E-Financial
Inlaks Participates in Digital Banking Summit, Wins Best ICT Infrastructure Provider
Inlaks, one of the fastest-growing ICT infrastructure and systems integrator in Sub-Saharan Africa recently received an award of innovation and excellence as the “Best ICT infrastructure Provider of the year” at the just concluded 2019 Digital Banking Summit and The Digital Innovations & Excellence Awards.
The two-day event themed “Digitisation of Banking Sector – en route to a cashless Africa,” was organised by the International Centre for Strategic Alliances (ICSA) with KPMG as Knowledge Partner; First Bank Nigeria as Official Banking Partner and MasterCard as a Lead Sponsor, it also had in attendance Banks, Financial Institutions, Fintech Firms and service providers in the African Continent.
Dr Maxwell Opoku-Afari, the First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, in his keynote address urged stakeholders in the financial and banking industry to exploit digitisation to meet the needs of the unbanked and broaden services to all segments of society.
He said “The adoption of digital technology in the banking and financial space will help promote transactional efficiency in the delivery of financial services as well as scale-up and broaden financial access to all segments of the society. Digital innovation will create unprecedented opportunities for Africa to grow its economy, create jobs, and transform people’s lives”.
Making a presentation on the topic ‘Improving Customer Experience through Digital Retail Banking Transformation’ at the Summit, Olufemi Muraino, Executive Director at Inlaks said: “Traditional banks must constantly innovate to stay relevant in the face of fast-growing technology or risk losing customers they cultivate over decades.
“Exceptional customer experience goes beyond standard online services; innovation is required because digitisation never stops. Digital transformation is a continuous process; there is no such thing as a start and a finish”.
Reacting to a Global CEO Survey across all sectors business leaders conducted by PwC, 70% of the leaders expressed their biggest concerns on the speed of technological change in financial services noting that the Digital Banking Summit was indeed a great avenue for African decision-makers to strategise and make plans for a better future.
It should be noted that Inlaks was also recently awarded “Technology Solutions Company of the Year” by the Nigerian Leadership Award and “Banking Technology Solutions Provider of the Year” by the Ghana Information, Technology, and Telecoms Award (GITTA) earlier in 2019.
E-Financial
Lagos State Appoints MoneyMaster as Payment Partner for “Ounje Eko” Programme
“Ounje Eko”, the food price discount initiative of the Lagos State Government, has appointed leading payment service bank, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank Limited (MMPSB), as its collaborator in the bid to ensure ease of payments at the market.
MoneyMaster is one of the Central Bank of Nigeria-licensed Payment Service Banks (PSBs) to promote financial inclusion across Nigeria.
Under the partnership, MMPSB will apply its cutting-edge payment solution to engender easy payment and reconciliation in order to make the experiences of Lagosians who will be getting their food supplies from the markets pleasurable. Its payment solution is also all-encompassing and ensures real time value to payment destinations.
The mobile bank was appointed as the collection and payment partner for “Ounje Eko” Food Markets programme which is a government initiative serving the five divisions of Lagos State. Consequent on this, MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank will collect payments in 57 LCDAs in the state.
The partnership gives credence to the quality of payment solutions that MoneyMaster is reputed for in its services to its growing business clientele in private and public sectors.
E-Financial
CBN, EFCC Probe Banks, Firms over Alleged Forex Racketeering
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is investigating irregular foreign exchange transactions and forward contracts valued at approximately $2.4 billion.
The inquiry follows an extensive audit by Deloitte, which scrutinized $7 billion in dollar debts accumulated under the bank’s previous leadership.
In the aftermath of the 294th Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja, Yemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, disclosed to journalists that the investigation, supported by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, among other security bodies, aims to clarify the legitimacy of these FX allocations identified as problematic by the audit.
“It was determined that a number of these transactions did not qualify…they were outright illegal. The law enforcement agencies are now looking into those transactions that as far as we are concerned, are not valid to be paid,” Cardoso detailed, emphasizing the unlawful nature of these forex deals.
The crux of the investigation lies in the audit findings that a significant portion of the scrutinized transactions lacked proper documentation and, in many instances, were deemed outright illegal.
However, the unfolding investigation has raised concerns within the organized private sector, with some entities contemplating legal action against commercial banks for unresolved forex bids.
Despite these tensions, Governor Cardoso reassures that the foreign exchange market remains open and transparent, inviting stakeholders to address their forex needs through the official channels.
Furthermore, Cardoso clarified the distribution of fertilizers to farmers as a one-off measure and not indicative of a shift back to direct interventions by the CBN, underscoring a commitment to strategic, regulatory governance rather than direct market involvement.
E-Financial
CBN Urges Banks to Expedite Action on Recapitalisation
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed deposit money banks in the country to expedite action to increase their capital base from the current ₦25bn.
Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, stated this during the apex bank’s 294th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Tuesday in Abuja, when the MPC hiked the interest rate by 22.75% to 24.75%.
The apex bank chief said the MPC examined developments in the banking sector and expressed satisfaction that the industry remained stable. The committee, however, said to guard against risk, commercial banks in the country should accelerate their recapitalisation efforts.
Cardoso said, “The MPC also reviewed developments in the banking system and noted that the industry remains safe, sound, and stable. The committee thus called on the bank to sustain its surveillance and ensure compliance of banks with existing regulatory and macro-potential guidelines.
“The MPC also enjoined the banks to expedite actions on the recapitalisation of banks to strengthen the system against potential risks in an increasingly globalised world.”
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