E-Business
Elegbe, Interswitch Boss Charges Entrepreneurs on Clear Business Model
Mitchell Elegbe, Interswitch GMD, has advised entrepreneurs to have a clear business model before seeking start-up capital.
The Interswitch boss made this remark during a two-hour Webinar Startup Insight series themed ‘Why startup capital is necessary, but not sufficient’. The online session was attended by different entrepreneurs.
Elegbe stated that when looking for capital for business, entrepreneurs should bear in mind the problem they intend to solve. He said it is important to know the appropriate business model required.
He also advised entrepreneurs to critically think about their business models, stating: “The bigger the problem you want to solve, the more coherent your business model should be.”
Narrating his experience prior to the emergence of Interswitch, Mitchell said he recognized Nigeria had payment problems but he had very little knowledge of the banking industry having cut his teeth career-wise in the telecommunications and oil & gas sectors.
However, because he understood the problem he was trying to solve, he went for different pitches and scaled through.
Elegbe also spoke about the concept of Greiner growth curve in business which posits that businesses will go through six stages of evolving growth and five revolutions of crisis stages.
He explained that the ability to move from one stage to the other is what will make a business. He advised entrepreneurs to consider partnerships later in business, noting that at that time a name would have been made for the brand.
He concluded by encouraging business owners to recognize their times and seasons. According to him, if a business is run successfully for two years, then the most dangerous part has been overcome. The next challenge will be how to scale the business.
“Business owners should not do the same thing for a long time. They should be dynamic in their line of thought. Business owners should see difficult times as a golden opportunity to make their brands better. May you see your golden opportunity”, he added.
The programme which is in its second edition is a 12-week Accelerator programme organized by Asset & Resource Management Holding Company Limited (ARM) in partnership with the Ventures Platform. It is designed to fund and support compelling Fintech startups solving key problems in the financial services industry.
It was also initiated to unlock verticals and new markets, thereby changing how users access and consume financial services in Africa through the Ecosystem Dialogue, and Startup Insight Series.
The Ecosystem Dialogue Series (EDS) is a platform for conversations between policymakers, advocators and members of the startup community, to discuss policies and innovations that startups can leverage; while Startup Insights is a mentorship series that brings experienced entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate professionals (with prominent success stories) together with startup founders, to explore deep industry and entrepreneurship insights.
Other speakers at the Ecosystem Dialogue series included Aituaz Kola-Oladejo, Executive Director, Financial Services Innovators and Henrietta Bankole-Olusina, Managing Director, ARM Financial Advisers.
The United States Supreme Court has upheld a law seeking to ban TikTok in the United States.
The court ruled that the law does not infringe upon free speech rights, citing the US government’s legitimate national security concerns about the Chinese ownership of the app.
Last week, the Supreme Court listened to the arguments from ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, claiming the law violated free speech.
“There is no doubt that TikTok provides a unique platform for expression, engagement, and community to over 170 million Americans,” the justices stated.
With this decision, the ban set for Sunday remains in place, despite calls from lawmakers and officials across the political spectrum for a delay.
Last year, Congress passed a law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or shut it down in the US by January 19, reflecting widespread concerns in Washington that the app could be exploited by China for espionage or propaganda.
On Friday, White House officials informed the media that the ban would not be enforced, leaving the final decision to President-elect Donald Trump, who assumes office the next day.
In December 2024, TikTok asked the US Supreme Court to temporarily block a law that would force its Chinese owner to sell the popular video-sharing platform or shut it down by January 19.
The appeal came the same day TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, CEO, met with US President-elect Donald Trump.
Federal government has plans to expand the national social register to 18.1 million names and to reach at least 70 million poor households across the country by the end of this year, according to Prof Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda, minister, Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHADMSD).
Federal government has been distributing cash assistance to poor citizens through a program that requires verification using the National Identification Number (NIN).
The rate of poverty in the country is alarming, the minister said in an interview with Arise News, reason why the federal government plans to extend the humanitarian outreach program to target more homes. Each household receives the sum of N75,000 ($45).
Giving update on the payments, the minister said the first tranche of the conditional cash transfers were paid to five million households between October and December 2024, while the second and third tranches were paid to 2.8 million households.
“The president has directed, based on CBN’s new regulations, that before any payment is made to an individual or household, they must have a digital identity we can trace. That is the NIN number,” the Yilwatda told Arise News.
The cash transfer enabled by digital ID was launched in 2023, and last year, the federal government said around 25 million Nigerians had already benefitted from the scheme.
National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has granted licence for the Nigerian Correctional Service, (NCoS) to register inmates in the over 252 custodial centres across the country for National Identity Numbers, (NIN).
The approval followed the request made by Sylvester Nwakuche, acting controller general of the NCoS, who paid a visit to Engr Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general/chief executive Officer of NIMC, in her office.
The acting controller-general, said the licence to carry out registration of inmates for NIN would eliminate exclusion of inmates from the country’s National Development plans, ensure their safety and security and facilitate their smooth recapture in times of jailbreaks.
The NCoS boss said the visit to the headquarters of NIMC was in search of collaboration that would enable the Service carry out its mandate seamlessly following on going reforms of the Correctional Service system.
According to Nwakuche, there are lots of socio-economic developments within the Correctional Service systems which had led to a number of inmates obtaining University degrees, Masters Degrees and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in various fields.
He said such inmates should not be excluded from the national development plans of the country as they should be integrated into the society to become useful for their families and the country.
Nwakuche said inside the Correctional centres are those awaiting trials whose innocence and otherwise has to be decided by the Courts, but argued that in times of National planning, census and other critical national development issues, they should not be disallowed from participating.
Coker-Odusote who granted the licence said NIN has become critical and essential to the country’s national development plans, stressing that NIMC has gone far with the private sector, especially the banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as all banks accounts are now linked with the NIN.
Coker-Odusote said the Eight points Agenda of President Bola Tinubu are also anchored on the Country’s digital identity or National identity Number, stressing that for instance NIN was tied to students loans to eradicate duplicity and prevent ghost beneficiaries.
Coker-Odusote expressed delight in the partnership with the NCoS, saying that the Commission had already entered into partnership with the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS and other agencies in order to facilitate the smooth delivery of their constitutional mandates.
She commended Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, minister of Interior, for his dynamic leadership and role in ensuring the delivery of dividends of democracy to Nigeria through various reforms.
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