General News
Nigeria can Easily Transit to eTransactions – Chuma Ezirim
Chuma Ezirim is head, eBusiness group in First Bank Plc that is in charge of developing and managing eChannels and Card business in the bank. He holds a B.Sc in Industrial Chemistry, University of Nigeria, Nsukka and M.Sc. (in the same field), University of Ibadan. He also has a MBA from Nsukka. He is also alumnus of the prestigious Lagos Business School. Ezirim, pioneered the introduction and use of the Smartcard Payment System in Afribank Nigeria Plc as a young banking officer and served in the steering and marketing committees of the Nigeria Smartcard Scheme, where the broad product strategies for the scheme were set. He also has broad experiences from Prudent Bank, where within two years, he took the bank from 27th to the number one position in the Valucard Scheme. Ezirim, was also an assistant general manager at Skye Bank, from where he joined First Bank in November, 2010. He works directly with the group managing director of First Bank to reposition eBusiness as an important source of earnings diversification for the bank. He spoke with miebi senge, excepts:
Overview of Cashless Lagos
I am sure that we all know the objectives behind the cashless policy. We think that the policy is coming at the right time considering all that is happening in the country and I am happy that all the stakeholders have embraced that policy and then of course they are also committed to its success. Last year the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recognized the need to bring all stakeholders in the payment industry together to look at ways of reducing the amount of cash in the country and that concern was based on the risks of carrying cash and of course the cost involved in managing cash. There is also the convenience associated with using electronic payment channels to make payments.
The pilot started in Lagos on January 1 and we have had some hiccups, which are being addressed by the relevant stakeholders. CBN has also recognized the challenges in terms of rolling out the scheme; that is why they have moved implementation of the service fees to April 1, 2012 in Lagos. Between now and the end of March, all stakeholders would have had the opportunity of addressing some of these challenges.
In terms of awareness, the CBN and other stakeholders also are doing very good job in sensitizing the public. There have been several town hall meetings with key stakeholders like traders, artisans, religious groups, etc, where the policy was extensively discussed and demonstrations of the alternative channels like POS terminal were made. The sessions have been largely successful.
We think that it is still too early to start assessing performance of the policy but the good thing we have noticed is that there is a whole lot of awareness. We are getting calls from our corporate and retail customers asking us to come and talk to them about the policy, including organizing awareness sessions with their key distributors and suppliers.
Breaking Tradition of Moving Cash Around
The truth is that we cannot eliminate cash. Even in advanced markets, we still find that cash transactions account for more than 50 per cent of transactions in those markets so we cannot totally eliminate cash. The challenge we have in Nigeria is that we have a situation where we have more than 90 per cent of our transactions done with cash. For us, that is a challenge, with huge implications on key performance indices in our economy. I will like to look at it from the point of view of all key stakeholders – the economy, business, banking industry and then of course, the customers. Three things the policy aims at addressing; one is safety, convenience and cost.
For the economy, for instance the CBN spends so much printing cash. Even the cost of managing the distribution or the circulation is also a major cost.
Studies have shown that if you are able to improve on the efficiency of your payment system, it could lead to savings, which could be as much as one per cent of the GDP of a country. For me that is an achievable goal. This industry spent over 90billion in 2009 managing cash. If we can even reduce that amount by half there would be a saving that translates into investments in infrastructure to improve the quality of services we render to customers. It would also lead to reduction in the cost of funds.
For the business we know that today security is a major concern in this country. Why would a business accept cash in the office or shop, with all the attendant risks. The bad thing about cash is that once it is lost, it is lost. For me, safety is also a major issue for businesses. For those that are into retail businesses like supermarkets, it is a major issue.
For the customers, you are looking at the convenience of carrying and transacting with cash. Why would I want to carry a Ghana must go bag when access to that sum of cash is in my wallet? We know that people attack homes because of cash that is kept at home.
Are we going to make progress with this policy? The answer is yes. This country has also proved with mobile phones that though we might not be numerate but we’re not illiterates. We have over 90 million active mobile phone subscribers now in Nigeria. The truth is that if you are able to use a mobile phone, you should be able to use cards to settle for your transactions at the POS terminal or withdraw money from the ATM. It is easier to use cards than mobile phones.
