₦airaland Forum

As the nation continues to turn out more unemployed graduates annually, the National Employment Transformation Initiative has rekindled the hope of Nigerian youth as it has pledged massive decline in unemployment in its forthcoming Summit through training, skill acquisition, and Partnerships.

According to the Convener, Engr. Seun Shogbamu, the NETSummit formerly known as National Career Fair which is scheduled to hold on 13th of December 2018 at the University of Lagos, Akoka Yaba, Lagos has in the last 6 years has created nothing less than 9,000 jobs and paid internship nationwide; adding it will keep striving harder to see to total eradication of unemployment in the country.

While Shogbamu highlighted the major cause of unemployment and employment shortcomings as lack of basic and professional skills, he emphasized that this year’s edition is billed to focus more on training and moulding crude and non-crude prospects, and positioning them strategically towards a growing and demanding workforce through partnering top HR, Vocational training and Skill acquisition organisations such as Andela, Gr8jobsng, Workforce Group, Poise, Jobberman, EdubridgeAcademy, Dragnet.

Recall that the last six editions of the programme has featured top professionals and organisations such as: FIRS boss Babatunde Fowler, Jimi Agbaje, Muiz Banire (SAN), NairaBet’s Akin Alabi, UBER, Nestlé Nigeria, Feminik Logistics, Kaffy, Funke Akindele, Mai Atafo, Abisoye Fagade, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, Yinka Olugbodi, SeyiLaw, Kingsley Ezeani, Shola Animashaun, Eniola Joshua, Guardian Jobs, Hybrid Group, Delicacies Plus, Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS) amongst others

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/netsummit-partners-andela-dragnet-workforce-others-pledges-decline-in-unemployment/

IBM has confirmed its plans to acquire cloud software business, Red Hat for $34 billion in cash and debt. The deal will be the largest-ever software acquisition.

IBM eclipsed Microsoft’s $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn, this is the biggest software acquisition in history. It’s not the biggest tech acquisition ever, though, as that title belongs to Dell’s $67 billion buyouts of data storage business EMC.

Red Hat is best known for its Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system. The open source software company has given the source code for its core products.

According to IBM, the deal has already been approved by the boards of directors of both IBM and Red Hat but is still subject to Red Hat shareholder and regulatory approvals. If all goes as planned, the acquisition is expected to close in the latter half of 2019.

“The acquisition of Red Hat is a game-changer. It changes everything about the cloud market,” said Ginni Rometty, IBM Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer stated. “IBM will become the world’s number-one hybrid cloud provider, offering companies the only open cloud solution that will unlock the full value of the cloud for their businesses.”

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/ibm-to-acquire-red-hat-in-a-34b-deal/

The Board of Directors of Nigerian Breweries Plc has approved an interim dividend of N4,798, 141, 231 (four billion, seven hundred and ninety eight million, one hundred and forty one thousand, two hundred and thirty one Naira), that is, 60 (sixty) kobo per ordinary share of 50 kobo in the share capital of the Company, for the period ended September 30, 2018.



The interim dividend, which is subject to the deduction of withholding tax, is payable on Monday, 10th December 2018 to all shareholders registered in the books of the Company at the close of business on Thursday, 22nd November 2018.

The company recorded a Profit After Tax of N14.7billion for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, while results from Operating Activities stood at N27.7billion over the same period. An analysis of the unaudited and provisional results shows that Profit after Tax dipped by 38.4 per cent from the N23.9billion recorded over the same period in the preceding year, while results from Operating Activities dropped by 34.4 per cent from the N42.3billion recorded in the same period last year. Profit before Tax also dipped by 34.7 per cent from N34.4billion recorded in 2017 to N22.4billion in the period under review.

Commenting on the results, the Company Secretary/Legal Adviser, Mr Uaboi Agbebaku said: “the new excise duty regime which came into effect in June and the consequent effect of it, adversely impacted the Third Quarter results”.

He added that the Company also undertook a rightsizing exercise which resulted in a substantial one-off cost during the quarter.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/nigerian-breweries-records-n15bn-profit-to-pay-n4-8bn-as-interim-dividend/

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has fined NEM Insurance Plc for contravening Rule 19.3 of its Rulebook. This was after the NSE received a complaint by Bernateva Partners – the solicitor to Eaton Acquisitions Limited, a major shareholder in NEM Insurance Plc – to reverse the decisions reached the Annual General Meeting (AGM) held at Ibadan, Oyo State in June 2018.

Following the AGM the NSE also received complaints from other including:

Premium Green LimitedStarvest LimitedThree Sea Investment LimitedOluwaseyilola A. Ojo

The shareholders claimed that NEM Insurance had failed to notify them of the AGM in accordance with section 217 (1) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), SEC clause 24 and NSE rule 19.3, which prescribed at least 21 days’ notice to shareholders of an AGM to be held

They also asked the Nigerian bourse to reverse the special resolution proposed and passed at the AGM to raise additional capital through a private placement at a price below the market price of NEM Insurance stock.

The NSE investigated their claims and found out that:

The Company did not dispatch the Notice of the 48th AGM and Annual Reports to the shareholders at least 21 days before the date of the meeting.The shareholders who did not receive the Notice of AGM were not given the opportunity to attend and exercise their voting rights in respect of any of the resolutions passed at the 48th AGM, including the proposed special resolution to raise additional capital through special/private placement.

The exchange, after its findings, slammed a fine of N575,505.00 on NEM Insurance; being 50% of its listing fee. The fine, according to NSE must be paid on or before November 7, 2018 and failure to do so contravenes Clause 14(d), Appendix III: Form of General Undertaking (Equities), Rulebook of The Exchange, which stipulates a further fine of N300,000.00 in addition to N25,000.00 per day for the period of the violation.

Consequently, the bourse will communicate its findings to the Steering Board of the Corporate Governance Rating System (CGRS), which may decide to suspend, withdraw or do nothing to the CGRS rating of NEM Insurance.

NEM Insurance stock closed at N2.96 during trading session today at NSE.

SOURCE : https://brandspurng.com/nse-fines-nem-insurance-for-contravening-its-rulebook/

So far, four of the Tier-1 banks have published their 9-month earnings; these are ACCESS, GUARANTY, UBA, and ZENITH. As expected, the relatively lower yield environment had a profound impact on the performance of these banks. Though their relative sizes and liquidity ratios continued to determine earnings sensitivity to interest rate dynamics.

