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Emefiele Shuns Reps’ Summons As Banks Ration New Notes

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An ad hoc committee set up by the House of Representatives to investigate the scarcity of the new naira at commercial banks on Wednesday has frowned at the failure of the management staff of the Central Bank of Nigeria to appear before it on Thursday just as the House has insisted on January 31 deadline set for the exchange of the old notes with the new ones

This came barely two months after the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, failed to appear before the House over issues relating to the naira redesign.

The House had on Tuesday called on President Muhammadu Buhari over the brewing crisis occasioned by the January 31 deadline.

Apart from asking the CBN to extend the window for swapping the old notes with the newly redesigned one by six months, the House had invited the banks to a meeting on Wednesday over the scarcity of new naira notes.

The managing directors/chief executive officers of the banks, under the auspices of the Bankers’ Committee, were to meet with an ad hoc committee of the House to be chaired by the Majority Leader, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa.

On Wednesday, the CBN failed to appear before the committee.

However, Ado-Doguwa, at the inaugural investigative hearing of the committee, stated, “For the purposes of clarification, I want to say without any fear of contradiction, that the parliament is always an institution that represents the Nigerian people. For an invitation to any government employee, like it is the case here with the CBN, the governor of the CBN, his directors, deputy directors, all departmental heads, I believe, are employees of the Nigerian people; and when there is a kind of summons from the institution of the parliament like this, we expect every up-and-doing employee to only respect that invitation.”

“On this note, I would like to convey to this committee and members of the public and the press here with us that we have conceded to allow the CBN officials to come tomorrow by 1pm, so that we would engage them. And immediately after the engagement with them, we would engage the bank operators.”

Meanwhile, there was palpable discontent among bank customers in Lagos on Wednesday after some commercial banks shut down their Automated Teller Machines, ostensibly due to paucity or unavailability of new naira notes.

The development came in the wake of threats by the Central Bank of Nigeria that it would sanction any bank that dispensed old naira notes on its Automated Teller Machines.

When our correspondent visited four banks — Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa, Access Bank and Stanbic IBTC along Iju road in the Ogba area of Lagos State, it was observed the bank ATMs were neither dispensing the new naira notes nor the old ones.

Meanwhile, a myriad of disgruntled customers were seen lamenting the frustration of not being able to withdraw cash from any of the ATMs in the area.

Our correspondent proceeded to visit Zenith Bank, Access and UBA along Ogunnusi road in the Ojodu axis of the state. The story was no different as a small crowd of frustrated customers was seen lamenting their inability to withdraw cash.

While some of the banks cited technical difficulties for their inability to dispense money via the machines, others said their ATMs had developed faults and could not temporarily dispense cash.

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Business

Airtel Performs Groundbreaking Ceremony for its NXTRA Data Centre, Promises 1000 Jobs

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By Eric Elezuo

Prominent Nigerians were present as network communications service provider, Airtel Africa, performed the ground-breaking ceremony for the establishment of its NXTRA data centre project in Nigeria, at the prestigious Eko Atlantic City, in Victoria Island, Lagos, informing that the project is programmed to create over 1000 jobs for Nigerians.

The company noted that the facility, nicknamed the Nitra frontier, and reported as the first of five hyperscale data centres to be developed by Airtel Africa on the continent, will deliver 38 megawatts of total power and host high-density racks that integrate the latest best practice construction to achieve 1.3 power usage effectiveness (PUE).

It was also revealed that the data centres at full capacity will offer 180-megawatt capacity, distributed across 13 major data centres, and over 48 edge data centres.

Speaking at the event, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Airtel, Segun Ogunsanya, who informed that the project is expected to go live by the first quarter of 2026, further stated that out of the 1000 jobs expectedto be created, 250 will be permanent once the project is deployed and at capacity.

He praised the project as marking a significant milestone in the company’s journey and is a cornerstone of the organization’s growth strategy, with a particular focus on Nigeria, which unarguably is its largest market.

He added that the project will enhance data sovereignty, security, and preservation within the continent, as well as reflect the group’s commitment to make Nigeria a major hub for access to digital services as it propel Africa towards a sustainable and inclusive digital age.

“This mega project will provide over 1000 jobs. More significantly, once deployed and at capacity, it will create over 250 permanent jobs for Nigerians whilst supporting companies in manufacturing, financial services, and health care as they move their data and computing into third-party data centers like ours.

“Ultimately, we have to store data and content closer to where it is being consumed,” Ogunsanya said.
Boost for digital economy

Ogunsanya was also of the opinion that with Airtel Africa’s extensive fibre footprint, NXTRA “offers secure and scalable integrated solutions to global hyper-scalers, large African enterprises, startups, SMEs and governments.

