E-Financial
Aladdin Digital Bank Launches App to Enhance Customer Satisfaction
Aladdin Digital Bank has launched its digital App ‘Aladdin Finance’ that will cater for the banking needs of a wide range of customers, including young professionals and ordinary Nigerians with legitimate endeavours they do for a living.
According to a statement, Aladdin Digital Bank, which is powered by PurpleMoney Microfinance Bank, “seamlessly combines banking and commerce, and supports your hustle by giving you the tools you need to save, borrow, make payments while selling your products and services to other members on the platform.”
The Aladdin App, which was launched recently, and had over 10,000 downloads on Google Play Store as of March 2021, and has been described as a revolutionary app by leading experts in the Fintech industry.
According to Darlington Onyeagoro, the Co-Founder/Chief Executive Officer, Aladdin Digital Bank, the Aladdin Finance App provides a user-friendly platform for customers to process transactions such as paying bills, buying airtime and data, and transferring money to any bank in Nigeria.
The launch of the Aladdin Finance App is targeted at Nigerians who own and operate a smartphone.
However, Onyeagoro added that the bank, through its, “Aladdin Economy,” also provides an avenue for customers who do not have smartphones to access its services. This is in line with its motto as “the bank that supports your hustle.”
“Our team can engage the market women or others in society and help them save their money on the App and help them participate in Aladdin Economy. So, we have our team in different parts of Lagos, as well as other states, to achieve this seamless process,” he said.
Onyeagoro added, “Aladdin is going to be the first Marketplace Digital Bank in Africa to humanize customers. By humanising customers, we are putting a face to the name. You are not just an account number, you are a human being, and as humans, you need to eat, make money and other things.
“Each customer is unique; that is why for the first time, we are breaking barriers so we can reach each one personally. We run a platform structure where every customer has a unique page where their details can search beyond the account numbers.”
Aladdin Finance App can be downloaded on Google Play Store, for Android device owners, with an IOS version underway, for IOS device owners.
To mark the Aladdin Finance App’s launch, the digital bank disclosed that it would also be offering its customer free banking with no charge rates, where customers can carry out their transfers and transactions to other banks for free.
“Traditional banking charge NGN25 per transfer, but we are charging Zero Naira for now. We bear the cost for now. So, we offer free banking for at least between one to three months of our operation to encourage them. All transactions are free for now,” Onyeagoro said.
The app also has several features that will cater to each customer, including seamless customer service, rewards on savings, high interest rates up to 16 per cent (subject to money market reality), and access to different types of loans for emergencies.
Onyeagoro explained: “We have two types of loan on the App; Nano loans and Micro loans. Nano loans are loans between N1,500 to N50,000; while Micro loans range from N50,000 to N1Million.
It all depends on the customer’s need and the kind of documentation that customer has, and their credit ratings. Customers are evaluated and the internal scorecard will determine the loan amount each customer qualifies for.”
To encourage savings for customers to meet their business and personal needs, Aladdin Bank will also be rewarding its customers through a weekly raffle draw on its online platform, where amounts saved from N5,000 and above with the bank will give each customer a virtual ticket for a raffle draw.
According to Onyeagoro, “Every N5,000 is equivalent to one ticket, and N10,000 will give you two tickets. While N50,000 gives 10 tickets for the draw, N100,000 will give 20 tickets.
So, the more you save, the more tickets you have and the more chances you have to win something spectacular for yourself as a customer every Friday. We also provide our customers’ chances to win fantastic prizes on our platform beyond banking with us.
“In that way, we are encouraging our customers to save towards their goals. For example, if you want to travel, pay your rent, children’s school fees, etc., whatever you want to do, you can set targets for yourself and save towards it. So, while you are saving towards your target, we are also paying you a competitive interest rate.”
Renaissance Capital Africa (Rencap) has named Zenith Bank Plc its top conviction pick among Nigerian banks, ahead of GTCO and AccessCorp, in a fresh research report highlighting the lender’s robust balance sheet and dividend potential despite sector headwinds.
Zenith Bank
The comprehensive review of the Nigerian banking industry notes that Zenith’s current market valuation lags its improving fundamentals, even as the NGX Banking Index posts strong gains recently.
Rencap upgraded Zenith from HOLD to BUY, lifting its target price by 96 per cent based on a lower risk-free rate from falling government bond yields, refined beta estimates, and expectations of cleaner assets post-forybearance resolutions.
Balance Sheet Strength Drives Outlook
Analysts project challenges to earnings growth from anticipated Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rate cuts but foresee higher dividend payouts from resolved forbearance and single obligor loan (SOL) exposures alongside rising cash profits.