Our review of the 9M-18 financial scorecards of these top-four Banks indicated that while Deposit growth sustained momentum(up 8.3%YTD on average) as observed in Q2-18, the drive to expand their loan books remained muted. Loans and advances fell 5.6%YTD on average among the four Banks while the deployment of funds to government securities was sustained. Yet, interest income growth remained constrained, averaging 3.5% as the yields on government securities
remained lower compared to the prior year. Additionally, net interest margin was pressured by higher cost of funds, while interest expense jumped across the board (except for ZENITH).

Asset quality, however, improved generally, with loan loss provisioning witnessing further moderation (tumbling 50.6%y/y amid improved outlook), especially in relation to the upstream oil sector, which might have resulted in a significant amount of write-backs. Interestingly, non-interest income (NII) growth was divergent with GUARANTY reporting an outstanding NII performance. Although PBT growth appeared constrained, the banks remained significantly profitable and well
capitalized as the average annualized ROE for the 4 banks improved from 21.0% to 22.4%.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/daily-insight-9-month-earnings-overview-of-4-top-tier-1-banks/

One of Nigeria’s telecommunications service providers, Airtel, has officially launched its 4G service in Lagos today 24th October 2018 few months after the first experience in the city of Ibadan. This recent development has made Airtel the largest 4G service provider in Nigeria.

Speaking during the press conference at the Wheatbaker Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos, the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya, said the telco now has the widest 4G network coverage in the country.

According to Ogunsanya Airtel has launched its 4G network in over 60 major cities and towns in Nigeria across many states. “Airtel’s 4G network is now in over 60 major cities and towns in Nigeria across different States, making Airtel the network with the widest and largest 4G coverage in the country”.

The Airtel CEO also noted that the Airtel 4G launch in Lagos “serves as a glowing testimony of our commitment to partner and empower the good people of Lagos, a truly cosmopolitan state where dreams come true.

“We know Lagos has its own spirit – a can-do spirit and it also has its own peculiar energy, which is very fast-paced.

“The good news is that Airtel 4G will help everyone in Lagos to do more and achieve more, regardless of status and location.

“With the fast mobile Internet, a young professional will be able to use his map to understand the traffic network, plan and connect with the right people. The tailor will be able to take measurement through video calls; the fish seller will be able to share photos and short videos of his current stock. Ditto every other person.

“Indeed, 4G comes with tons of benefits and the possibilities are endless: it will accelerate economic and commercial activities; it will boost personal and professional productivity; it will help in creating more entrepreneurs; it will offer the youth a big leverage to express their creativity and talent; it will improve the overall quality of life and connect more people to their dreams,” he said.

Early this year, Airtel began an interesting journey of building the largest and most robust 4G – LTE (Fourth Generation – Long Term Evolution) network in Nigeria.

On the 13th of February, 2018, the telco recorded a major milestone with the pioneer roll-out of its 4G network in Ibadan to the delight of many Nigerians who live in the ancient city.

Since the pioneering launch, Airtel had not looked back. On Thursday, 4th May 2018, it unveiled its 4G service in Abuja, the nation’s capital while on the 19th and 25th of September, it announced the launch of its 4G service in major towns and cities in Anambra and Delta states.

Airtel CEO, Mr. Ogunsanya and the Executive Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency, Nyesom Wike, on the 27th of September, formally unveiled the Airtel 4G service in Port Harcourt.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/airtel-becomes-largest-4g-operator-in-nigeria-officially-launched-4g-service-in-lagos/

The parent company of one of Nigeria’s telecommunications services providers, 9mobile, Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Limited (EMTS), is marking its 10th year in operations in the country.

EMTS, formerly trading as Etisalat Nigeria, in a statement, attributed its successes and achievements over the past 10 years to the support and patronage of Nigerians and other stakeholders.

The firm further said in just 10 years of operations as Nigeria’s innovative Mobile Network Operator (MNO), it has revolutionised the nation’s telecommunications industry with an array of ground-breaking products, services and solutions to empower our youth, entrepreneurs, SMEs and indeed all segments of the Nigerian society.

“Our total commitment to leveraging technology in building businesses across the country and empowering the youth has been widely acknowledged and rewarded with several awards.

“We have recorded many firsts in the industry including our most daring masterbrand campaign ‘0809UChoose’ which put power in the hands of subscribers to choose their numbers. Others are 9Cliq, the first-of-its-kind educational tool in the youth market; and GEM, a unique loyalty proposition in the Nigerian telecommunication industry for high-value customers.

“Moreblaze, our revolutionary data bundle that offers the fastest data; and our 4G LTE service which does not require a SIM swap for customers to enjoy 4G connectivity; also rank on the list. Our innovative multi-device product that allows customers use a single data subscription on up to 5 different devices concurrently remains unique, and our first ever smartpaks product that offers customers different applications including WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook etc., based on their lifestyle at affordable rates, is unbeatable in the market.

“Our enterprise solutions including Market Access and SME Arena have served as growth enablers for small businesses; while easy payment solutions like 9pay, a mobile wallet that allows people to make seamless payments, continue to drive financial growth.

We have also left significant footprints on education, arts and culture with the 9mobile Telecommunications Engineering Postgraduate Program (9TEPP) – a first in West Africa; our flagship pan-African 9mobile Prize for Literature which promotes literacy and encourages writers to hone their craft across Africa; and the 9mobile Photography Competition,” the statement highlighted.

While thanking and celebrating its pioneer customers and others, EMTS promised to continue to consolidate its successes and milestones in the coming years.

Recall that in October 2008, EMTS shook the industry by surprise with its 080ja campaign, which many Nigerians quickly keyed into.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/9mobile-operator-marks-10th-anniversary/

Organic growth of 2.8%, with 2.3% real internal growth (RIG) and pricing of 0.5%, in line with our expectations.Total reported sales increased by 2.0% to CHF 66.4 billion (9M-2017: CHF 65.1 billion). Net acquisitions had a positive impact of 0.1% and foreign exchange reduced sales by 0.9%.Further progress was made in positioning the portfolio towards attractive high-growth categories. Nestlé acquired the global perpetual license of Starbucks consumer packaged goods and foodservice products. The company also reached an agreement for the sale of Gerber Life Insurance Co. and has started to explore strategic options for Nestlé Skin Health.Full-year guidance for 2018 confirmed, with organic sales growth expected to be around 3%; underlying trading operating profit margin improvement in line with our 2020 target. Restructuring costs 1 are expected to be around CHF 700 million. Underlying earnings per share in constant currency and capital efficiency are expected to increase.

