreneurs looking at the wealth of opportunities available on the distant horizon through digital, it’s seemingly never been easier to do business. Businesses can engage customers through tailored advertising on social media platforms and through internet searches, 24 hours a day and seven days a week while using data and analytics to better understand their customers. However, the open and ‘always on’ nature of today’s trading environment means that it’s also hyper-competitive for businesses. Businesses need to excel in more than one aspect of their marketing mix: price, promotion, place, or product, and have the constant threat of being trumped by a larger, well-resourced player.
For some, the idea of launching your own digital business can come with complexities – a case of not knowing where – or how – to start. For those who take the plunge, resilience, overcoming the everyday challenges of managing and growing a business and keeping up to date with the latest trends in advertising is key.
Creating a business and accessing international growth opportunities through digital channels shouldn’t be difficult. We believe more needs to be done to help businesses participate in the digital economy and unlock significant economic value.
That’s why we’ve unveiled Aleph – a strong, single brand that brings together the technologies, local teams, and global reach of brands including Ad Dynamo, Connect Ads, Httpool and IMS. Simply, Aleph is an ecosystem of global digital experts and technology-driven solutions that enable the growth of digital marketing. We connect thousands of advertisers with billions of consumers and create markets for local businesses to grow. Designed with digital marketing at its core, Aleph has evolved to focus on [four key pillars] that address the challenges facing businesses—and consumers—at various stages of their growth journey or understanding of digital marketing.
At a foundational level, Aleph’s Digital Ad Expert offers a free skills-based education platform that gives each student the skills they need to manage digital advertising campaigns and unlock growth. It provides resources, courses, and networking opportunities, and has certified more than 75,000 people from 140+ countries in short courses. Nigeria leads the way in Sub-Saharan Africa with an impressive 149,018 registered participants in the Digital Ad Expert program, followed by Kenya with 24,709 registrants, Ghana with 23,999 registrants, and South Africa with 9,419 registrants. As a platform, it gives consumers around the world the tools they need to drive growth for businesses – or better still, capture growth opportunities through digital marketing for their own business. That’s why we were delighted to join UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition, and specifically support UNESCO’s Global Skills Academy, an initiative that aims to help ten million young people build skills for employability and resilience by 2029.
That’s where Aleph Express comes in – Aleph’s proprietary platform that enables micro, small and medium-sized to create and maintain a free ecommerce website, create a product catalogue, set discounts and coupons, local delivery options and record and process orders. Like Digital Ad Expert for commerce, it gives entrepreneurs all the tools needed to launch their own online store. It’s currently available in Nigeria but is highly scalable and will be rolled out more widely in the future.
Once at scale, Aleph’s core digital marketing business can then help businesses tell their story to the wider world. Through our existing partnerships with the world’s largest platforms, we create meaningful opportunities for brands to engage with consumers in an authentic way, while at a significant scale – often in multiple countries simultaneously. Our local teams across all continents support and provide insights to advertisers to equip them with the latest know-how to make the most of their media investments.
As the world evolves and the ways that businesses operate change, there is a level of responsibility for larger businesses to move with the times and do what they can to support smaller, ambitious, and possibly high-growth businesses. And, in today’s global world, that means breaking down barriers in place of international growth opportunities.
By doing this, we will help a new wave of small businesses flourish, create new jobs and economic value, and possibly uncover the next global unicorns in the process. From our perspective, there’s nothing to lose in helping businesses access global commerce.
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned the public against investing in unregistered investment schemes, including Silverkuun Investment Cooperative Society/Silverkuun Limited.
In a circular issued in Abuja, yesterday, the commission said its attention had been drawn to the activities of these entities, which falsely present themselves as investment advisers and fund managers in the Nigerian capital market.
“The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission has been drawn to the activities of Silverkuun Investment Cooperative Society/Silverkuun Limited which holds itself out as an Investment Adviser/Fund Manager.
“The Commission hereby informs the public that Silverkuun Investment Cooperative Society/Silverkuun Limited is not registered to operate in any capacity in the Nigerian Capital Market.”
SEC advised the public to refrain from engaging with Silverkuun Investment Cooperative Society/Silverkuun Limited or its representatives in respect of any business in the Nigerian capital market.
“The Commission uses this medium to reiterate that transacting in the Nigerian Capital Market with unregistered and unregulated entities exposes investors to financial risk including fraud and potential loss of investment.
“The investing public is therefore reminded to verify the status of companies and entities offering investment opportunities on the Commission’s portal before transacting with them,” the SEC added.
Dr. Emomotimi Agama, director-general of the SEC, recently warned that the Commission would not hesitate to shut down the operations of such unregistered entities while also ensuring that the promoters are made to face the full weight of the law.
Agama said, “we will shut down their operations and the promoters will be made to face the full weight of the law.
