E-Business
Nova Merchant Bank Reaffirms Commitment to Bridging Infrastructure Gaps
NOVA Merchant Bank, one of Nigeria’s premier Merchant Banks has reaffirmed its commitment in bridging Nigeria’s infrastructural gaps.
Nath Ude, chief executive officer and managing director of NOVA Merchant Bank
Nath Ude, chief executive officer and managing director of NOVA Merchant Bank, disclosed this during an interview with CNBC Africa monitored by our reporter recently.
Ude noted that their strategy is to bridge the huge infrastructural gap that currently exists in the country.
According to him, “As Merchant banks, we are supposed to bridge a huge gap, especially on the infrastructural side… there is a huge gap.
“Merchant banking is not sprint, it’s a marathon, so what we do is to actually identify infrastructural gap existing in the economy and see how we can help.
“For instance, if you know the size of the imports that happen in Nigeria, you would understand clearly that we literally import virtually everything, but we have capacity and what it takes to be able to start manufacturing these things ourselves.
“So what do we do? We identify infrastructural gaps – which we need to fund. These are areas that are long term in nature.
“We look at the manufacturing side – what are the things we need to manufacture, what are the things people need to do.
“I usually look at this to say, this is a huge opportunity for us as a nation and Merchant bank to step into our real core areas, which is to say, how do we become a huge partner in terms of bridging infrastructural gaps and i think this Covid-19 has created a huge opportunity for us to see the things we should be doing ourselves and that’s actually what we are doing.”
Speaking on the bank’s plans for the second half of the year, Ude said that the bank is focusing on the impact it’s bringing to the table rather than profitability.
He said, “For the second part of the year, I want to talkless about profitability… I really want to focus on the impact we should be bringing to the table as opposed to measuring our growth by PBT,” he said.
“Profit before tax (PBT) is very good, we have done good work, but honestly, we want to measure ourselves with impacts we are bringing to the table.
The CEO while providing insight on its financing plan, revealed that the company strategically took advantage of a bond to match funds with long term investment.
“We took huge advantage, a bond. We will use it to go into core long term infrastructural areas.
“It has helped us in terms of planning, in terms of matching of funds, matching long term funds we are receiving with long term investment.
“This was a strategy from NOVA Merchant bank and it’s the style we want to adopt for the rest of the year”, he concluded.
“It was actually N50 billion bond. We have done the first 10 billion.
“In the coming months, we are going to taking up second and third. It has helped us with planning and matching long term funds – with long term investment.
“It was a strategy for NOVA, and it is a style we want to adopt for the rest of the year. We will be doing a lot of fund matching .”
Nigeria has taken a major step toward strengthening its digital governance framework as the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) officially assumes control of the Nigeria Government Enterprise Architecture (NGEA) infrastructure.
The handover ceremony held in Abuja, marks the culmination of a high-level partnership with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
This transition signals a shift from fragmented IT projects to a unified, disciplined approach to national digital investment.
The NGEA initiative forms a core part of the e-Government Masterplan 2.0 (Ne-GMP 2.0), aimed at establishing a unified and structured approach to managing government IT investments and digital resources.
The framework is designed to ensure that technology deployment across public institutions aligns with national priorities while improving efficiency and accountability.
With the system now operational, government agencies are expected to adopt more integrated digital processes, allowing seamless data sharing and interoperability.
This is anticipated to reduce duplication, strengthen risk management, and translate policy objectives into measurable digital outcomes.
Over the past two and a half years, Nigerian technical experts worked closely with their Korean counterparts to develop the architecture framework, create reference models, and execute pilot programmes in key institutions.
These include the National Identity Management Commission, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Immigration Service, and NITDA.
Officials say the NGEA represents a shift from fragmented digital efforts to a more coordinated, citizen-focused system.
The infrastructure is hosted by Galaxy Backbone Limited, providing a secure and reliable platform for nationwide deployment.
Looking ahead, NITDA is expected to work with government stakeholders to expand and sustain the system, while the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy will provide policy guidance to ensure its adoption across the country.
Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, has said the government is shifting focus from expanding access to ensuring “meaningful connectivity” that drives economic growth and inclusion.
Bosun Tijani, minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy
The minister made the statement on Friday while addressing stakeholders at the inauguration of board members of the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF) in Abuja.
He said that although Nigeria had made significant progress since the introduction of GSM services, millions of people, particularly in rural and underserved communities, remain either unconnected or unable to fully benefit from digital services.
Dr Tijani highlighted ongoing investments in digital infrastructure, including plans to deploy 90,000 kilometres of fibre optic network and nearly 4,000 telecom towers nationwide.
He said initiatives under the USPF had improved access through projects such as rural connectivity and digital facilities in schools but stressed that the next phase must prioritise effective usage.
“It is not enough to connect a community. We must ensure that schools can teach with digital tools and that small businesses can access market opportunities,” he said, citing a pilot project in the Kura community where connectivity has enhanced access to communication, education and healthcare.
Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) also called for a shift towards meaningful connectivity, noting that while data usage had grown significantly, it remained concentrated in urban areas.
According to him, recent data shows that telecom usage has increased by about 160% over the past two years, largely driven by urban demand.
“When we drill down, we see that a lot of that growth is actually in urban centres. So, the gap between those who are not connected or not meaningfully connected is growing,” he said.
Dr Maida added that the trend underscored the need for the USPF board to intensify efforts to bridge both access and usage gaps across the country.
Both officials emphasised the importance of collaboration, sustainable investment models and improved digital literacy to ensure that connectivity translates into real economic benefits for Nigerians.
A jury in Los Angeles has found technology companies, Meta and Google liable for contributing to a young woman’s social media addiction, in a case being described as a landmark ruling.
The 20-year-old woman, identified only as Kaley, argued that she became addicted to Google’s YouTube and Meta’s Instagram from an early age due to their attention-driven design features.
According to her testimony, she began using YouTube at the age of six after downloading the app on her iPod Touch to watch videos about lip gloss and online games.
Kaley told the court that she joined Instagram at nine, bypassing parental restrictions put in place by her mother, and spent extended periods on social media.
The trial, which lasted about a month, with arguments and evidence from both sides.
Jurors also heard testimony from Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive, Meta and Adam Mosseri, Instagram head.
However, Neal Mohan, YouTube chief executive, did not testify.
The jury found that the companies were negligent in the design of their platforms and failed to adequately warn users about potential harms. Meta and Google were ordered to pay the woman $3 million in damages.
Jurors also recommended additional punitive damages, including $900,000 against YouTube and $2.1 million against Meta, according to company spokespersons.
The jury apportioned 70 per cent of the responsibility to Meta and 30 per cent to YouTube.
Kaley was present in the courtroom when the verdict was delivered, alongside parents of other teenagers who say they were harmed by social media use. Both companies said they plan to appeal the decision.
“We respectfully disagree with the verdict and will appeal. Teen mental health is profoundly complex and cannot be linked to a single app. We will continue to defend ourselves vigorously as every case is different, and we remain confident in our record of protecting teens online”, a Meta spokesperson said.
José Castañeda, Google spokesperson, said the case misunderstands YouTube, which is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media site.
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