Mark Schneider, Nestlé CEO: “We are encouraged by the progress on our path of accelerated value creation. The nine-month sales show solid growth across most geographies and product categories. We are starting to see improved momentum in North America and in our infant nutrition category globally. Our business in China continued to grow at a mid-single-digit pace. Our growth was supported by disciplined execution and faster innovation. We have reached significant milestones in portfolio management and are particularly pleased with the early closing of the Starbucks transaction. We have also made good progress on our various cost reduction programs. Our growth and efficiency initiatives put us on track to meet our full-year 2018 guidance and 2020 targets.”

Effective as from January 1, 2018, Nestlé Nutrition is reported in the Zones as a regionally managed business, with the Gerber Life Insurance business reported in Other Businesses. 2017 sales comparables have been restated mainly to reflect this change of management responsibility and the new accounting standards for revenue measurement following the implementation of IFRS 15.

Group sales

Organic growth was 2.8%, reaching 2.9% in the third quarter despite high comparables. RIG was 2.3% and continued to be at the high end of the food and beverage industry. Pricing increased by 0.5% with improvements in the Americas. In the third quarter, organic growth continued to improve in North America and for infant nutrition globally. Growth in China remained at a mid-single-digit pace. Zone EMENA saw slower growth, largely due to high comparables. All categories had positive growth led by coffee, Purina petcare, infant nutrition and Nestlé Health Science.

Net acquisitions increased sales by 0.1% as the acquisition of Atrium Innovations, the Starbucks license and other transactions were offset by divestments, mainly the U.S. confectionery business. Foreign exchange had a negative impact of 0.9%, largely due to the devaluation of several emerging market currencies against the Swiss Franc. Total reported sales increased by 2.0% to CHF 66.4 billion.

Zone Americas (AMS)

1.4% organic growth: 0.8% RIG; 0.6% pricing.North America saw positive organic growth, with both RIG and pricing contributing.Latin America reported positive organic growth, with a sequential improvement in both RIG and pricing.

Organic growth was 1.4%, with RIG of 0.8% and pricing of 0.6%. Net acquisitions reduced sales by 1.1%, largely related to the divestment of the U.S. confectionery business. Foreign exchange had a further negative impact on sales of 3.2%. Reported sales in Zone AMS decreased by 2.9% to CHF21.9 billion.

North America had positive organic growth in the nine-month period. Pricing increased in the third quarter, reflecting inflation in commodity and freight costs. We saw continued solid growth in Purinapetcare, Coffee-mate creamers and coffee, particularly in e-commerce. Ice cream grew at a mid-single-digit pace in the third quarter, supported by Häagen-Dazs and Outshine.

Latin America saw positive organic growth and accelerated to a mid-single-digit pace in the third quarter. Despite the challenging trading environment, Brazil returned to positive growth in the third quarter. Mexico saw mid-single-digit organic growth, with contributions from most categories, in particular, Nescafé. There was continued strong momentum for Purina Petcare, confectionery andprofessionalsl across the region.

Zone Europe, Middle-East and North Africa (EMENA)

1.6% organic growth: 2.3% RIG; -0.7% pricing.Western Europe saw slightly negative organic growth as positive RIG was offset by negative pricing.Central and Eastern Europe posted mid-single-digit organic growth, based on strong RIG and flat pricing.The Middle East and North Africa maintained mid-single-digit organic growth, with positive RIG and pricing.

Organic growth was 1.6%, with solid RIG of 2.3%. Pricing declined by 0.7% as deflationary trends in Western Europe persisted. Net acquisitions reduced sales by 0.1%. Foreign exchange increased sales by 2.2%. Reported sales in Zone EMENA rose by 3.7% to CHF 13.7 billion.

Zone EMENA posted resilient RIG in the context of a low-growth environment, particularly in Western Europe. Nescafé growth was positive in a competitive market and in spite of difficult comparables. The Purina petcare, infant nutrition and professional businesses were the main contributors to growth across the Zone. Premium products had strong momentum in these categories, especially Gourmetcat food and NAN infant formula with Human Milk Oligosaccharides (HMOs). Confectionery posted positive growth with a strong performance from KitKat.

Zone Asia, Oceania and sub-Saharan Africa (AOA)

4.4% organic growth: 3.7% RIG; 0.7% pricing.China reported mid-single-digit organic growth, significantly above the prior year, supported by RIG.South East Asia saw mid-single-digit organic growth, with positive RIG and pricing.South Asia had mid-single-digit organic growth, with strong RIG and positive pricing.Sub-Saharan Africa reported mid-single-digit organic growth, with solid RIG and positive pricing.Japan and Oceania posted slightly positive organic growth as robust RIG was partially offset by negative pricing.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/nestle-reports-9-month-sales-rise-on-all-category-growth/

Pple from there have this wierd look....

First Bank of Nigeria Limited, the premier Bank in West Africa and the leading banking services solutions provider in Nigeria has been presented with the award of the Best Bank in Nigeria by Global Finance in its World’s Best Banks Award 2018 held on the sidelines of the World Bank/IMF Annual Meetings in Bali, Indonesia. 

According to Global Finance, “Winners in the World’s Best Banks Awards 2018 were selected based on performance over the past year as well as other criteria including reputation, management excellence, and leadership in digital transformation. Banks that were singled out in the 14 global and seven regional categories expressed the goal of digitizing in order to improve the customer experience. And clearly, banks need to focus on how to build business and preserve relationships in an online environment.”

With some 14 million customer accounts, FirstBank provides a comprehensive range of retail and corporate financial services with over 750 business locations. The Bank has an international presence through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (UK) Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank in the Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra-Leone and Senegal, as well as a Representative Office in Beijing.

Since its establishment in 1894, FirstBank has consistently built relationships with customers focusing on the fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, optimised risk management and leadership. For over 124 years, the Bank has led the financing of private investment in infrastructure development in the Nigerian economy by playing key roles in the Federal Government’s privatisation and commercialisation schemes.

With its global reach, FirstBank provides prospective investors wishing to explore the vast business opportunities that are available in Nigeria, an internationally competitive world-class brand and a credible financial partner.



SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/firstbank-named-best-bank-in-nigeria-at-the-global-finance-worlds-best-banks-2018/

The Uganda government has agreed to sell Uganda Telecom (UTL) to Nigerian firm Teleology Holdings after seven bidders competed to buy the state-owned enterprise, reports the Monitor. 

