VeendHQ has said that its AI-powered credit platform, Vida AI, helped recover N69 million from a N172.5 million portfolio of loans that were more than 90 days overdue, in a pilot that highlights the growing role of technology in loan recovery and portfolio management.

The result comes at a time when lenders are under increasing pressure to improve recovery outcomes while managing the cost, reputational risk, and operational burden associated with overdue loans.

For many credit providers, the challenge is no longer only how quickly loans can be approved, but how effectively repayment can be monitored and delinquent loans can be recovered after disbursement.

According to VeendHQ, the pilot delivered a 40 percent recovery rate on the overdue loan portfolio.

The company said the result significantly outperformed traditional recovery benchmarks, where a five percent recovery rate on a similar loan book would amount to about N8.6 million.

VeendHQ said the pilot demonstrates how Vida AI can support lenders beyond credit assessment, extending into repayment monitoring, collections, and recovery.

“Credit access is only one side of lending. The bigger challenge for many lenders is what happens after disbursement,” said Olufemi Olanipekun, co-founder and CEO of VeendHQ.

“Vida AI helps lenders make smarter decisions across the credit lifecycle, from approval to repayment and recovery.”

VeendHQ, a Nigerian fintech company building digital credit infrastructure, developed Vida AI as an artificial intelligence-powered platform for lenders, merchants, and financial institutions.

The platform supports credit assessment, identity verification, repayment collections, and loan management workflows.

With the recovery pilot, the company is positioning Vida AI beyond loan origination, as a tool for lenders seeking to improve repayment performance and manage overdue portfolios more efficiently.

Delinquent loans remain a major cash-flow challenge for lenders.

Once loans exceed 60 to 90 days past due, recovery becomes more difficult, expensive, and unpredictable. Traditional approaches such as manual calls, recovery agents, and legal escalation often increase costs without significantly improving recovery rates.

VeendHQ said Vida AI’s recovery workflow enables lenders to upload overdue loan records, verify borrower information, assess repayment capacity, and trigger automated recovery actions.

This gives lenders better visibility after disbursement and allows recovery teams to prioritize overdue portfolios more effectively.

“If lenders cannot recover efficiently, they become more conservative with lending. That affects consumers, small businesses, and the wider credit market,” Olanipekun said.

“Better recovery infrastructure gives lenders more confidence to lend, manage risk, and keep credit flowing.”

The company said the recovery use case is especially relevant for banks, microfinance institutions, digital lenders, cooperatives, and merchants managing loans that are 60 to 180 days past due.

It added that it plans to deepen Vida AI’s recovery capabilities for credit providers seeking to improve recovery performance without relying solely on manual methods.

“As lending expands across Nigeria and Africa, recovery infrastructure is becoming as critical as origination,” Olanipekun said. “Tools that improve both will define which lenders can scale sustainably.”

The pilot, VeendHQ says, points to a broader shift in the credit market: approval speed alone is no longer enough. Increasingly, lenders will be defined by how effectively they monitor repayment, recover overdue loans, and manage portfolio risk over time.

The MTN Foundation has disclosed that it has committed more than N32 billion to social intervention programmes across Nigeria.

It said over 32 million people benefited from the scheme since its establishment in 2004.

The interventions, it noted, have reached thousands of communities nationwide through initiatives focused on education, healthcare, youth development and economic empowerment.

Speaking at the Anti-Substance Abuse Programme (ASAP) stakeholders’ conference in Ilorin, Joseph Akpata, Kwara State Manager, Development Portfolio, said the organisation has sustained its commitment to improving lives through impactful and measurable investments.

According to him, the foundation was created as the corporate social investment vehicle of MTN Nigeria and has continued to implement programmes designed to address critical social and developmental challenges.

“Since we started in 2004, we have invested over N32 billion in impactful projects across the country, and we have been keeping our records,” Akpata said.

He stated that the foundation’s interventions have so far impacted more than 32 million people in over 30,000 communities and scores of local government areas across the federation.

Akpata noted that the fight against substance abuse among young people remains a major priority for the organisation, prompting the launch of the Anti-Substance Abuse Programme in 2019.

He explained that the initiative was designed to reduce the number of first-time drug users through sustained advocacy, awareness campaigns and educational interventions targeted at young Nigerians.

“Our goal for the Anti-Substance Abuse Programme is to contribute to reducing the number of first-time users of drugs and other substances through advocacy, education and empowerment programmes,” he said.

The MTN Foundation official revealed that the programme has already reached more than 50,400 students across Nigeria, while over 1,500 teachers have received specialised training to support the campaign.

Mrs Mosun Belo-Olusoga, chairperson of the MTN Foundation, said the organisation remains committed to safeguarding the future of young Nigerians by equipping them with the knowledge and support needed to make informed choices.