I think that this country has all it takes to move from paper based transactions to e-based transactions.
Meeting Point Between Banks and Mobile Money Operators
Mobile money is one of the schemes that would support the cashless policy. There are several players in the industry and what the CBN has done is to licence some operators to operate mobile payment schemes. I know that their operations also affect this policy in the sense that instead of just depending on PoS terminals, ATMs, etc for transactions, you use your mobile phone. I think that the scheme would complement what we are doing at least in addressing some of the cash challenges we have and reaching the under-banked and unbanked.
FirstBank and the Cashless Policy
I am sure you are aware that we are the clear leader in the Nigerian payment industry. FirstBank processes about 31 per cent of transactions on the InterSwitch network. One out of every three Verve cards in the market today is a FirstBank First card. We have the highest number of active ATMs in the market. We have the highest number of active PoS terminals in the market. We have the highest number of mobile banking subscribers in the market.
I can go on and on. The truth is that we are well prepared from the acceptance point of view; we have more devices out there than any other player in this market.
In terms of cards, we have issued more cards than any other player in this market. So when we are talking of cashless policy, FirstBank has a major role to play.
The other way to look at it in terms of level of preparedness is that today we are the only bank in Nigeria where you could walk in as a customer and a card would be issued to you and activated within 15 minutes. A customer can walk into a First Bank branch, open an account and be issued a card within 15 minutes, which is also activated on the spot. We have completely eliminated the use of PIN mailers in card issuance. We also have very robust mobile and online banking platforms.
Investment in Cashless Policy
Our investment in e-channels has been on for several years and is still on-going. What we are trying to do now is to look at our processes and increase our presence in some locations by deploying more ATMs, more PoS terminals and enhancing our mobile internet banking platforms. These are basically what we are doing now. I might not be able to tell you how much we have spent in specific terms because these are investments we have made over time.
Job Loss with cashless Policy?
There would not be loss of jobs with the cashless policy. Efficiency enhances productivity. There would be cost savings and more money for people to invest in other productive sectors.
Assurance to customers
All the stakeholders with the support of the CBN have invested a lot in terms of resources and efforts in ensuring that this policy works. Most of the challenges that we have in the industry are being addressed. We are very optimistic and committed to achieving the objectives of the cashless policy.
Nigeria as hub of Cashless in Sub-Sahara Africa
Yes, Nigeria can be a financial service hub in Africa. It is a matter of planning and allocation of the right resources. The CBN is very committed to this, and working closely with banks to ensure that we deploy very efficient and secure electronic payment systems in the country. My Group Managing Director is personally driving all our alternative payment service delivery initiatives in the bank.
Nigeria is experiencing a complex cybersecurity landscape where reported fraud incidents have decreased by nearly 46 percent over the past four years, yet financial losses from cybercrime are on the rise, according to Check Point Software.
This trend is attributed to sophisticated schemes developed by cybercriminals who are increasingly targeting the nation’s rapidly digitizing economy, with further coverage provided by Dark Reading.
Nigeria’s digital transformation has made it a prime target for cybercriminals.
In June 2026, organizations in the country faced an average of 4,361 attempted attacks weekly, ranking it second in Africa for cyber threats.
While the volume of detected threats fluctuates, it consistently remains elevated, often double the global average.
The Nigerian government is developing a new cybersecurity framework, expected later this year, which will mandate incident reporting, set minimum cybersecurity investment levels, and foster public-private collaboration.
Despite a decrease in the number of reported fraud incidents, financial losses have escalated, with digital payment fraud reaching ₦25.85 billion (US$18.7 million) in 2025.
Insider threats, including SIM swap fraud and account compromise, are significant contributors to these losses. Many organizations, particularly smaller businesses, lack adequate training and resources, making them more vulnerable.
The country’s cybersecurity maturity is ranked at a moderate level, and effective enforcement of existing regulations, such as the Data Protection Act, will be crucial to combatting the growing financial impact of cyberattacks.