The decision followed a 24 September presentation to Cabinet of a financial capability report by an ad hoc committee after State Investment minister Evelyn Anite, the overseer of the UTL sale, claimed that Teleology had no technical expertise or financial muscle to run a telecom business. Her choice, the State-founded Mauritius Telecom, was ranked second best. Other competitors, such as Safaricom Kenya’s subsidiary Afrinet and Hamilton, dropped out prematurely.
Highly-placed sources said Teleology offered USD 71 million (UGX 268 billion) against Mauritius Telecom’s USD 45 million (UGX 167 billion).

According to the daily, the decision for Teleology to take over and revamp the struggling operator polarised ministers. Four ministers who attended the decisive 01 October meeting separately spoke with the daily.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/nigerias-teleology-to-buy-uganda-telecom-for-usd-71-million/

Serious trouble may be brewing for Access Bank Plc as Mr Pascal Nwabueze Innocent has alleged that over N350 million been fraudulently withdrawn from the two accounts he operates with the bank without his authorization.

Mr Pascal Nwabueze Innocent raised the alarm when he discovered that over N116 million has been fraudulently withdrawn from both his personal and corporate accounts with the bank.

However, in the course of probing into the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the N116 million, the customer further discovered that over N350 million was missing from the account.

The businessman said  that the two accounts from which the funds were withdrawn are from his personal account and De Chimex Aluminum & Steel Company Limited, a corporate account both operated by Pascal Nwabueze Innocent and domiciled at the Access Bank Plc, Wuse Market branch, Abuja.

According to him, the latest fraud is even separate from over N74 million which the bank was said to have appropriated in 2016 when he installed heavy duty machines which he imported from China.

It was gathered that when he approached the bank through a letter dated July 5, 2018, to ascertain who and how the transaction was carried out, Access  Bank, in their reply dated July 9, the bank assured him that it “has commenced the investigation into the alleged unauthorized fraudulent withdrawals from your account”

Access Bank also requested him to provide “the details of the transactions in other to assist in their investigation, promising to furnish him with the outcome of their investigation.

It was further gathered that the request made by Nwabueze Innocent for Access Bank to furnish him with that instruments used in the withdrawals were rebuffed by the bank.

However, it was also learnt that rather than keep it promise of furnishing the customer the findings of their investigation, Access Bank reported the Nwabueze Innocent to the Department of State Services (DSS), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), FCT Command.

It was further learnt that it was when the Police stepped into the matter that the bank reluctantly made available 43 Fund Transfer/Standing Order Forms, out of which only five were authorized by Nwabueze Innocent while the remaining 38 were “unauthorized and fraudulent”.

Top Police sources said the preliminary report of the investigation has shown that it was a clear case of criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and outright theft.

According to Police sources, Access Bank is “becoming hesitant in responding to several issues relating to the withdrawals from the two accounts maintained by Nwabueze Innocent.

For instance, it was learnt that the bank is being reluctant to produce the original mandate for the withdrawals and the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) footage between May 1, 2018 and June 30, 2018 when the fraudulent transactions were made.

According to sources familiar with the police investigations, central to the whole drama around the illegal withdrawals from the two accounts was one Ms Uche Gloria Michael Sado, a staff of Access Bank who is also the accounts officer for the two accounts.

Investigations by the Police was said to have revealed that funds were pulled from the two accounts maintained by Nwabueze Innocent and channelled to Mikuch Global Limited, from where the funds are withdrawn and disbursed among the “beneficiaries” of the fraudulent act.

It was further discovered during the police investigations that Mikuch Global Limited is owned by one Michael Sado, alleged husband to Ms Uche Gloria Michael, the Account Officer to the two banks from which the withdrawals were made.

According to Police sources, the fraud was perfected by forging the signature, telephone number and company name of the two accounts while at the same time diverting the Alert from the original telephone number of the account holder.

Police investigations also showed that Access Bank is being economical with the truth as the Uche Gloria Michael Sado, whom the bank is alleging to have “stolen” the funds and is alleged to be on the run is still on the payroll of the bank.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/trouble-in-access-bank-over-n350m-illegal-withdrawal-from-customers-account/

In line with the Bank’s commitment to creating high-tech solutions to improving the quality of products and service delivery, FirstBank will be hosting its maiden two-day Hackathon Competition which will culminate in the 2018 Fintech Summit 2.0. themed The Future of Banking – The Role of AI and Big Data.

These events have been designed as an avenue to showcase innovations developed by indigenous Nigerian companies as well as provide a platform for networking and partnership opportunities between the Bank and the Fintech community.

Consequently, the Bank is looking for developers with the knowledge and skill set to address the challenges in the financial industry through the use of AI and Big Data, to participate in the Hackathon competition.

The FirstBank 2018 FinTech summit is scheduled to kick off with a 2-day coding competition – Hackathon – billed for Thursday and Friday 11th and 12th October 2018 whilst the summit holds Wednesday 17 October 2018 with over 700 FinTech players and stakeholders to attend.

The Hackathon is projected to focus on Artificial Intelligence and Big Data. 10 teams will be contesting for the grand prize of N3 million in a competition to show off their technological and artificial intelligence capabilities with the second and third best teams carting away the sum of N1.5 million and N750,000 respectively.

The 10 teams will also have an opportunity to showcase their solutions at the FinTech summit scheduled for 17 October.

Register here: https://www.firstbanknigeria.com/fintech-cocktail-summit/fintech-summit-registration/

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/firstbank-to-host-fintech-summit/

Mobi Hunter, the leading publishing partner across Africa is working with SWIFT Networks and Google to provide free Wifi in Lagos.

The rollout will enable internet users to browse the internet in exchange for engaging with their favourite brands.

Speaking on the rollout, CEO of Mobi Hunter, Timothy Lambrechts said: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with SWIFT Networks and Google in Nigeria. Brands are always looking for innovative ways to market audiences via new publishing offerings.”

He explained that the Wifi roll out includes video formats that captivate the audience and is served based on the user’s location.

Mobi Hunter,” he said, “has been working with major brands and agencies in Nigeria for over four years, other key markets include Kenya and South Africa.

“Over the past few months, we have worked with Shoprite – Africa’s largest retailer – to lead the way through digital innovation and run several successful campaigns.

“We have also rolled out a similar initiative in South Africa and when this ground-breaking opportunity presented itself via Google we had to jump on board”.

Lambrechts noted that “the collaboration between SWIFT, Google and Mobi Hunter optimises the level of digital collaboration and innovation that will drive Africa forward”.

