News
More People to Own Phone than Have Electricity By 2020 – Cisco
The proliferation of mobile phones will continue as mobile data traffic jumps tenfold over the next four years, according to a study by Cisco.
Everywhere you turn, someone’s glued to the screen of a phone, e-mailing, posting status updates or playing a mobile game. But that’s largely in developed countries like the US or those in Western Europe. In many developing countries, even a basic “dumb” phone is a luxury.
That’s poised to change in the next four years. By 2020, 5.4 billion people around the world will have a phone, according to Cisco’s annual report on mobile traffic growth. In comparison, 5.3 billion people will have electricity, 3.5 billion will have running water and 2.8 billion cars will be on the road.
The mass adoption of phones underscores society’s increasing reliance on handsets for all facets of life. Yes, you can use the device to make a call, but you can also message your friends and families, pay for goods and services, turn on the lights in your home or binge-watch “Boardwalk Empire.” Cisco’s report forecasts a tenfold growth in mobile data traffic to 366.8 exabytes by 2020.
What is 366.8 exabytes? That’s the equivalent of 81 trillion Instagram photos or 7 trillion YouTube clips.
And while there’s all sorts of hype over the Internet of Things, or the concept that every gadget and appliance is connected and talking to each other, it’ll be the phones that remain the center of our lives. Phones will make up 81 percent of total mobile traffic.
In total, Cisco estimates that there will be 11.6 billion mobile-ready devices in 2020, up from 7.9 billion last year.
The company believes wearable devices and machine-to-machine connections will continue to drive that number up.
The year 2020 is when many in the industry expect next-generation, superfast 5G wireless technology to truly kick off in wide scale, which should jump-start both wireless speeds and the type of devices that get a connection.
The global average network speed will more than triple to 6.5 megabits per second, Cisco said. Many developed countries with modern LTE networks already exceed that.
The US carriers, for instance, now average 9.9 megabits per second. But the rise in the global average will have a major impact on developing countries where the mobile infrastructure is still in its infancy.
The Middle East and Africa are expected to have the highest growth rate in mobile data with a 15-fold increase.
By that time, more than 75 percent of the world’s mobile data will be video. That’s a lot of clips of adorable cats.
Xora Finance has announced it will no longer consider job applicants from Nigeria.
Xora Finance is a digital bank founded by Joren Lundgren, in February 2026 and allows users to deposit and earn interest on their XRP cryptocurrency.
Lundgren, founder, in an announcement on X (formerly Twitter), cited an ongoing pattern of misconduct, such as dishonesty and theft, from previous Nigerian hires as the reason for the decision.
This sudden blanket ban came just days after the company’s official career page was aggressively recruiting remote workers for marketing and content roles.
The announcement generated heavy backlash online, with many people upset that a blanket rule punishes honest job seekers.
Some lawyers have said that victims of Ponzi schemes have legal remedies, although recovering lost funds and prosecuting perpetrators remain major challenges.
A Ponzi scheme is an investment fraud that pays existing investors with funds collected from new participants rather than from actual profits.
Operators lure victims by promising high returns with little to no risk.
The scheme inevitably collapses when the flow of new investors slows down.
Some lawyers who spoke to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) separate interviews with on Sunday, said that victims could pursue civil actions to recover their money.
Mr Chibuikem Opara, a lawyer at Justification Chambers, Ikeja,said many Nigerians continued to fall victim to Ponzi schemes in spite of repeated warnings.
Opara said it was wrong to attribute participation in Ponzi schemes to a lack of investment opportunities, noting that promoters often exploit investors’ greed through promises of unrealistic returns.
“What you cannot take away is the fact that many Nigerians have fallen and continue to fall victim to these schemes every time,” he said.
According to him, victims may individually or collectively institute civil actions against the beneficiary company for breach of contract or refund arising from failure of consideration.
Opara said victims could also unite to seek an order from the Federal High Court to wind up the beneficiary company.
He, however, noted that such efforts might yield little benefit if perpetrators had already siphoned the funds and left behind an empty shell.
The lawyer said available remedies largely depended on the actions of relevant authorities, adding that recipient accounts could be frozen to facilitate fund recovery and support winding-up proceedings.
Opara said regulators and law enforcement agencies often became aware of Ponzi schemes only after substantial losses had occurred.
According to him, victims frequently failed to report suspicious schemes early enough to enable timely intervention.
He added that funds are sometimes moved outside the country before authorities become aware of the fraud.
Opara also cited inadequate information and the deceptive nature of the schemes as major obstacles to investigation and prosecution.
“Most times, everything about the schemes is made to appear elusive, just like the profits promised to victims,” he said.
Also speaking, Mr Vincent Aminu of A.F. Aminu and Co. advised that victims of investment scams should report such cases to appropriate law enforcement agencies on time.
Aminu said victims could petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or file reports with the police.
He said that after investigation, prosecutors could bring charges against suspects under relevant fraud-related laws, including provisions of the Criminal Code and the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act.
Beyond criminal prosecution, Aminu said .victims could pursue civil actions to recover their money
According to him, such actions may be based on breach of contract, unjust enrichment, or fraudulent misrepresentation, depending on the circumstances.
He added that victims could petition the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which could investigate illegal operators, shut down unauthorised platforms, and freeze assets.
