Author: ITPulse

By Henry Obiekea Nigeria’s banking industry is entering one of the most significant transformation periods since the 2005 banking consolidation exercise. The Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) ongoing recapitalisation programme is more than a regulatory requirement—it is a strategic investment in the country’s financial future. If implemented successfully, it has the potential to strengthen financial stability, deepen credit access, improve investor confidence, and support a more inclusive and resilient economy. In March 2024, the CBN announced new minimum capital requirements for commercial, merchant and non-interest banks. Under the new framework, international commercial banks are required to maintain a minimum paid-up…

Nigeria’s rapidly expanding digital economy, currently projected to hit a valuation of $18.3 billion by the end of the year, faces a severe bottleneck due to chronic underinvestment in essential digital infrastructure and a widening digital divide. Speaking at the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA) Innovative and Scientific Conference last week, Lanre Idowu, Divisional Head of Financial Industry Partnerships at Remita, warned that the full economic benefits of this growth will remain out of reach for millions of citizens unless critical systemic gaps are urgently addressed. Addressing tech industry stakeholders, Idowu outlined the reality of Nigeria’s tech landscape as…

By Epiphanus Obia  Nigeria is set to expand its national digital identity programme under a five-year initiative backed by $433 million in funding from the World Bank, Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the European Union, as the country seeks to give more citizens a recognised digital identity that can be used to access public services. The project will be implemented through the National Identity Management Commission’s (NIMC) Digital Identity Ecosystem framework, which is designed to bring together government agencies, private companies and civil society organisations to enrol Nigerians into the National Identity Database and issue National Identity Numbers (NINs).…

By Epiphanus Obia Nigeria’s proposed law requiring major social media platforms and other digital service providers to establish physical offices in the country has cleared another legislative hurdle, although concerns over its enforcement powers continue to divide supporters and critics. The bill, which seeks to amend the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, advanced after a public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security on Wednesday, 22nd July, 2026. The proposal had earlier passed its second reading in the Senate in March 2025 but must still pass a third reading, secure approval from the House of Representatives…

Cybercriminals are increasingly shifting their attention to artificial intelligence platforms as AI becomes part of everyday work and online life, with ChatGPT entering the world’s 10 most impersonated brands in phishing attacks for the first time. The finding comes from Check Point Research’s (CPR) Brand Phishing Ranking for the second quarter of 2026, which tracks the brands most frequently imitated by attackers to steal people’s passwords, payment details and other sensitive information. While Microsoft remained the most impersonated brand, accounting for 22.6% of phishing attempts recorded during the quarter, researchers said the appearance of ChatGPT in the top 10 signals…

By Epiphanus Obia  Nigeria is seeking to expand its homegrown artificial intelligence language initiative beyond its borders with the launch of the African Technology and Language Alliance for AI at Scale (ATLAS) Network, a continent-wide collaboration aimed at developing AI models that better understand Africa’s languages, cultures and knowledge systems. The initiative was unveiled on Thursday, 23rd July, by the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, during the opening of the 7th Ordinary Session of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) Conference of Plenipotentiaries in Abuja. ATLAS builds on Nigeria’s Nigerian Atlas for Languages and AI at Scale…

By Epiphanus Obia  TikTok removed more than 4.8 million videos uploaded from Nigeria between January and March 2026, but the takedowns represented just 0.6% of all content posted by Nigerian users during the quarter, according to the platform’s latest Community Guidelines Enforcement Report. The figures suggest that about 99.4% of videos uploaded from Nigeria during the period complied with TikTok’s rules, even as the platform continued to ramp up enforcement against policy-violating content. The latest report also shows that the number of videos removed in Nigeria increased from about four million in the fourth quarter of 2025 to 4.8 million…

The Nigeria Information Technology Reporters Association (NITRA) successfully hosted its flagship Innovative and Scientific Conference, rallying key ICT sector leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to address the critical gaps in Nigeria’s technology landscape. Held under the theme “Bridging Nigeria’s Digital Divide with Scientific Innovation,” the forum highlighted the urgent need to pair policy reforms and infrastructure expansion with grassroots mobilization to ensure inclusive economic growth. Opening the conference, Chike Onwuegbuchi, Chairman of NITRA, noted that the digital divide in Nigeria is not just about infrastructure, but it’s about ensuring that our digital transformation is truly inclusive. “We cannot build a…

By Martin Ekpeke While renewable energy, particularly solar, has emerged as the most viable alternative, developers and financiers face significant operational bottlenecks that slow down deployment, making access to stable electricity a critical hurdle for businesses and communities across Nigeria and the wider African continent. But addressing these systemic friction points is Telios, an emerging energy-technology company streamlining how renewable energy power plants are built, operated, and funded. Speaking at a meet-up in Lagos organized by Antler, Olubunmi Olajide, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Telios, highlighted that while capital exists in commercial banks and specialized funds, the process of…

The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Aminu Maida, has called for a fundamental shift in Nigeria’s regulatory approach to keep pace with rapid technological change, stressing that trust, resilient digital infrastructure and adaptive regulation will determine the country’s success in the emerging digital economy. Delivering the keynote address at the Titans of Tech Conference & Expo 2026, Dr. Maida said regulators must evolve from being reactive rule-makers to proactive enablers of innovation capable of balancing technological advancement with consumer protection, national security and economic growth. Speaking on the conference theme, “Regulation…