Also speaking, the entrepreneur behind SWIFT Networks, Charles Anudu said: “The ‘rewarded wifi video’ concept is in line with closing the digital divide which exists in Nigeria. SWIFT’s tradition of demystifying and making technology to work for Nigerians so that they can hook up to the digital world to explore, work and entertain more efficiently.”

Hotspots went live in Lagos earlier a few months ago at certain locations including MMA-2, Hard Rock Café, Shiro restaurant, Festival Mall, some Tastee Fired Chicken and Bukka Hut outlets, over 200 BRT Buses, Smart Cabs, Eko Hospital, VGC Club, among others.

The rollout is ongoing, and more locations are being added on a daily basis towards our 10,000-hotspot target in Lagos.

The hotspots can be accessed via the Red Cheetah app which is free to download from the Google Play store. It can also be accessed from www.redcheetah.net and complete a mandatory one-time online registration process.

Users can register multiple android devices as every device must be independently registered to access the internet via Red Cheetah. The first Red Cheetah app release is for the Android operating system only while the other operating systems will follow shortly. Users will be expected to view adverts at intervals from the sponsors and partners who make the free service possible.

About Mobi Hunter

The Mobi Hunter assists leading publishers across Africa to monetize effectively. Since 2014 Mobi Hunter has run over 3000 digital brand campaigns across key markets like Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa. Mobi Hunter is a Google partner in terms of buying media and selling media on behalf of publishers. Other key publishers that Mobi Hunters works Truecaller- one of the fastest growing global apps- and popular professional network Linkedin in conjunction with Turn Left Media.

SOURCE : https://brandspurng.com/10000-hotspot-zones-going-live-in-lagos-the-largest-wifi-roll-out-in-africa/

HarvestPlus Nigeria and its partners today flagged off its 4th edition of the Nutritious Food Fair in Lagos. The Nutritious Food Fair (NFF), has grown to become a commercial platform for promoting the production, marketing and consumption of nutritious foods in Nigeria.

The fourth edition of the Nutritious Food Fair, the largest platform in Nigeria that showcases businesses and opportunities in the nutritious food sector will be held at Landmark Events Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria from 7th – 9th November 2018.

The fair has grown to become a commercial platform for promoting the production, processing, marketing, and consumption of nutritious foods in Nigeria.

This year’s event will feature business seminars, an exhibition of nutritious foods and processing equipment, practical training sessions and entertainment. The fair is expected to attract over 10,000 participants from within and outside the country.

The first three editions which held in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja in 2015, Calabar International Convention Centre, Tinapa, in 2016 and Michael Okpara Square in 2017 were attended by over 15,000 participants and 200 exhibitors from 5 countries.

HarvestPlus and its partners work in 26 states of Nigeria to promote the availability, adoption and consumption of Vitamin A Cassava, Maize and Orange, Sweet Potato. Their goal is that more than 100 million Nigerians will be consuming these biofortified crops by 2030.

To register visit: www.nutritiousfoodfair.org

For sponsorship and exhibition enquires: foodfair@harvestplusng.org

Ify – 07039390279, Tope – 08023260448

Event Date: 7th -9th November, 2018

Instagram: @nutri_foodfairTwitter: @nutri_foodfairInstagram: @harvestplus_ngTwitter: @harvestplus_ng


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/harvestplus-nigeria-flags-off-4th-nutritious-food-fair-2018/

Interswitch Financial Inclusion Services (IFIS), trading as Quickteller Paypoint, has announced partnerships with key billers in various sectors to enable customers using its platform to conduct financial transactions at no charge. Transactions that will enjoy this new benefit include utility bill payments, betting, wallet funding and cable TV subscription.

Before now, customers were required to pay a fee of N100 on each payment transaction; Quickteller has now paired with some of the organization’s biller partners to bear the transaction cost. As a result, customers can now make most of their transactions at no additional cost to them.

While this takes off the burden of transaction fees from the customers, it has been carefully processed to safeguard Quickteller PayPoint agents, such that they are able to retain their customary commission and other incentives.

Titilola Shogaolu, Divisional Chief Executive Officer (DCEO) of Interswitch Financial Inclusion Service, said: “At Interswitch Financial Inclusion Service, we are not only committed to closing the financial exclusion gap, we are continuously working to provide convenient services that will enhance the adoption of digital payments and this latest incentive is just one of the many ways through which we are achieving this”.

Quickteller Paypoint is a one-stop service that provides electronic payment solutions to the under-banked, through agents who earn exciting commissions and other incentives. The over 16,000 agents, who are spread across the country offer various financial services to customers, such as bill payment, funds transfer, cash deposits, cash withdrawals, and airtime top-up.

The list of the billers that Quickteller Paypoint is partnering with to deliver this value service includes: Eko Electricity Distribution Company (EKEDP), Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC), Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JEDC), WAKABET, BETWAY, Kwese, Ariaria Market Energy Solutions Limited, Rensource and Zola Electric.

Shogaolu also spoke on the future plans of Quickteller. She said: “Quickteller Paypoint is not stopping at this. We are working hard to secure more of such deals in order to deliver better value to our customers, and more profit to our valued agents”

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/quickteller-paypoint-implements-charge-free-transactions-for-customers/

Malam El Rufai commissioned the Kaduna Stanbic-IBTC Entrepreneurship Centre (KADSEC), at the Kaduna Trade Fair Complex, sponsored by Kaduna State Government and Stanbic IBTC Plc.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/photo-news-commissioning-of-kaduna-stanbic-ibtc-entrepreneurship-centre-kadsec/

Procter and Gamble (P&G), leading Fast Moving Consumer Goods Company in Nigeria and makers of Pampers and Ariel, has received the National Development Safety and Health Award as a testament to the Company’s strict adherence to proper safety and health practices.

The Award, a joint initiative of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) is aimed at rewarding safe workplace practices and promoting effective occupational safety and health standards (OSH) in the workplace while enhancing the Employees’ Compensation Act (ECA), 2010.

P&G’s Ibadan Plant was recognized and awarded for its high OSH standards after a thorough audit was carried out by NECA and NSITF early this year. At the plant, products are prepared in an environmentally responsible manner; 100% renewable materials are used for all products’ packaging, the plant is powered by 100% renewable energy and there is zero waste to landfill.

Commenting on the meritorious award, P&G Ibadan Plant Manager, Segun Olujimi said, “We follow rigorous safety and quality standards because we not only want to serve our customers with superior products, we also want to do so in the safest and most hygienic conditions possible. We are also obsessed with health and safety because we want our employees to feel safe at work while performing at their peak   Furthermore, we recognize that a safe environment contributes immensely to a sustainable business and that is why our activities are carried out in a manner that protects the environment. It is essential for every organization to adopt a safety culture; and the benefits for the environment, staff and for the business will be worth the effort”.