“Although we expect banks to face challenges in growing earnings… the balance sheet clean-up… will support higher dividend payouts relative to prior years,” the report states, ranking Zenith first, followed by GTCO and AccessCorp.
Key positives include loan write-offs that bolstered asset quality, enabling sustainable growth amid financial system reforms.
Dividend Recovery in Focus
Sector profitability from 2023-2024 was inflated by unrealised foreign exchange gains, which regulations barred from cash dividends, capping payouts despite headline profits.
Zenith historically led payout ratios in 2021-2022 via strong cash generation and capital discipline; Rencap expects a rebound as pressures ease, attracting income-focused investors.
Tier-1 Leadership Reinforced
Zenith Bank recently topped Nigeria’s tier-1 capital rankings for the 16th straight year, per The Banker magazine (Financial Times), affirming its resilience and positioning for long-term value creation.
CBN
- Access Bank Plc
- Fidelity Bank Plc
- First Bank of Nigeria Ltd
- Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank)
- United Bank for Africa (UBA)
- Zenith Bank Plc
- FCMB (First City Monument Bank) – currently pushing to raise additional capital to secure its international licence.
- Wema Bank
- Standard Chartered Bank (Nigeria)
- Citibank Nigeria
- Stanbic IBTC Bank
- Sterling Bank
- Globus Bank
- Premium Trust Bank
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revised the minimum capital applicable to all categories of regulated capital market entities after 10 years.
The minimum capital review, according to the SEC, is informed by the need to strengthen market resilience, enhance investor protection, align capital adequacy with the evolving risk profile of market activities, and ensure that regulated entities possess sufficient financial capacity to discharge their obligations in a sustainable manner.
“The revised Minimum Capital framework seeks to: enhance the financial soundness and operational resilience of market operators; align capital requirements with the scope, complexity, and risk exposure of regulated activities; promote market stability and systemic risk mitigation; and support innovation and orderly development of new market segments, including digital assets and commodities markets,” SEC said in a January 16 circular to market operators.
The SEC circular was sent to all entities regulated by the Commission, including but not limited to core and non-core capital market operators; market infrastructure institutions; capital market consultants; financial technology (FinTech) operators; Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs); and Commodity market intermediaries.
All affected entities are required to comply with the revised Minimum Capital Requirements on or before June 30, 2027, the circular said.
“Entities that fail to meet the prescribed requirements within the stipulated timeline shall be subject to appropriate regulatory sanctions, including suspension or withdrawal of registration, as may be determined by the Commission,” SEC said.
Tier-1 Portfolio Managers (Full Scope) involved in the management of Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) and Alternative Investment Funds (Private Equity, Venture Capital, Infrastructure Funds etc) above N20 billion Net Asset Value (NAV), or discretionary and Non-Discretionary Private Portfolio Management Services above N20 billion Assets under Management (AuM), or exposure to foreign instruments up to 40 percent of the NAV are now required to have a minimum capital of N5 billion as against N150 million.
“Any Fund and Portfolio Manager with NAV/AuM of more than N100billion should have a minimum of 10 percent of the NAV/AuM as capital,” SEC added.
For the Tier-2 fund/portfolio managers (Limited Scope) who are in the business of management of Collective Investment Schemes with limited pooled fund creation of not more than 10 times the required capital (N20 billion) on Net Asset Value (NAV), or discretionary and non-discretionary private portfolio management services of not more than N20 billion, or those exposure to foreign instruments of not more than 20 percent of the NAV, now require N2 billion as minimum capital as against low of N150 million.
Likewise, broker-dealers whose services include: client execution, proprietary trading, margin/securities lending and advisory services no longer require N300 million minimum capital to operate but N2 billion.
The SEC said the minimum capital review from 2015 low is in line with its mandate under the Investments and Securities Act 2025 to regulate and develop the Nigerian capital market.
Also, Tier 1 issuing houses who do non-interest finance services, advisory & arrangement services but no underwriting now require N2 billion as against N200 million; while Tier 2 –issuing houses with underwriting and offers a ‘one-stop-shop’ for issuers, provides underwriting services, and renders advisory and product development services require N7 billion minimum capital for this business as against N200 million.
Also, the minimum capital requirement for brokers (client execution only) has been jacked up from N200 million to N600 million, while that of dealers (proprietary trading only) has been moved from N100 million to N1 billion.
Broker-Dealers’ (client execution, proprietary trading, margin/securities lending and advisory services) has been raised from N300 million to N2 billion, while Sub-Brokers’ (Digital) from N10million to N100million; Sub-Broker (Corporate) has been increased from N10million to N50 million. Also, sub-brokers’ (Individual) now need N10 million minimum capital for the business as against N2 million while inter-dealer brokers require N2 billion as against N50 million.
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