“Through locally available data centre capacity, speed to access digital services will improve and the cost of managing data will be reduced, thus helping power increased innovation, while supporting a new generation of African tech talent,” he said.

In his remarks at the event, that also has the governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, in attendance, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani laud the creativity attached the innovation, saying it is in tandem with technology revolution that is fast engulfing the universe, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a main point of reference.

“Data is a key driver in our economy. Not only do we need to connect our people, we also must invest in the digital economy, and through the investment that companies like Airtel have made in our economy, we are fully able to participate in the digital economy,” he said.

Other personalities that graced that event include traditional rulers and stakeholders in the telecoms sector.

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Customers Applaud As Glo MoneyMaster PSB Mobile App Enhances Banking Experience

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The mobile banking app recently launched by MoneyMaster Payment Service Bank Limited (MMPSB), Nigeria’s leading payment service bank, has been enriching the banking experience of the bank’s customers.

The app, which was unveiled by MMPSB for the convenience of its existing and new customers provides a seamless banking experience to its customers thereby reaffirming the bank’s commitment to deliver faster and secure banking services to its growing customer base.

Apart from allowing customers to perform many services without stress from their comfort zone, the mobile banking app has a robust suite of functionalities. Customers using Android phones can download the mobile banking app from the Google Play Store, while iPhone users can also download from the Apple App Store.

The mobile banking app enables MMPSB customers to manage multiple accounts. Wallets, savings, and current accounts can all be managed from the mobile banking app. Customers can also upgrade the KYC (Know Your Customer) requirements for higher transaction limits and open additional accounts via the app. It is an invaluable tool for all existing and potential mobile wallet, savings, and current account holders of MoneyMaster PSB.

The mobile banking app is also fast and secure for all intra-bank and interbank transactions and allows customers to set transaction limits, manage beneficiaries, view transaction history, and download and share transaction receipts, among other exciting features. They can also request their account statement and receive it via e-mail.

It also features both biometric and password authorization to login and authorize transactions and allows customers to also buy airtime recharge and data bundles from all networks directly for themselves and others via the app. In addition, customers can pay for their DSTV and GOTV subscriptions, buy electricity units from all major DisCos and pay utility bills from the app.

Customers of the bank have also attested to the robust nature of the app. Some of them who commented on the effectiveness of the app include Uche Nwoye who said, “It has not been long that I downloaded the app, but from all indications, the features and design are easy to navigate.”

Also Henry Omosimua describes it as a “nicely built app. The UI is good and smooth. Kudos to Moneymaster PSB. It would be nice to add app notification for incoming and outgoing transactions”, he noted.

For Agunbiade Abiola, “this app is the definition of evolution”, while Michael Sanamo said the app is “fast in carrying out transactions.”

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Globacom Targets SMEs’ Growth with Launch of “Glo Outsource Pro”

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Leading telecommunications company, Globacom, has launched an outsourcing product aimed at helping small and medium scale companies as well as corporate organisations focus on their core operations thereby enhancing their productivity.
The company explained in a press statement that the service tagged “Glo Outsource Pro”, is a strategic business solution that aids companies and businesses to outsource some of their non-core operations.
Such businesses including banking, energy, oil and gas, FMCG, manufacturing, distribution, utility, internet service providers (ISPs), logistics companies, MSME, etc. will be able to  focus on their core competencies, leading to improved efficiency, cost savings, and enhanced customer experiences.
“Glo Outsource Pro enables companies to delegate specific operational activities, such as customer support, finance and accounting, IT services, human resources, and supply chain management to Globacom which leverages its expertise, technology, and economies of scale to optimize processes and deliver high-quality results that will impact positively on their operations”, the telecommunications giant said.
The company added that “with Glo Outsource Pro, organizations are able to contract out their inbound and outbound call centre activities, inbound technical helpdesk, social media management, data mining for planning purposes and general back office support. It will also help them in the areas of teleprospecting, customer campaigns/onboarding, retention campaigns, collections, sales campaigns, etc”.
It also confirmed that the service will assist companies to maximize cost-effectiveness, boost productivity, and improve effectiveness in the marketplace by helping them look after some non-core sections of their businesses so they can focus on their core activities.
The new business management proposition is meant to further boost Globacom’s image as the ultimate value and innovative solutions provider for businesses at varying levels while unlocking their full potentials as well as enabling cost savings, operational excellence and unmatched customer satisfaction.
Aside from these, “Glo Outsource Pro” will equally enhance technology upgrade, competitive advantage and improved effectiveness in the marketplace.

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