Ugochi Emmanuel - Business Metrics

High cybersecurity priority key to driving digital economy – Pantami

Aug 4, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

High cybersecurity priority key to driving digital economy – Pantami The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy has tasked Information Technology professionals to prioritise the safety and security of the country’s cyberspace, even as the country continues its digital economy agenda. The Minister, Dr. Isa Pantami made the call during his address titled- The Imperatives of Cybersecurity for a Digital Economy, as the chairman of the annual International Conference of the Nigeria Computer Society, which is taking place in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state capital in South-East of…

1GB for N200: Fiam Wi-Fi partners Facebook to expand Express Wi-Fi in Lagos

Aug 4, 2021Aug 4, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

1GB for N200: Fiam Wi-Fi expands Express Wi-Fi in Lagos Fiam Wi-Fi today announced it is expanding its use of Facebook Connectivity’s Express Wi-Fi platform to Ajegunle, a densely populated and lower-income area in Lagos, Africa’s most populous city. This initiative is supported by Facebook Connectivity as part of efforts to boost internet access across Lagos, Nigeria. Over the next three months, Fiam Wi-Fi will roll out additional Express Wi-Fi services in some of the most deprived communities in Lagos – including Makoko, a community built partly on stilts…

FirstBank backs 120,000-ton rice mill expansion

Aug 4, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

FirstBank backs 120,000-ton rice mill expansion First Bank of Nigeria has affirmed its support for the expansion plans of WACOT Limited, a subsidiary of TGI Group, on doubling the capacity of its 120,000-tonne rice mill in Argungu, Kebbi state. The Bank affirmed this as Board members, led by the Managing Director, Dr Adesola Adeduntan, paid a working visit to the rice mill The expansion comes barely four years after the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo commissioned WACOT’s first mill in 2017. Speaking at the end of the site…

MTN, Airtel, Glo, 9Mobile others raked in N32.89bn from SMS in 2020

Jul 31, 2021Aug 4, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

MTN, Airtel, Glo, 9Mobile others raked in N32.89bn from SMS in 2020 As number of sent SMS upped by 29.4% to 8bn Telecoms operators in Nigeria have realised N32.89 billion revenue from text messages (Short Message Service or SMS) sent by phone users in the country in 2020, Business Metrics has gathered. Data obtained from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) also indicated that in the year 2020, total number of national SMS sent grew by 29.4 per cent as it was placed at over 8 billion (8,223,933,975.02).…

Transcorp leaps half-year profit by 713%

Jul 31, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

Transcorp leaps half-year profit by 713% Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (Transcorp) has released its unaudited results for the half-year ended June 2021, recording significant improvement across its major income lines. The Conglomerate with strategic investments in the Power, Hospitality, and Energy sectors, recorded a profit after tax of N6.5bn, rising by 713% up from N0.8bn recorded in June of the previous year. Other key highlights of the result include the following: Revenue rose by 53%, from N35.0bn in June 2020 to N53.3bn in the period under consideration. Gross…

NIMC captures more than 60 million Nigerians in NIN database

Jul 30, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

NIMC captures more than 60 million Nigerians in NIN database The National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) on Thursday announced it has registered more than 60 million Nigerians for the unique National Identification Number (NIN) records in the National Identity Database (NIDB). The Commission said the feat could not have been possible without the cooperation of all stakeholders, including the general public. Its Head of Corporate Communications, Mr Kayode Adegoke noted in a statement today that “the transformational value of a robust and inclusive foundational Identification system in today’s world…

Total Oil exits red zone to post N8bn profit in six months

Jul 23, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

Total Oil exits red zone to post N8bn profit in six months Total Oil Plc has posted a profit after tax of N8.065 billion for the six months ended June, 30, 2021. The profit was as sharp flip as against a loss after tax of N537.180 million posted in 2020. Similarly, profit before tax stood at N11.778 billion from a loss of N796.920 million posted in 2020. Revenue rose by 42 per cent from N106.704 billion in 2020 to N151.333 billion in 2021. However, cost of sales stood…

IMF pledges new lending support for low-income countries

Jul 23, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

IMF pledges new lending support for low-income countries The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has announced that it would revamp its concessional lending programmes to better support low income countries (LIC) during COVID-19 and aid their economic recovery. In a news release, the Bretton Woods institution Thursday said its executive board, last week, backed reforms that include raising the access limits for concessional financing for low-income countries by 45 per cent; eliminating access limits for the poorest countries with eligible programmes and maintaining zero per cent interest rates on…

Digital demand drives annual IFC commitments in telecoms, media and tech to $1b

Jul 21, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

Digital demand drives annual IFC commitments in telecoms, media and tech to $1b The surging demand for digital connectivity during the COVID-19 pandemic has led the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to commit over $1 billion to the telecoms, media and technology (TMT) sector in emerging markets for the first time in one fiscal year. Business Metrics gathered that almost three-quarters of these commitments, made in fiscal year ending June 2021, were in Africa. While pandemic-induced lockdowns brought significant economic activity to a halt, digital infrastructure demonstrated its critical…

Nigeria to share in 400000bpd oil raise agreement by OPEC

Jul 21, 2021 Ugochi Emmanuel

Nigeria to share in 400000bpd oil raise agreement by OPEC Nigeria is to ramp up crude oil production following the agreement reached by members and allies of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) to increase output. Nigeria is a long time member of OPEC, collaborating with the organisation for more than 50 years running. OPEC and its allies had agreed on Sunday to adjust crude oil production upwards by 400,000 barrels per day. It disclosed this in its Declaration of Cooperation resolutions reached at the 19th OPEC…