Author: ITPulse

First Bank of Nigeria Limited created FirstSME Account to add to its SME product family in support of small and medium scale business owners by sustaining and expanding their business. AMAKA IFEAKANDU looks at what the facility offers and how SMEs owners can key in to boost their businesses. There is no doubt that Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SMEs) are essential for rapid and sustained economic growth and development of any nation, including Nigeria, Africa and other growing countries of the world. First Bank of Nigeria Limited, the nation’s most valuable bank brand, has over the years shown commitment towards the…

Chijioke  Ugwu, head, Partnership Development, Infobip West Africa, reechoed the need at this year’s Nigeria Fintech Week, organized by the Fintech Association of Nigeria (FintechNGR) for citizens to relate with the government in the most effective way. In his presentation titled: ‘A focus on Citizens Experience & Engagement’, the Head of Partnership Development at Infobip West Africa, identified four challenges to be improved on by the Government. These include; digital engagement agenda with results; revenue growth with citizen expectations; local capacity, and improving local content, transparency and trust in governance. With reference to the growth of fintech companies in Nigeria, he said that…

The Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Management Academy, Abuja, Mr. Peter Oyeneye has argued that for the digital economy agenda being pursuit by the Ministry of Communications and digita economy to be successful, it must leverage on effective media reportage. Mr. Peter in a presentation titled ‘Professionalism and Ethics in Modern Reportage’, which was delivered recently in Lagos during a 5-day capacity building training for ICT journalists, believes that journalism is so sensitive and important as it affects the operation of both the private and public sectors of the economy. Thus, effective media coverage must be encouraged. “There is a…

The Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mal. Kashifu Inuwa has reiterated data is a critical component of the digital economy being championed by the federal government. Thus, NITDA as an agency of the federal government in charge of Information Technology regulation, will protect personal information of Nigerians online. While speaking at a panel discussion during Nigeria Bar Association Annual General Conference held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Mal. Inuwa noted that every moment spent on the internet leaves personal data footprints on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc) and search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc) making the…

SHAREit Lite is aiming to help Nigerians access high-speed file transmission without mobile data SHAREit Lite is a flagship application to enable Nigerians to transfer files very efficiently and fast, without mobile data. Propelled by its mission to make digital content equally accessible by everyone, as the transmission-oriented utility app, it aims to smoothen the process of near distance peer-to-peer file transfer for Nigerian users. A study by Data Reportal shows that 92.4% of the total internet users in Nigeria are from smartphones. This number is forecasted to grow beyond 140 million by 2025, demonstrating the importance of the continued…

Mr. Seun Dania, a fintech player and Chief Executive Officer of Tradefada,  an advanced and easy-to-use Nigerian cryptocurrency mobile application for buying, selling and exchanging Bitcoin, has criticized the way and manner the eNaira platform, introduced by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was launched.  He argued that though, the eNaira is well timed as it has been long overdue, the apex bank planned the digital currency platform to fail, going by the inadequate research, planning and testing before the execution. “As with any project, stakeholder management is very crucial to project success. The CBN simply launched apps as if it…

The global impact of technology ever since its inception has brought about a lot of positive impact though coupled with some negative effects but we can’t downplay how it has facilitated developments across all facets of life.  The issue of virtual market navigation particularly in an African context is one of the results of Technological impact in our current disposition today. Firstly, we need an understand of what virtual market is all about, it is marketplace based on the internet where numerous companies execute economic transactions. The virtual market is an advanced development of the traditional way of marketing, although…

New data released by Konga has shown that KongaPay, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)-licensed fintech platform, is on course to grow its active subscriber base to over three million by 2022. Feelers from within the company indicate that KongaPay was recently repositioned to take a greater share of the payments market in Nigeria, a development that has seen the platform taking the fintech space by storm. The move has seen KongaPay – which has witnessed an astronomical 400% rise in adoption, growing from about 272,000 to 1.1 million subscribers within a space of less than three months and from…

The Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON) has released the considerations for this year’s Simon Agu prize for Best Software Entrepreneur award. According to ISPON, the consideration of the award, which is targeted at software startups to recognize their entrepreneurship as they build a fledgling software business, would be made based on the following criteria: Idea: what is the general idea behind the startup, how good is it and how does it make the startup rank better than other existing solutions Innovation: how innovative is the idea, how much of a disruption has it caused and what new trend…

To achieve net zero by 2050 and limit global heating to within 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, the GSMA has called on business leaders and policy makers to harness the potential of mobile connectivity and smart technology. According to GSMA, Smart technology could contribute 40% of the required carbon emissions savings for the world’s net zero goals. Thus, the need for policy maker and tech leaders to scale existing smart technology. “The risk is that without smart technology used widely, the world will miss 2050 net zero commitments. Business leaders and policymakers must act now to harness the power of mobile…