He identified the anonymity of online fraudsters as one of the biggest challenges confronting investigators.
According to him, many operators concealed their identities through fake digital profiles and technologies that made tracking them difficult.
Aminu also noted that victims who delayed taking legal action risked losing opportunities for redress.
He added that prolonged court proceedings often delayed justice for victims.
“Many fraud-related cases take years before the court reaches a verdict, thereby delaying justice for victims,” he said.
Also, Mr Chris Ayiyi of Ayiyi Chambers, Apapa, described Ponzi schemes as a gamble that benefited early participants at the expense of later investors.
Ayiyi said some early entrants received returns on their investments, thereby encouraging others to join the schemes.
He said the schemes eventually collapsed, leaving late investors to bear the losses
The lawyer called for a complete ban on Ponzi schemes or sustained public enlightenment campaigns against them.
He urged the National Assembly to enact laws that would strengthen regulation and provide greater protection for investors.
According to him, stronger legal safeguards are necessary in a country operating a capital-based economy.
PalmPay Group (“PalmPay”), a multinational fintech company providing digital financial services across high-growth emerging markets, is pleased to appoint Samuel Oluyemi as Chief Operating Officer (“COO”) of its Nigeria practice, effective immediately.
The appointment comes at a pivotal moment for PalmPay as it looks to reach more underserved communities and continuously strengthen the reliability and security of its services. It also comes as Nigeria’s broader financial services sector continues to modernize, bring millions more Nigerians into the formal financial system, and strengthen the cybersecurity and fraud-prevention standards that underpin public confidence in digital payments.
As COO of PalmPay Nigeria, Mr. Oluyemi will oversee PalmPay’s Nigerian operations — where the company provides a full suite of digital financial services to individuals and businesses — and communicate with regulators to ensure the company’s growth happens harmoniously with the country’s financial, digital, and social inclusion goals.
Mr. Oluyemi brings more than two decades of experience at the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (“NIBSS”). During his tenure as the Business Development Lead, he championed the development of key national payment services — including the Digital Validation of Nigerian International Passport (e-Passport Validation), Electronic Dividend Mandate Management System (“e-DMMS”), and the Electronic Pensions Contribution Collection System (“EPCCOS”) — and played a pivotal role in introducing and driving early adoption of NIBSS Instant Payment (“NIP”), Nigeria’s first online, real-time, inter-bank transfer system in 2011 and its subsequent extension to the Other Financial Institutions (“OFI”) segment of the Nigeria Payments System.
He holds an MSc in Monetary Economics from the University of Ibadan with extensive local and international professional training.
“Samuel joins PalmPay at an important stage in our journey to strengthen the foundations that will support our long-term goal of driving financial inclusion,” said Chika Nwosu, Managing Director of PalmPay Nigeria. “His extensive experience makes him well positioned to help us scale sustainably while maintaining the operational discipline, governance and customer-first culture that define PalmPay.”
“PalmPay has established itself as one of the most impactful fintech companies in emerging markets by making financial services more accessible and affordable for millions of people,” said Mr. Oluyemi.
“I am excited to join the company and look forward to working alongside an exceptional team to strengthen operational excellence and support PalmPay’s vision of building a leading digital financial services platform. Together, we will continue delivering secure, reliable, and customer-focused financial solutions while contributing to the continued evolution of Nigeria’s digital financial ecosystem.”
As Nigeria’s digital financial services sector continues to mature, this appointment reflects a broader commitment guiding PalmPay across all markets it serves: building financial services that are secure, reliable, and effective enough to earn a permanent place in people’s everyday lives.
Xora Finance, Fintech Firm Refuses to Hire Nigerians over Alleged Dishonesty
FG Secures Fresh $208.3m World Bank Loan for Cash Transfer
How Ponzi Scheme Victims can Seek Legal Remedies — Lawyers
SERAP Sues INEC over Alleged N800Bn 2027 Tinubu Campaign Fund
Kaigama,Catholic Archbishop of Abuja Warns against Misuse of AI
NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira
Nigeria Launches FreeTV Nationwide
NASENI Moves to Digitize CCB’s 5m Assets Declaration and Operations
Lebara Nigeria Launches Lebara Play, Africa’s First Telecom-Owned Micro-Drama Platform
CANAL+ Partners Samsung to Pre-Load DStv Stream on New Samsung TVs In Nigeria, Other African Countries
Telecom3 days agoDStv, GOtv Owner MultiChoice Officially Joins Canal+ Group
News2 days agoPolice Busts Syndicate Who Allegedly Stole N3Bn from Financial Institution
Telecom2 days agoMTN Accelerates Network Expansion to Meet Surging Telecom Demand
Telecom3 days agoAirtel Africa to Connect 5,000 Schools to Free Internet by 2027
E-Financial3 days agoSEC Unveils Plans to Enforce Mandatory ESG Reporting for Large Firms Next Year
Broadcasting3 days agoFrom Scarcity to Scale: What Africa Can Learn from India’s Agricultural Transformation
E-Business3 days agoTeKnowledge, Equinix Partner to Advance Nigerian Digital Infrastructure
General News3 days agoNSIB Faults Runway Identification, Reveals Cockpit Disagreement in Asaba Jet Incident