Mastercard

Mastercard To Buy Digital ID Firm Ekata For $850m

by with No Comment Uncategorized

Mastercard Inc said on Monday it had agreed to buy digital identity verification company Ekata in a deal valued at $850 million, as the global payments processor bets on a boom in demand for companies in the digital security space.

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Ekata works with merchants, financial institutions, travel companies, marketplaces and digital currency platforms, helping them to identify bad actors in real-time during online account opening, payments and other digital interactions.

Mastercard says the addition of Ekata’s technology and engineering teams will help bolster the support it can provide as a one-stop partner for any consumer, bank, merchant, fintech or government’s data, payment and open banking needs.

Ekata’s products allow businesses to separate fraudsters from legitimate customers during digital interactions like opening an online account or making digital payments. It operates in three industries: e-commerce, payments and financial services, according to its website.

Its products, which include Ekata Identity Graph and Ekata Identity Network, allow companies to combat online fraud, it said.

The payments giant also stresses the combined capabilities across digital-first, instalment and crypto payment services, with the potential to expand further to real-time payments and cross-border activities.

Ajay Bhalla, president, cyber and intelligence solutions, Mastercard, says: “With the addition of Ekata, we will advance our identity capabilities and create a safer, seamless way for consumers to prove who they say they are in the new digital economy.”

The payments processor said the deal is expected to close in the next six months, adding that it does not expect the deal to be a drag on its business for more than two years.

“The acceleration of online transactions has thrust global digital identity verification to the forefront as one of the biggest opportunities to build digital trust and combat global fraud,” said Rob Eleveld, chief executive officer of Ekata, in a statement.

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FIRS

FIRS: States Mull Digital Tax Technology As Revenue Shortfalls Hit 40%

by with No Comment Businessfinance

Heads of Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) of the 36 states of the federation on Monday gathered in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, to consider ways of adapting new technology and Innovations available to improve revenue collection in their various states.

READ ALSO: Dangote Commits $700m To Sugar Production

The new development is prompted by the findings by the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) that tax collected from contact-intensive taxes fell by an average of 40 per cent across all states in Nigeria during the period of the lockdown.

The Secretariat of the Forum organized a programme tagged: NGF’s Technology and Tax event to help facilitate the scale up of modern, taxpayer-friendly, and technology-driven revenue administrations in all States of the federation that will be capable of providing world-class services; characterized by efficient, paperless operations, and equipped with ICT-enabled risk-based enforcement capable of optimising their revenue mobilization strategies.

Director General of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum Secretariat, Asishana Bayo Okauru hinted that the figure was the outcome of research conducted by the Secretariat last year.

He said the result was a big lesson which exposed the criticality of internet-based business support systems and payment platforms for the automation of all back-end operational processes and payments across all revenue streams.

Okauru also noted that the lessons learnt from the research showed that most contact-intensive taxes are at risk, adding that all revenue administrations need to move to a digital future.

“Lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic have pointed to one direction – that all revenue administrations need to move to a digital future.

“Specifically for tax authorities, one big lesson that we have learnt is the criticality of internet-based business support systems and payment platforms for the automation of all back-end operational processes and payments across all revenue streams.

“From our research last year, we already know that most contact-intensive taxes are at risk, given the lessons we learnt during the period of the lockdown where taxes collected from contact-intensive taxes fell by an average of 40 per cent across all States in Nigeria.

“Coupled with a weak environment for tax policy and tax legitimacy, low technological integration in tax administration has undermined efforts to mobilise domestic revenues in the country.

“This has undermined the capacity of tax authorities to collect taxes efficiently and the ability of taxpayers to meet their tax responsibilities conveniently” he said.

Also speaking, Mohammad Nami, the Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), stressed the need to look inwards on how to improve the revenue of the states to augment the shortfall of allocations from the Federation Account, insisted that taxation all over the world has always been the most reliable and sustainable source of government revenue if well harnessed and effectively administered.

Nami regretted that the reliance on oil revenue in the previous years has exposed the country to huge revenue challenges and resulted in poor budget implementation across the three tiers of government.

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CBN

CBN: Digital economy to drive growth, create jobs

by with No Comment Businessfinance

CBN: Digital economy to drive growth, create jobs says Emefiele

To further expand the economic pie, Nigeria needs to build a solid digital economy, by focusing on digital infrastructure, especially internet connectivity, Godwin Emefiele, governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said on Saturday.

READ ALSO: These 5 Nigerian stocks control 80% market capitalisation

Other focus areas include digital literacy and skills, digital financial services, digital platforms, and digital entrepreneurship and innovation.