“We are thankful for this recognition from NECA and NSITF and we are determined to continue to employ only quality and safety standards in all our operations” Olujimi added.

The Safe Workplace Intervention Programme is a periodic occupational safety and health audit of employers to establish the level of compliance within the national OSH standards. Every year, an award ceremony is held to reward OSH compliant companies and improve the capacity of less compliant companies through the donation of safety infrastructure. This year’s award will take place on the 24th of October in Lagos.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/pg-wins-national-occupational-safety-and-health-standards-award/

Facebook has warned of a new viral hoax message that is fooling users into thinking their account has been ‘cloned’ by cybercriminals and to forward on the message to all of their Facebook friends to warn them of the mimic account, as reported in the Daily Mail.

The hoax message in full:

Hi….I actually got another friend request from you yesterday…which I ignored so you may want to check your account.

‘Hold your finger on the message until the forward button appears…then hit forward and all the people you want to forward too….I had to do the people individually. Good Luck!

We requested comment from a local Facebook spokesperson:

We’ve heard that some people are seeing posts or messages about accounts being cloned on Facebook. It takes the form of a ‘chain mail’ type of notice.People have told us that they don’t like seeing the same post that a lot of people are copying and pasting on to Facebook. So if enough people post the same long post, it could show up lower in people’s News Feeds.Claiming to be another person on Facebook violates our Community Standards, and we have a dedicated team that’s tasked with helping to detect and block these kinds of scams. We have made several recent improvements to combat impersonation, including image recognition technology, automation to detect scams, and improved reporting abilities.We encourage people to let us know about impersonating accounts using the reporting tools available here. Our teams review each one and take the appropriate action—including setting checkpoints (which require you to provide additional information in order to proceed) or shutting down profiles if necessary.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/facebook-releases-statement-on-viral-scam/

Nigerian Breweries Plc in collaboration with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has kicked off the 2018 edition of the Don’t Drink and Drive campaign aimed at creating safety awareness on Nigerian roads in order to minimise the dangers of drink driving.

The event marking the beginning of the 11th edition of the campaign was held at Nigerian Breweries, Iganmu on Thursday, October 4, 2018.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Jordi Borrut Bel, said the Don’t Drink and Drive campaign is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative designed to improve safety on Nigerian roads by discouraging the habit of drink driving especially among commercial drivers, motorcycle riders and private car owners.

He said the campaign involves enlightenment rallies for drivers in various cities, deployment of print and electronic media messages, fliers, free medical checks such as blood pressure and eye tests for drivers during the rallies.

Borrut Bel explained that since the start of the initiative, the company has held enlightenment rallies in motor parks and other locations in 42 cities and towns across the country. “In the process, we have directly engaged over 20,000 drivers, other road users and a higher number of people through media messages” he stated.

He added that there will be mega rallies this year in Eket, Akwa Ibom state, Ojota in Lagos and Minna in Niger state.

According to him, some behavioural changes have been recorded among drivers from evaluations conducted by research experts.

In his remark, Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi, Corps Marshal and Chief Executive, FRSC, commended Nigerian Breweries for the laudable campaign which he said is worth emulating by other organisations. He said the campaign’s impact on road users, especially commercial drivers, has been high since the Corps signed a memorandum of understanding with the leading brewing company.

He affirmed that in order to promote responsible drinking, the FRSC has acquired digital alcoylser to test the level of alcohol in drivers.  “If the alcoholic content exceeds 0.05mm in a driver, then it is considered abnormal and not good for driving,” Oyeyemi said.

The mega rallies for this year’s edition have been expanded to include the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Tanker Drivers, Luxury Bus Drivers, Keke and Okada Riders, Non-Governmental Organisations and members of the National Youth Service Corps, among others.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/nigerian-breweries-frsc-flag-off-2018-dont-drink-and-drive-campaign/

Ride-hailing service, Taxify has begun operations simultaneously in Ibadan and Owerri today, becoming the first top-tier e-hailing service to expand beyond Lagos and Abuja and connect passengers with drivers in these cities.

An e-hailing service like Taxify is simply a cellphone-based transportation app that lets passengers easily, quickly and cost-effectively requests for a driver to pick them up almost instantly wherever they are, to take them wherever they want to go.

Taxify has launched in Ibadan and Owerri in response to requests from passengers and drivers, becoming the third and fourth cities in Nigeria that Taxify operates in, in addition to Lagos and Abuja.

“After our successful launches in Nigeria’s main centres, expanding to the cities of Ibadan and Owerri is a natural next step for Taxify,” says Uche Okafor, Taxify’s Country Manager for Nigeria. “We’re looking forward to introducing these cities to safe, reliable and affordable ride-hailing services on demand, and introducing flexible employment opportunities to thousands of drivers and vehicle owners in both cities.”

It’s easy to use: passengers simply download the secure and free Taxify app from the iOS or Android app stores and set up a user profile.

When they’re ready to ride, users open the app, set their location and their intended destination. The app will then give a cost estimate for the trip. Once passengers request the ride, the app alerts drivers nearby who accept the ride.

Once a driver has accepted the ride, passengers will be able to see their driver’s name, photo, car make and model, and registration, as well as be able to track the driver making his or her way towards them in real time – all of which makes it easy to be sure that they get safely into the correct vehicle with the correct driver. Passengers can also share their trip details using the “Share your ETA” function on the app, as an extra layer of security.

When the ride is complete, payment is made with cash, or via the debit card details, the rider entered into the app.

Popular trips in and around Ibadan such as UI to Palms Mall, Ring Road will cost between N1400 – N2100, Akobo to Ventura Mall Samonda will cost between N1000 – N1300 and Samondato Cocoa Mall, Dugbe will cost between N700 – N900. In Owerri, Airport to Concorde/World bank will cost between N4000 to N5000, FUTO/Nekede to IMSU/Ikenegbu will cost between N2000– N2500 while Ikenegbu/Wetheral to Egbu/Owerri Mall will cost between N600 – N900.

Passengers and drivers can rate each other out of five stars and leave any comments using the Taxify app.

Before Taxify launched in Ibadan and Owerri, customers wanting to use a driver service had to stand on the road, call a taxi and negotiate to price with them. Passengers would not be able to share their travel details with friends and loved ones or contact the driver in case of forgotten items in vehicles.