TotalEnergies, together with its partners Hydra Storage Holding and Reatile Renewables, inaugurates Hydra project, the largest hybrid renewable energy project in Africa, located in South Africa’s Northern Cape province.
The project combines a 216 MW solar photovoltaic plant with a 500 MWh battery energy storage system, marking a significant contribution to the country’s Just Energy Transition program that aims to decarbonise the economy thanks to renewable energy sources.
The facility will supply 75 MW of dispatchable renewable electricity to the national grid continuously between 5:00 a.m. and 9:30 p.m., under a 20-year power purchase agreement signed with Eskom. This represents more than 400 GWh of electricity per year, equivalent to the consumption of approximately 200,000 South African households.
“We are delighted, together with our partners Reatile Renewables and Hydra Storage Holding, to bring the Hydra project into operation. It enables us to supply dispatchable renewable power to the South African grid, thereby strengthening the country’s energy security while decarbonising its electricity generation.
This project reinforces our renewable production capacity in South Africa, the continent’s largest power market in terms of electricity consumption”, said Magali Pailhé, Managing Director of TotalEnergies Southern Africa.
Hydra project has been developed by a consortium composed of TotalEnergies (35%), Hydra Storage Holding (35%) and Reatile Renewables (30%). It is part of the South Africa’s Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme launched by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy.
General News
BOI Pledges to Drive Nigeria’s Cocoa and Dairy Sectors with 70% of its €85m EIB Facility
Bank of Industry (BOI) has secured a €60 million credit facility from the European Investment Bank to fund Nigeria’s cocoa and dairy value addition drive, with a focus on processing, ingredients and chocolate manufacturing.
Dr. Olasupo Olusi, Managing Director/CEO of BOI, disclosed this on Tuesday, during the Africa Cocoa Summit convened in Abuja by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment with the aim of transitioning Africa from exporting raw beans to local processing and branding.
Also known as the Cocoa Value Addition Summit with the theme: ‘From Bean to Brand,’ it was attended by leaders and stakeholders from Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Cameroon who signed the Abuja Declaration to establish the Cocoa Value Addition Alliance (CVAA).
According to Olusi, the €60 million forms part of the €85 million EIB–BOI facility, backed by the European Union under the Global Gateway initiative, and designed specifically to strengthen these critical sectors in Nigeria.
“This agreement reinforces the Bank of Industry’s commitment to unlocking long-term, affordable finance for priority sectors that drive inclusive growth. Approximately 70% of the €85 million financing facility will be channeled to Nigeria’s cocoa and dairy sectors, which BOI considers among the industries with the greatest potential to create jobs and retain foreign exchange earnings.”
“We are particularly focused on cocoa value chains, which provide livelihoods for thousands of Nigerians. Through this initiative, we aim to enhance productivity, value addition, and market linkages that will directly improve the incomes of farmers and processors,” he said.
The BOI MD said that the bank would prioritise lending to processors, cooperatives, and MSMEs that add value locally, rather than only to traders exporting raw beans, adding that the era of celebrating volume of raw exports must end, as Nigeria loses billions by shipping beans and importing finished chocolate. According to him, the goal is to create factories around cocoa communities so that value, jobs, and taxes remain in Nigeria.
However, Olusi noted that financing alone is not enough, and as such, BOI will complement the loans with technical assistance on compliance, climate standards, and access to the EU market. BOI, he said, will also support farmers and processors to meet the EU Deforestation Regulation and other international environmental and social standards.
Citing BOI’s track record, Olusi said the bank disbursed over ₦164 billion in 2025 to more than 3,500 agro and food-processing businesses. The support financed factories, mills, packhouses, and cold chains, and linked nearly 48,000 smallholder farmers into industrial value chains.
He said the new financing would target the entire ecosystem, from nurseries and farmer cooperatives to grinding plants, ingredient factories, packaging lines, and chocolate manufacturers.
Speaking also at the summit, President Bola Tinubu called for a decisive shift from Africa’s long-standing dependence on exporting raw cocoa beans, urging producing countries to prioritise value addition and capture a larger share of the global chocolate industry’s wealth.
