News
Social Lender Pledges Trust, Credit in Driving Financial Inclusion for Unbanked Population
Faith Adesemowo, co-founder and CEO, Social Lender, has said that the company, a lending solution platform, is committed to building a community of trust and credit to drive financial inclusion for the un-banked and under-banked.
Adesemowo maintained that Social Lender helps financial institutions to extend formal credit not to only salary earners but also to young professionals, small business owners, market women, entrepreneurs and students to leverage on their social reputation.
She, however, emphasized that the principles of lending is still the same across all platforms, adding that digital lending platforms are only “here to enable traditional lending to run more smoothly, efficiently and bring them to the space they don’t typically operate in”.
According to her, Social Lender does not focus on only on users with internet and smart phones, but also on the community of the individuals.
“Social Lender is not a lender but a platform that enables lenders target demography or segment of the market. We run a co-label and white-label partnerships with lenders and financial institutions,” she said.
She further explained the social reputation algorithm behind Social Lender, saying it is enough to guarantee willingness and ability to pay back loans.
Adesemowo said that the “social reputation score” has proven over the years to be a strong tool to ascertain willingness to repay loans.
“It takes into account the users’ community, engagement, network and several other indicators both online and offline. This is dependent on the data the user gives us permission to.
“The solution collects this data and processes it to give the user a social reputation score. It’s an artificial intelligence-based solution that gives users’ ability and willingness to repay small loans under a particular ticket size.”
She added that the ability to repay larger loans is a slightly different parametre, which technology can only do by reviewing transaction history of the user. The social reputation score focuses on “trust” or you could say “willingness to repay”.
“We have an end-to-end lending platform that can review users’ transaction history with some of our partner banks and partner financial institutions. This feeds into the partner specific business rules for lending specific amounts. I should emphasize however that social reputation score is the main asset of Social Lender,” she emphasized.
She noted that open APIs and blockchain technology would afford lenders the opportunity to enjoy more services when using any lending platform.
“With Open APIs, more financial institutions will have access to data that was previously sited in silos that will help expand the space. This is happening gradually. We hope for a similar regulation to enforce financial institutions to share more data over time”, she concluded.
Ogba Ogbaga, an Abuja-based lawyer, has said that he has been instructed to institute legal proceedings against MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, 9mobile and MultiChoice Nigeria, operators of DStv, over what he described as unfair consumer practices relating to expiring data bundles and television subscriptions.
In a statement posted on Facebook, Ogbaga said his law firm, GIMBG Legals, received instructions from its client, KAA, also known as KaaTruths, to challenge the companies’ subscription policies in court.
According to him, the proposed suit will question whether telecom operators and DStv’s subscription models comply with provisions of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018 and other applicable laws.
Ogbaga alleged that telecom providers operate internet data services that are unfair to consumers, claiming subscribers sometimes do not receive the services they paid for but still lose their subscriptions once the validity period expires.
He also criticised DStv’s subscription model, arguing that consumers lose paid viewing time due to factors such as power outages, adverse weather conditions and service interruptions, while subscriptions continue to count down regardless.
“Our clients have complained that MTN data services are unduly one-sided,” Ogbaga said, adding that the legal action would also extend to other telecommunications providers and DStv.
He said the court action would seek judicial determination on whether the companies’ subscription practices comply with consumer protection laws.
The lawyer also invited interested legal practitioners to collaborate on the case, saying his firm would provide updates as the matter progresses.
In a separate Facebook post on Wednesday, Ogbaga said previous policy discussions, town hall meetings and debates at the National Assembly had failed to address the concerns raised by consumers.
He argued that telecom operators regularly carry out maintenance and network upgrades that temporarily disrupt services without extending customers’ subscription periods, while DStv subscribers also lose viewing time because of electricity outages and weather-related disruptions.
The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has commenced the issuance of new licence certificates to insurance companies that successfully met the industry’s new minimum capital requirements, marking the formal beginning of a new regulatory era aimed at strengthening the financial capacity, governance and global competitiveness of Nigeria’s insurance sector.