To celebrate Taxify’s launch in both cities, Taxify will be offering a 20% discount on all fares for the month of October 2018, and passengers can enjoy a free first ride with the promo codes HELLOIBADAN and HIOWERRI when they apply the promo codes using their debit cards.

Taxify has already signed drivers up to the platform in both cities, who all receive 85% of all fares paid by passengers – a significantly higher percentage than what drivers using other similar platforms receive. What’s more, drivers using the platform are their own boss, as they can choose how many hours they drive, there are no monthly dues, and they can work in whichever areas they want to.

Drivers’ cars must be a 2003 vehicle model or newer. The car has to be four-door (Toyota Corolla, Hyundai Accent, Kia Rio, etc) and must have passed a safety inspection. This means that everyone hailing a ride through Taxify can be confident that they will get to their destination safely and comfortably.

Taxify has been hugely successful in every city where it has launched since commencing operations in Nigeria in 2016.

Launching in Ibadan and Owerri are particularly exciting for Taxify because everyone in these cities can now call cost-effective, quick, reliable and convenient rides from wherever they are to wherever they want to be.

If you want to become a Taxify driver, you will need a valid Nigerian driver’s license, an Android or iOS smartphone with GPS, and undergo an onboarding/training program.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/taxify-debuts-in-ibadan-owerri/

Apple is the first USD $200bn brand56% YOY growth catapults Amazon to #3Luxury is the Top Growing Sector, followed by RetailNew Entrants Spotify and Subaru. Reentrants Chanel, Hennessy, Nintendo

Interbrand has announced Apple, Google, and Amazon are the three most valuable brands in its 2018 Best Global Brands report, with luxury and retail as the two dominant sectors. Now in its 19th year, the report’s 2018 theme is Activating Brave and examines the role that brand strength plays in the bold transformation of the world’s leading businesses.

This year, the list features two new entrants and three re-entrants. Spotify joins at #92 (USD $5,176m), and Subaru at #100 (USD $4,214m) for the first time. Chanel re-enters at #23 (USD $20,005m, last on in 2009). Hennessy also returns at #98 (USD $4,722, last on in 2009), and Nintendo at #99 (USD $4,696m, last on in 2014).

“A decade after the global financial crisis, the brands that are growing fastest are those that intuitively understand their customers and make brave iconic moves that delight and deliver in new ways,” said Charles Trevail, Global Chief Executive Officer of Interbrand.

For six consecutive years, Apple and Google hold the top positions. Apple’s brand value grew by 16 percent to USD $214,480m, and Google’s brand value by 10 percent to USD $155,506m. Amazon achieved 56% growth and is the third brand to achieve a 100 billion dollar brand valuation (USD $100,764m), as well as the top performer among 28 brands with double-digit percentage growth. Following Microsoft at #4 (USD $92,715m), are Coca-Cola (USD $66,341m), Samsung (USD $59,890m), Toyota (USD $53,404m), Mercedes-Benz (USD $48,601m), Facebook (USD $45,168m). McDonald’s (USD $43,417m) returns to round out the Top 10.

The five Top Growing Brands include Amazon (56 percent growth) 2017 new entrant Netflix (45 percent), Gucci (30 percent), 2017 new entrant Salesforce.com (23 percent), and Louis Vuitton (23 percent). After five years as the Top Growing Brand, Facebook declines six percent.

More than half of the Best Global Brands came from five sectors: Automotive (16), Technology(13), Financial Services (12), Luxury (9), and Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (9). Luxury is the new Top Growing Sector in percentage terms (42%), replacing Retail, which continues impressive growth at second (36%). Electronics is third (20%), Sporting Goods is fourth (13%), followed by Financial Services (10%).

The combined total value of the Top 100 crosses the two trillion dollar threshold with USD $2,015,312m, an increase of 7.7% from 2017. For the complete Top 100 ranking and the report with comprehensive analysis of growth, sector, and industry trends, visit www.bestglobalbrands.com.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/apple-google-and-amazon-named-as-most-valuable-brands-in-world/

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Tuesday announced the Federal Government’s approval of a 90-day special window to register businesses at a reduced rate of N5000 only.

A statement, signed by Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice President in Abuja, said that Osinbajo made the announcement in Enugu.

Osinbajo, who was quoted as making the announcement at the launch of the 19th edition of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Clinics in Enugu, said the special window of 90 spanned from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31.

He said that the gesture was to further ease the process of registering MSMEs in the country.

“It was observed during some of the earlier editions of the MSMEs Clinics that a lot of MSMEs were finding it difficult to register their businesses as a result of cost.

“The practice since we began the MSMEs clinics is that most agencies offer price reductions, especially for registration, and all other pre-investment approvals, during the Clinics.

“So, I am pleased to announce that the Federal Government, through the Corporate Affairs Commission, has approved a special window of 90 days from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 to register businesses at a considerably reduced rate of N5000 only, down from as much as N10,000 previously.

“This will afford more MSMEs an opportunity to formalise their businesses.”

Speaking on other initiatives by the Federal Government designed to consolidate the gains of the MSMEs Clinics, Osinbajo said that the Federal Government would be establishing shared facilities for MSMEs.

He said that the facilities would be based on a partnership between the Federal Government, interested States, Bank of Industry, NEXIM Bank, FIRS, NAFDAC, SON and interested private sector partners, as part of efforts at deepening the impact of the Clinics.

“The purpose of these shared facilities is to have a fully-equipped place with machinery and equipment required for various trades and businesses. MSMEs can then do their businesses at those locations at a reasonable cost.

“This way, MSMEs are spared the financial burden of having to buy their own equipment in order to be able to do business.

“Where possible, these shared facilities would have been pre-certified by relevant agencies, removing the need for MSMEs to pursue these certifications by themselves.’’

He also announced the Federal Government’s willingness to partner with State governments in establishing more One-Stop Shops, to further enhance business registration and facilitate seamless interaction between owners of small businesses and the relevant regulatory agencies.

The vice president said that the Federal Government was also aware that some States had gone on to set up ‘One-Stop Shops’ after the Clinics.

According to him, the One-Stop Shops will bring all the relevant agencies together in one place so as to enable the MSMEs access their services on an ongoing basis.

“The Federal Government is also willing to partner with your State Government to immediately set up one such place for the good use of MSMEs in Enugu State,” he said.

Osinbajo also said there were follow-up plans to ensure that all the finalists from the maiden edition of the MSMEs Awards were supported with publicity and media exposure, to enable them to reach even larger markets at home and abroad.

He said that the ongoing disbursement of collateral and interest-free loans given to petty traders under the GEEP TraderMoni programme would soon be launched in Enugu.