The President who was represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, noted that although Africa accounts for about 70 per cent of global cocoa production, the continent retains only six cents of every dollar generated by the global chocolate industry.
He stressed that Nigeria was committed to processing more of its cocoa locally, expanding chocolate manufacturing, building indigenous brands and competing more effectively in international markets, rather than continuing to export raw cocoa beans.
According to the President, cocoa value addition remains a key component of the Renewed Hope Agenda and the country’s broader industrialisation strategy, and disclosed that investors are developing a 70,000-tonne cocoa processing facility in Shagamu, Ogun State, while Nigeria’s cocoa grinding capacity has already surpassed 120,000 tonnes annually.
Earlier, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, said the summit aligns with the Federal Government’s ambition of building a one-trillion-dollar economy by 2030.
She observed that despite Nigeria’s significant contribution to global cocoa production, the country continues to earn only a small fraction of the value created across the cocoa value chain.
According to Oduwole, the Federal Government is promoting greater value addition through manufacturing incentives, investment promotion and stronger collaboration among relevant institutions.
She added that the government would also deepen market access by leveraging existing trade partnerships and opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), while encouraging investors to take advantage of regional and global value chains to unlock the sector’s full economic potential.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Industry, Senator John Owan Enoh, described the summit as another milestone in implementing Nigeria’s Industrial Policy, and announced plans for the establishment of the Cocoa Value Addition Alliance, bringing together Nigeria, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Cameroon, countries that collectively account for about 75 percent of global cocoa production.
According to Enoh, the alliance is designed to strengthen regional cooperation, promote local processing, and enable producing countries to capture greater value from the global cocoa market.
“We are not here to disrupt existing partnerships but to expand them,” he said.
Enoh urged African cocoa-producing nations to move beyond exporting raw beans and instead focus on developing branded cocoa products capable of competing successfully in global markets.
On his part, the Chief Executive of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr. Ransford Abbey, urged African cocoa-producing countries to deepen domestic processing.
“I am here to support the effort and commit to a joint effort towards increasing value for our hardworking cocoa farmers and our respective economies,” Abbey said.
He said Africa produced about 75 per cent of the world’s cocoa but earned less than 10 per cent of the global chocolate industry’s wealth.
“This system cannot continue. We must shift the paradigm from exporting raw poverty to creating refined wealth right here on the African continent,” he said, adding that stronger regional collaboration, investment and technology transfer will help African countries capture greater value from the global cocoa economy.
The Head of Cooperation of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mr. Massimo De Luca, reiterated the importance of value addition in the cocoa value chain. While expressing the support of the EU, he called on governments of the various countries to ensure they play their part in ensuring that proper framework necessary for the success of the initiative was established and clarified.
FAAN to Replace Physical ID Check with V-Pass Biometric Verification
World Bank Says 79 Percent of Nigerians Still Trapped in Poverty despite Reforms
SEC Begins Drive to Recover Unclaimed Dividends
ntel Plays Down Calls and Data Services, Moves to BET Agenda
Nigeria Facing Rising Cybercrime Losses – Report
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
E-Business3 days agoTD Africa Sponsors Check Point Secure 360 Summit to Boost Cybersecurity in Nigeria
Telecom3 days agoMTN Foundation, MUSON Celebrate Emerging Music Talents at 2026 Graduation Ceremony
Telecom3 days agoNITDA Calls for Digital Infrastructure Expansion to Drive Nigeria’s Industrialisation
News3 days agoGuinness Rolls Out Nationwide Consumer Rewards Promotion
E-Financial3 days agoNext Currency Crisis May Turn $300Bn in Stablecoins into National Currencies
General News3 days agoFirst Trustees Advocates Estate Planning as an Essential Tool in Every Wealth Creation Strategy
E-Financial3 days agoGigbanc Nigerian Fintech Startup Closes Shop after 3 Years
Broadcasting3 days agoMbunabo, Nigerian Filmmaker Accuses Ghana TV Stations of Pirating Nollywood Films