At a ceremony held at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, the Commissioner for Insurance, Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, presented the new licence certificates to compliant operators, describing the exercise as a major milestone in the industry’s recapitalisation programme.
According to the Commission, a total of 43 insurance companies declared compliant with the new capital requirements are expected to receive the new licence certificates in phases.
Omosehin congratulated the successful companies, saying the issuance of the new licences signals the beginning of a stronger regulatory framework anchored on improved capitalisation, sound corporate governance, innovation and sustainable growth.
He urged operators to leverage their enhanced capital base to develop innovative insurance products, improve operational efficiency and deepen insurance penetration across the country.
The Commissioner said the Commission expects the recapitalised companies to deliver stronger financial performance while maintaining high standards of professionalism and customer service.
He also announced that NAICOM’s next major regulatory initiative would be the implementation of the Risk-Based Capital (RBC) framework, under which insurers’ capital levels would be aligned with the risks inherent in their respective business portfolios.
According to him, the new framework will further strengthen the industry’s resilience by ensuring that insurers maintain capital commensurate with the risks they underwrite, thereby enhancing policyholder protection and boosting market confidence.
Omosehin reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to removing regulatory impediments where necessary while maintaining effective oversight to safeguard policyholders and strengthen confidence in the insurance market.
The issuance of the new licence certificates marks the commencement of a phased transition to higher capital standards aimed at improving the financial capacity, solvency and claims-paying ability of insurance companies operating in Nigeria.
Management of Nigeria CommunicationsWeek Media has withdrawn its publication titled “Adefolarin Ogunsanya and the Allegations of Shareholder Interference and Self-Dealing at Pan African Towers,” which was published on its platform.
The decision to retract the story follows an editorial review to ensure that the platform maintains the highest standards of accuracy, fairness and responsible journalism in reporting matters that are the subject of ongoing judicial proceedings.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek acknowledges that the issues raised in the publication remain before the courts and have not been finally determined.
Accordingly, the organisation has decided to remove the article from its platforms pending the conclusion of the legal processes or the availability of additional verified information.
The publication regrets any inconvenience or misunderstanding the report may have caused to readers or any individuals or organisations mentioned in the story.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek remains committed to the principles of balanced, factual and ethical journalism and will continue to uphold professional standards in its coverage of judicial and corporate governance matters.
ITUC-Africa Faults FG’s Plans to Remove Electricity Subsidy
SEC Begins Full e-Registration for Capital Market Services
NAICOM Revokes Nigeria Reinsurance’s Licence over Failure to Meet MCR
Many Nigerian Airlines May Collapse within 30 Days – Onyema
Ogbaga, Abuja Lawyer to Sue Telcos, DStv over Alleged Unfair Practices
NRC, Ponzi Scheme Collapses Resulting Loss of Billions of Naira
From Scarcity to Scale: What Africa Can Learn from India’s Agricultural Transformation
EFCC Busts NIS Visa Overstay Racket, Uncovers N700m in an Account
BON Establishes Six Ad Hoc Committees to Modernize Broadcasting
How EFCC Turned Recovered Loot Into School Supplies for Thousands of Nigerian Students
E-Business3 days agoKaspersky Identifies Cyberespionage as a Growing Threat Across Africa, Others
Broadcasting3 days agoNBC Files Fresh Appeal against Judgment Barring it from Imposing Fines on Broadcast Stations
News3 days agoINTERPOL Report Shows AI Powers 55% of Cybercrimes in Africa Amid $484m Losses
E-Business2 days agoKaspersky Reveals a New Malicious Framework Targeting Cryptocurrency Users with the Use of OkoSpyware
News3 days agoNigeria Expands Deep-tech Skills Pipeline
E-Financial3 days agoNigerians Lost N25.85Bn to Digital Payment Fraud in 2025 –CBN
Telecom3 days agoWhy Strong Institutions Remain Africa’s True Growth Engine
E-Business2 days agoCMS T&M Launches TMO Rides to Enable a Faster & Cashless Transport Experience for CMS – Ajah Passengers