“In a major reform, ISA 2025 officially brings digital assets under the SEC’s regulatory purview, defining them as securities and mandating registration for all virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and digital asset exchanges. This development aims to close the regulatory vacuum that has allowed many Ponzi-style platforms to thrive under the guise of cryptocurrency and digital finance.”
Agama also emphasized the Commission’s education-focused strategy to combat fraud through podcasts, digital campaigns, and the introduction of capital market literacy in schools and universities, the SEC aims to equip Nigerians with the knowledge to detect and avoid dubious investments.
Africa’s cross-border payments market is on track to hit $1 trillion by 2035, according to a new report by venture capital firm Oui Capital. Titled “Africa’s Cross-Border Payment Landscape—a deep dive into the systems, players, and shifts shaping Africa’s cross-border payment flows,” the report states that the market is currently valued at $329 billion and growing at a compound annual growth rate of 12%.
It identifies Africa’s booming digital adoption, increasing intra-African trade, and a surge in mobile money usage as the key growth drivers.
Despite the impressive growth, the report highlights systemic inefficiencies.
“Legacy rails, double currency conversions, and fragmented regulations still siphon billions in hidden costs,” Oui Capital states, noting that the continent continues to have the highest global remittance costs, averaging 7–8%.
However, digital innovation is helping reshape the landscape. Mobile money is now a key channel, with 30% of Sub-Saharan remittances flowing through mobile wallets.
In 2022, Africa accounted for 66% of global mobile money transaction value, demonstrating the rapid formalisation of what was once a predominantly informal cash ecosystem.
Oui Capital sees significant investment potential in addressing these inefficiencies. “Infrastructure plays—interoperable API layers, decentralised FX liquidity pools, and PAPSS integrations—represent $10 billion-plus opportunities,” the report says.
The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System is one such initiative pushing for local currency settlements and reduced reliance on USD/EUR clearing, which presently adds around $5 billion in annual costs.
According to the report, cryptocurrencies and Stablecoins are emerging as promising alternatives, cutting remittance costs by up to 60% in markets with clear regulations.
“Fintech APIs are already pushing fees as low as 1.5–3%,” the report notes.
Still, the venture capital firm warns that challenges persist as only 55% of African jurisdictions allow full electronic KYC, limiting the scalability of fintech solutions.
The report urges founders to go beyond peer-to-peer transfers by embedding services like lending and insurance.
“Africa’s payments race is now a scale game. Those that solve for liquidity, compliance and cost will define the continent’s digital trade backbone over the next decade,” it concludes.
Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria has expanded its Agency Banking Certification Programme through a tripartite collaboration between the Institute, FIC, and SANEF Limited.
This partnership according Prof. Pius Deji Olanrewaju, President/Chairman of Council the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, CIBN, is timely and strategic, “as we aim to broaden the reach of the certification across Nigeria’s agent banking sector. With SANEF’s deep integration in the financial inclusion ecosystem and established relationships with leading super agents, we are confident that this collaboration will strengthen the quality and visibility of the programme.
“The goal is clear, to enhance professionalism among agent bankers, support the national financial inclusion strategy, and contribute to building trust and integrity within this growing segment of the financial services sector. This collaboration presents an excellent opportunity for further implementation of the competency framework for the banking industry in Nigeria”.
He noted that the collaboration among others is part of his LEGACY agenda which highlights the multifaceted role of financial institutions in shaping Nigeria’s economic future.
The letter C in the LEGACY agenda refers to Competence in the banking and Finance industry, which is a very crucial factor in the banking and finance sector. Competent individuals in this industry are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively manage financial resources. Individuals with expertise in this field can contribute to the growth and stability of the economy.
Mrs. Uche Uzoebo, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Shared Agency Network Expansion Facilities, SANEF, described the memorandum of Understanding, MoU, as a visionary partnership that seeks to expand Financial Inclusion through Agent banking training, Financial Literacy and knowledge impartation, an objective that forms a key pivot of what SANEF represents.
“Over the years, SANEF, in strong collaboration with our key stakeholders, Banks and Licenced Super-Agents/Mobile Money Operators and other Financial Service Providers, have continued to deepen the frontiers of Financial Inclusion and agent bank. Financial Literacy and training have remained a key part of this objective.
“This MOU ceremony is a fulfillment of a shared vision through the expansion of Agent Banking, Financial Literacy, capacity building, thought leadership, training and competency.
She further explained that the agreement provides a training structure with well-curated and knowledge filled training modules and materials that will deepen the knowledge and capacity in agent banking.
“It will go ahead to deepen and expand the knowledge and capacity of all participants that will take part in this training and we believe that with the quality and cooperation of all parties present, this very important objective of impartation of knowledge and thought leadership, grooming and training minds to be empowered and learned and contributing our quota to nation building and be a better place,” she added.
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