Africa’s foremost serial digital entrepreneur, Leo Stan Ekeh, has explained why he has stayed away from politics even when he had the opportunity to make a success out of it. He also expressed overflowing gratitude to Nigeria, a country he said has “boosted and blessed me.”

Leo Stan Ekeh, Zinox Founder

On whether he would join politics after a successful run in entrepreneurship, he said: “Me, politics? No. I would have been governor of my state long, long ago, but politics is not my calling. However, I support progressive, ideas-driven politicians across the country,” he said.

Ekeh who is the Chairman of Zinox Group was responding to questions during a forum of select mentees of young entrepreneurs which ended late Thursday. He recalled his early beginning in the nation’s Information Communication Technology (ICT) marketplace after returning to Nigeria from the United Kingdom.

The Zinox chief who turns 70 on February 22 took the mentees down memory lane, recalling how he introduced desktop publishing and switching the nation’s publishing landscape from analogue to digital as well as scaling up his business into what has become a conglomerate today.

“I returned to Nigeria from the United Kingdom after quitting my post-graduate programme because I believed so much in this country and the opportunities it presents. Though the country has blessed and bruised me, my dream was unambiguous: to propagate what I called ‘digital democracy’ in a country that in those days was wholly analogue. Today, I will say to a large extent that Nigeria has helped me to actualize my dream, though there is still work to be done.

“Once we were done with digitizing the media, we moved strongly into oil and gas, financial sector, and public sector where we impacted heavily on e-governance. Our ambitious Computerise Nigeria initiative ensured that homes, educational institutions, and ministries, parastatals and agencies (MDAs) which had no access to computers had access. We did not just dump computers on the people, we ensured they were skilled-up to effectively use the systems for enhanced productivity. Nigeria offered me the opportunity to do all this for which I am grateful,” he told the mentees.

Ekeh, an Imo state indigene, was in Owerri at the weekend with other dignitaries including Vice President Kashim Shettima and many governors, politicians and captains of industry at the grand finale of the Imo at 50 celebrations, where he was honoured with the Distinguished Star of Imo State (DSI) award.

While responding to questions on the state of the economy, Ekeh commended President Tinubu for the courage to start the reforms from the day he assumed office, arguing that any delay would have shrank the economy further and completely wiped out investors’ confidence in the Nigerian economy.

He referenced the recent verdicts from the World Bank and the Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) as evidence that what indigenous entrepreneurs have been saying about the Tinubu reforms as truly progressive is not a farce.

“As a major player in Africa’s ICT ecosystem, I can assure you that major multinationals in this sector are not only investing more in Nigeria, they are collaborating with indigenous players and this is evident in the contribution of the ICT sector to the GDP.

“You will recall that the World Bank Managing Director, Anna Bjerde, who was in Nigeria recently, said Nigeria is now frequently cited globally as an example of steady, credible reform leadership. That says a lot about what entrepreneurs and employers of labour like me have continued to say about the Tinubu government.

“Sentiments aside, President Tinubu is a well exposed visionary leader. He is investment-friendly, he is courageous and he is a good team player. This has impacted the brave decisions he has taken and I am happy that global bodies like the World Bank, and the WTO are talking about it. I have known the President for many years and he has remained consistent to his commitment to national development. I speak here as an entrepreneur, not a politician. I don’t play politics. I am not a politician and I will not be one. I play in the digital space which is the enabler of development and I am happy doing what I’m doing,” Ekeh said.

He recalled Tinubu’s role when he launched the Zinox range of digital products in 2001 when Tinubu was governor of Lagos State, stressing that he has no reason not to support him the way he supports his governor.

“As host governor, he took over the show, owned it and drove it. And that’s because he was futuristic and driven by the vision of a digitally-driven economy. Tinubu is driven by pragmatism,” he said.

He charged the mentees to stay focused on their track and be intentional in their commitment to keep forging ahead even when the tide seems against them; adding that “entrepreneurship anywhere in the world is tough but with patience, perseverance and commitment, you will push through the veil.”

Nigeria and Kenya are the next target markets for Identy.io, a global provider of digital identities, as it expands into Africa. Facial, fingerprint, and palm identification are among the safe, mobile biometrics that the company specialises in.