Represented by Adamu Lamtek, deputy governor, Corporates Services at a seminar for Finance Correspondents and Business Editors, held virtually in Lagos and Abuja, he said Nigeria, the biggest economy in Africa with one of the largest youth populations in the world, is well-positioned to develop a strong digital economy.

Consequently, he said there is a need to focus on accelerating improvements across five fundamental pillars of a digital economy, which are digital infrastructure, digital platforms, digital financial services, digital entrepreneurship, and digital skills.

In its effort to drive change and development, the CBN has over the last decade and a half worked to build an effective and efficient payment system.

The Payment System Vision 2020 strategy document was published in 2007 and the main objective of the strategy was to promote and entrench electronic payments, as the major channel for payment and settlement by all economic agents, away from the current dominance of cash-based transactions.

The robust regulatory framework put in place by the Bank opened up the payment system to innovation with several new players across the following licensing categories – Payment Service Banks, Payment Terminal Service Providers (PTSP’s), Payment Solution Service Providers (PSSP’s), Mobile Money Operators (MMO’s), Payment Terminal Application Developers (PTSA’s), and Agent Banking.

“A combination of these payment initiatives has immensely helped to create employment opportunities and to further our efforts at building a more financially inclusive economy,” Emefiele said.

Today a small or medium-sized enterprise in Ibadan is able to leverage digital channels to sell their products and services to a wider market beyond their immediate environment.

On cryptocurrency, Emefiele said, “let me use this medium to reiterate that the CBN did not place any new restrictions on the use of cryptocurrency in Nigeria.”

According to him, the recent directive only amplified an earlier regulation on the subject of cryptocurrency. The recent directive became necessary to protect the financial system and the generality of Nigerians from the risks inherent in crypto-asset transactions, which have escalated in recent times, with consequences on financial stability and implementation of monetary policy.

However, he said policy stand does not preclude Nigerians from harnessing the benefits of the underlying technology that supports crypto transactions, which is a distributed ledger, commonly referred to as the blockchain.

There are several examples where blockchain technology has been used to facilitate and improve transparency in the settlement of trade transactions.

“Our regulatory sandbox is available for fintech companies to explore the use of blockchain technology in areas that would be beneficial to the Nigerian economy,” the CBN governor said.

Speaking on ‘leveraging the digital economy to drive growth, job creation and sustainable development-the private sector perspective, Tope Fasua, CEO, Global Analytics Consulting Limited, said Nigeria should target double-digit growth powered by digitisation.

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Digital Payment

Access Bank Buoys Digital Payments for SMEs With SwiftPay

by with No Comment Business

A digital payment service that facilitates the receipt of business payments called SwiftPay has been introduced by Access Bank Plc.

The platform was designed to boost the facilitation of payments between SME and retail customers in the digital space by enabling customers to make quick, easy and secure digital payments on social media platforms to merchants.

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“SwiftPay is free and the processing charge is discounted up to 15 per cent to ensure merchants keep most of their earnings.

“In recent times, e-commerce has been challenged with the rise in fraud on social media, we have ensured that every merchant registered on SwiftPay carries a ‘verified by access’ stamp to authenticate the page giving customers confidence when they transact.

“We have been focused on providing solutions targeted at boosting the economy because we believe it is our responsibility to contribute to the stimulation of economic growth.

“With the launch of SwiftPay by Access, we are renewing our commitment to providing the much-needed technical support to our SMEs,” the Group Head of Emerging Businesses at Access Bank Plc, Mrs Ayodele Olojede, said at the unveiling of the new product in Lagos.

She also explained that the lockdown experienced in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in less in-person interactions and less in-person payment options.

According to her, statistics from a survey carried out post-lockdown showed that MSMEs were impacted by cash flow, revenue and sales while adding that the impact of the pandemic made more apparent the lack of infrastructure and access to digital resources for small businesses.

“This is why Access Bank introduced SwiftPay to support the digital transition and growth of SME businesses.

“This product is part of the bank’s commitment to supporting SMEs to meet their business objectives despite the times.

“The new service comes in form of a payment link that can be hosted on merchants’ social media pages and sent to anyone to pay and conclude business transactions.

“It is easy and takes less than 5 minutes for interested merchants to sign up as it is convenient and time-saving for everyone,” she said.

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Digital Payment

Access Bank unveils SwiftPay to boost Digital Payments for SMEs

by with No Comment BusinessNews

In the bid to boost the facilitation of payments between SME and retail customers in the digital space, Access Bank Plc recently unveiled SWIFTPAY, a digital payment service that facilitates the receipt of business payments by enabling customers make quick, easy and secure digital payments on social media platforms to merchants.