Represented by Valentina Obayemi, she said the foundation’s belief in the potential of Nigeria’s youth inspired the launch of the anti-substance abuse initiative and continues to shape its interventions.

“This year, we are taking our message directly to 50 public secondary schools across 10 states and the Federal Capital Territory, reaching more than 20,000 students at a critical stage in their lives where the right information can shape their future,” she said.

Belo-Olusoga added that the foundation plans to train 250 additional teachers to identify, support and guide students participating in drug education and quiz competition programmes.

She said the intervention is also being extended beyond secondary schools through increased engagement with tertiary institutions and grassroots advocacy platforms.

According to her, the foundation is strengthening its partnership with the National Youth Service Corps to widen awareness campaigns while continuing support for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s 24-hour toll-free psychosocial support helpline.

She noted that the collaboration is aimed at ensuring individuals battling substance abuse can access professional assistance and counselling whenever needed.

Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has commenced a comprehensive review of Mobile Termination Rates (MTR) eight years after the current rates were introduced, citing changing economic realities, technological advancements and shifts in telecommunications traffic patterns.

Mobile Termination Rates are regulated fees paid by one operator to another to complete calls across networks.

They influence competition, investment, and retail pricing.

The exercise, kicked off in Lagos at a mobile termination rate stakeholder forum on Tuesday, brought regulators, operators and industry participants into a structured process to reassess wholesale pricing rules that govern payments between networks for completing voice calls.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ engagement in Lagos, Mrs Omotayo Mohammed, head of Competition and Tariff at the NCC, said the review had become necessary because the existing rates no longer reflect prevailing operational and economic conditions in the telecommunications sector.

According to her, the current MTR stands at N3.90 per minute for generic operators and N4.70 per minute for new entrants, rates that have remained unchanged since 2018.

Mohammed noted that the telecommunications landscape has undergone significant changes over the years, driven by naira depreciation, rising inflation, escalating energy costs and evolving consumer behaviour.

“The foundation of wholesale interconnection affects every stakeholder in this room. Misaligned termination rates can enable dominant operators to foreclose smaller competitors, deter infrastructure investment and ultimately burden consumers through inflated retail prices,” she said.

She explained that the deployment of 5G networks, artificial intelligence (AI)-driven services and Internet of Things (IoT) applications has altered network usage patterns beyond what was envisaged in the 2018 cost model.

Mohammed further observed that over-the-top (OTT) platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram now account for a significant share of voice and messaging traffic, reducing dependence on traditional interconnection services.

To drive the review process, the NCC has engaged KPMG as consultant for the study and stakeholder engagement exercise, which is expected to last four months.

The exercise will also examine issues relating to Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) services and application-to-person (A2P) short message service (SMS), both of which have become increasingly critical to Nigeria’s digital economy.

Mohammed stated that the review is being conducted in line with Sections 4, 96, 97 and 108 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, which empower the commission to promote investment, protect consumers and ensure fair competition.

She said the study would establish a cost-reflective MTR framework across different technology generations, operator categories and clearing house arrangements.

The review will also cover international termination rates (ITR) to tackle grey-route traffic concerns, develop a pricing framework for mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) and assess the current asymmetric rate structure between established operators and new entrants.

“The consultancy adopts an evidence-based and consultative approach. Stakeholders will have opportunities to submit their views and validate assumptions before any determination is made,” Mohammed assured.

She added that the review is expected to enhance retail affordability, improve access to digital financial services and enable operators to recover costs in line with prevailing capital and operational expenditure realities.

According to her, transparent and cost-reflective rates will encourage infrastructure investment and boost investor confidence in Nigeria’s digital economy.

Mohammed also assured stakeholders that the NCC would make its methodology, key assumptions and cost model parameters available throughout the process to ensure transparency and accountability.

In her remarks, Mrs Nnenna Ukoha, director of Public Affairs at the NCC,  noted that mobile termination rates remain central to pricing structures, competition, service quality and overall consumer experience.

“We are particularly encouraged by the rapt attention, intellectual rigour and keen interest demonstrated by participants throughout today’s session.

“This active engagement reflects not only the relevance of the issues discussed but also a shared commitment to the sustainable growth and development of Nigeria’s telecommunications sector,” Ukoha said.

She stressed that discussions at the forum highlighted both the challenges and opportunities associated with the MTR determination process and underscored the need for sustained stakeholder engagement.

Ukoha reiterated that the consultation window remains open and encouraged industry stakeholders to submit additional inputs, data and perspectives to support a balanced, forward-looking and sustainable outcome for the sector.

She reaffirmed the NCC’s commitment to collaboration and inclusive regulation aimed at building a resilient, competitive and future-ready telecommunications industry.