According to Indenty.io, its platform runs locally on smartphones, eliminating cloud storage while maintaining security and privacy.

It goes to say this is achieved by leveraging standard smartphones for fingerprint and face scans, the company aims to bridge the continent’s digital divide, where a significant number of adults still lack basic identification.

To spearhead this rollout, the firm has appointed a specialised regional leadership team, including industry veterans from Nigeria’s Bank Verification Number programme, to integrate their automated Biometric Identification System into national digital public infrastructure.

The company says the significance of this move lies in the departure from traditional, “clunky” biometric models.

Historically, digital ID enrollment in Sub-Saharan Africa has been throttled by the high cost of specialised scanners and the logistical nightmare of deploying them to rural areas.

Identy.io notes that its approach shifts the heavy lifting to mobile software.

Identy.io is positioning itself to capture a market the World Bank’s Identification for Development initiative identifies as critical for financial inclusion.

If successful, this could accelerate government-to-person payments and healthcare access in regions where coverage currently sits below 70%.

“We are transforming the traditional industry model, which often relies on expensive and inflexible digital infrastructure,” says Antony Vendhan, Co-founder of Identy.io. “This allows our clients to reach underserved communities by providing individuals with multimodal access to secure their digital identities.”

The company will face established players like IDEMIA and Thales, who have long dominated government contracts.

Furthermore, Identy.io will face competition from up-and-coming regional fintech identity firms such as Smile ID, which already has a significant presence in Know Your Customer services throughout Africa.

To gain an edge, Identy.io has aligned itself with Modular Open Source Identity Platform (MOSIP).

By being listed on the MOSIP marketplace, the company says its tech becomes “plug-and-play” for governments building open-source national ID systems, a growing trend among nations wary of “vendor lock-in.”

While the primary focus remains on Nigeria and Kenya, Identy.io’s long-term roadmap includes a phased rollout to other emerging markets.

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the nation’s financial system, announcing that its recent upward review of the maximum deposit insurance coverage now protects about 99% of depositors in the Country.

Kabir Katata, Executive Director (Operations), NDIC, stated this on Wednesday at the Corporation’s 2025 Stakeholders’ Town Hall Meeting held in Enugu.

Katata, while speaking on the theme, “Deepening Stakeholder Engagement,” said the policy to expand deposit insurance coverage was deliberately designed to protect small savers, promote financial inclusion and strengthen public confidence in the banking sector.

He explained that the town hall meeting was aimed at engaging stakeholders across various sectors, including academia, market associations and civil society groups.

“The essence of this town hall meeting is to interact with our stakeholders, tell them what we do and listen to their questions so they can better understand the role NDIC plays in society. We guarantee depositors’ funds and supervise banks to ensure that depositors are protected”, he said.

Katata noted that following the 2024 review of deposit insurance coverage, depositors in Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), Mobile Money Operators (MMOs) and Non-Interest Banks (NIBs) are now insured up to N5 million per depositor.

Similarly, depositors in Microfinance Banks (MFBs), Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs) and Payment Service Banks (PSBs) now enjoy insurance coverage of up to N2 million per depositor.

“This means that in the event of a bank failure, depositors are promptly paid up to the insured limit,” he said.

He added that depositors with balances exceeding the insured limit would receive the initial insured sum, while the outstanding balance would be paid as liquidation dividends upon realisation of the failed bank’s assets and recovery of debts.

Highlighting improvements in the payout process, Katata referenced the recent resolution of defunct institutions, including Heritage Bank Limited, Union Homes PLC and Aso Savings and Loans PLC.

He said that the Corporation successfully leveraged the Bank Verification Number (BVN) as a unique identifier to trace depositors’ alternative accounts and transfer insured sums within days of bank closures.

“I urge all depositors to ensure that their BVN is properly linked to their bank accounts and identity records. This greatly facilitates seamless and timely access to insured deposits in the event of bank failure,” he advised.

Katata emphasised that although the NDIC works closely with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure sound corporate governance and regulatory compliance in banks, financial system stability remains a shared responsibility.

“While the CBN and NDIC continue to strengthen oversight, depositors also have a responsibility to remain vigilant and well-informed,” he said.