READ ALSO: TAX: Oman to cut income tax on SMEs

Speaking to newsmen during the launch of the new service  in Lagos, Group, Head, Emerging Businesses, Access Bank plc, Ayodele Olojede, noted that the lockdown, experienced in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, resulted in less in-person interactions and  less in-person payment options. She revealed that statistics from a survey carried out post-lockdown showed that MSMEs were impacted by cash flow, revenue and sales while adding that the impact of the pandemic made more apparent the lack of infrastructure and access to digital resources for small businesses.

“This is why Access Bank introduced SWIFTPAY to support the digital transition and growth of SME businesses. This product is part of the Bank’s commitment to support SMEs to meet their business objectives despite the times. The new service comes in form of a payment link that can be hosted on merchants’ social media pages and sent to anyone to pay and conclude business transactions. It is easy and takes less than 5 minutes for interested merchants to sign up as it is convenient and time saving for everyone. 

Ayodele also revealed that the Bank is committed to providing very practical solutions that support the growth of small business in Nigeria.

“SWIFTPAY is free and the processing charge is discounted up to 15 per cent to ensure merchants keep most of their earnings.  In recent times, e-commerce has been challenged with the rise in fraud on social media, we have ensured that every merchant registered on SWIFTPAY carries a ‘verified by access ‘ stamp to authenticate the page giving customers confidence when they transact.

“We have been focused on providing solutions targeted at boosting the economy because we believe it is our responsibility to contribute to the stimulation of economic growth. With the launch of “SwiftPay by Access”, we are renewing our commitment to providing the much-needed technological support to our SMEs.” Olojede concluded.

Access Bank Plc is recognized as one of the most innovative financial institutions in Africa. With over 40 million customers and 600 branches nationwide, it offers a range of products and services tailored to suit needs and lifestyle of its customers across multiple segments.

To know more about SwiftPay, please click HERE.

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Insurance

Digital identity policy key to driving insurance growth

by with No Comment financeOpinions

Mandatory digital identity policy key to driving insurance growth – Experts

Experts in Nigeria’s tech and insurance sectors have called for a policy mandate to make digital identity compulsory for insurance.

READ ALSO: What to expect of CBN “naira for dollar” scheme

This was the highlight of the second edition of Digital Identity Matters, a thought leadership webinar series for driving conversations on contemporary issues in identity tech.

The event was sponsored by VerifyMe Nigeria, a leading identity verification and Know-Your-Customer (KYC) technology company, in partnership with Tech Cabal, a future-focused publication that speaks to African innovation and technology in depth.

Panellists included: Esigie Aguele, co-Founder/CEO, VerifyMe Nigeria, Bayo Adesanya, Chief Digital Officer, AXA Mansard and Adia Sowho, Chief Executive Officer, Thrive Agric. Tunji Andrews, co-Founder, Awabah moderated the discussion.

Speaking on the theme: Why Insurance is Important for the Growth of Nigeria’s Digital Economy, Aguele disclosed that the Nigerian insurance market has a $100 billion potential and can become one of the biggest sources for internally generated revenue if properly harnessed.

He said: “Insurance penetration in Nigeria is currently at about 1%. For a population of 200 million people, we only contributed $1 billion to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) last year. South Africa, which has a third of Nigeria’s population, has a penetration of 17 percent and a GDP contribution of $50 billion. It is obvious that stakeholders must put in efforts to ensure that insurance is available to more people to grow the digital economy.

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M36 Union Bank

M36 redefines digital investment in Nigeria

by with No Comment News

M36, a new digital platform designed to deliver a wide range of investment products directly to individuals, has launched in Nigeria.

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Through an innovative, user-friendly app, M36 offers investment options not typically available on self-service digital platforms including foreign currency transactions, commercial papers, local and foreign denominated bonds, treasury bills and other fixed income products.

It also offers bespoke solutions for both new and experienced investors as well as a 24-hour lifestyle concierge service to meet the needs of discerning customers.

In a rapidly evolving environment with changing consumer behavior fuelled by technology and growing access to information, M36 is looking to expand opportunities for investors at all levels, while also simplifying the process of investing.

It was developed by Union Bank as part of its strategic focus on delivering superior customer solutions leveraging technology and innovation. The bank partnered several asset management companies to deliver the broad range of investment products on the M36 platform.

Chuka Emerole, head, treasury at Union Bank, said “M36 eliminates the traditional barriers to investing and offers investors direct access to financial instruments that would usually require the service of an investment or relationship manager. We have designed M36 to ensure simplicity in the on-boarding and investing process while also empowering the customer to make sound investment choices based on their financial objectives. We worked with key partners to deliver both the experience and products on M36 and are confident that we have launched a superior product in today’s marketplace.”

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