Earlier in his remarks, Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu state said the State government had already keyed into some of the social investment programmes initiated by the Federal Government.

Ugwuanyi promised that the state would continue to cooperate with all federal authorities to improve the well-being of the people.

The governor expressed appreciation to the Federal Government for inaugurating the National MSMEs Clinics in the state as it would greatly improve the lives of many youths, especially those seeking employment opportunities.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/fg-cuts-cost-of-business-name-registration-to-n5000/

United Capital Plc, a leading financial services group just launched its new, improved online investment platform, InvestNow. The company, which prides itself in being innovative and customer-centric rolled out this platform as part of its retail strategy and unwavering commitment to excellent service experience.

.The platform was first released in 2014 as a securities trading platform but has gone through a series of upgrades and improvements. Some of the new, unique products and features include the direct debit functionality which helps make saving and investment easy for the customer by allowing for direct transfer from the customer’s bank account to their investment account; the online wills, which allows users to create a will online; and zero account balance which allows customers to open an account without funding their account. In addition to these unique features, the Group also launched a mobile app which will make investing even much easier and more accessible to the user.

According to the Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Peter Ashade who talked to newsmen at the event launch which held in the Group’s Lagos office, “We are extremely excited about this new upgrade. We are always thinking about how to make the customer experience better and InvestNow.ng really speaks to that. Our customers can now invest in our different products on the platform either through the website or with the App. You can buy mutual funds online, trade on the equities market, set up a trust and even write a will.”

Speaking further about the portal, the Group Chief Information Officer, Mr. Joseph Onyema also stressed that the various investment products are consolidated on the portal for ease. According to him, “A big selling point for us is that everything can be done with a single app. You don’t have to download several apps just to trade on the Stock Exchange, to buy mutual funds or to create a will. With InvestNow.Ng, you can have all your investments at a single point”.

United Capital is committed to consistently creating value for its stakeholders and has expressed hopes that the new, improved platform will help drive financial inclusion by ensuring that more people have finance and investment solutions at their fingertips.

United Capital is an integrated financial services group operating in four core business areas: Investment Banking; Asset Management; Trustee Services; and Securities Brokerage Services.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/united-capital-launches-its-new-improved-online-investment-platform-investnow-ng/

L:R – Joseph Onyema – Group Chief Information Officer; Jude Chiemeka – MD/CEO , United Capital Securities Limited; Tokunbo Ajayi – MD/CEO United Capital Trustees Limited; Peter Ashade – Group CEO , United Capital Plc; Sunny Anene – MD/CEO, United Capital Asset Management and Babatunde Obaniyi – MD

Unilever and LaLiga have announced an extensive worldwide sponsorship agreement, covering this current season as well as the 2019/20and 2020/21 campaigns.



The scope of Unilever’s portfolio includes 400 brands in over 190 countries, with the company turning over €50 billion annually and reaching over 2.5 billion customers daily. Two of Unilever’s most iconic personal care brands are part of this sponsorship deal – Clear Men and Rexona, the latter of which is also known as Sure, Degree and Shield, depending on the target country.



Through their Clear and Rexona brands which are part of this agreement, Unilever will be boosted by the success that LaLiga has enjoyed both on and off the pitch over the last four years. In this timeframe, the league’s global influence has skyrocketed, and currently, there are more than 2.7 billion LaLiga fans worldwide. In addition, Unilever’s sponsorship agreement with LaLiga will strengthen its growth strategy, which aims at improving consumers’ lives in all four corners of the globe.

Tri Tran Tue, Global Clear’s Vice President shared her excitement on this partnership. “We’re thrilled to form this partnership as LaLiga offers us a strong platform to leverage the Clear Men brand, through campaigns that cut across multiple channels and markets. We will bring fans closer to the action through unique and expansive content strategies, and campaigns that deliver our brand and product narrative.”



Joanna Allen, Rexona’s global brand vice president, offered her thoughts on the agreement. “We’re delighted to announce this new partnership with LaLiga, the home of football’s finest. LaLiga’s international appeal offers us a fantastic platform from which to reach a global audience for Rexona.”

For his part, LaLiga President Javier Tebas believes that this partnership “is further evidence of LaLiga’s efforts to reach out to a global market, alongside a brand that’s as universally recognised as Unilever. This agreement is fantastic news since we always aim to join forces with leading international brands and get closer to the millions of LaLiga fans around the world. We’ll achieve this thanks to our association with Clear and Rexona, two excellent brands.”



For Unilever, LaLiga’s success is an ideal platform from which to fulfil their brand objectives, thanks to the advantages that come hand-in-hand with this agreement. These include immersive matchday experiences with LaLiga ambassadors, weekly content on social media, as well as football development programs aimed at uncovering upcoming talent.

The agreement will be present globally for Clear Men. In addition, for Rexona, in the United States as Degree, in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Central American countries, Russia, Spain, Germany and a large part of Africa, such as Rexona, in the United Kingdom and Ireland, as Sure, and in South Africa as Shield.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/laliga-and-unilever-reach-sponsorship-agreement-for-clear-men-rexona-brands/

The Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) has launched her first television commercial to be broadcast across various platforms to educate the teeming Nigerian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) on how to access the DBN loans through the various Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs).

The series of 60 Second TV Commercials aptly recounts the struggles of entrepreneurs who must meet their customers’ orders despite seemingly impossible deadlines. The stories progress with the protagonist in a frantic search for loans to help them meet their client’s orders; family and friends disappoint them but at the climax of their struggle, DBN provides a solution through her financing which is available through commercial banks, microfinance banks, and other financial institutions with tenors of up to ten years and eighteen months moratorium, where necessary.

Commenting on the launch of the TV Commercials, the Managing Director of the bank, Mr Tony Okpanachi, said “there are a lot of innovative and brilliant entrepreneurs out there who are critically challenged by access to financing and have no clue on how to address it. The commercial is intended to educate the public on the available funds from DBN for the development of the MSMEs, which is globally acknowledged to be the engine room of growth for any economy.”

According to him, “the visibility of the bank to the business community in Nigeria has brought about a lot of enquiries. We are using the TVC to educate the business owners on how to access funds for their businesses.”

DBN is a wholesale Development Finance Institution (DFI) providing sustainable financing through eligible Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs), who in turn, lend to end-borrowers – Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) for the development of that segment. The bank recently opened an office in the commercial capital of the country; Lagos, for proximity to the Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs).

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/development-bank-of-nigeria-launches-new-television-commercials/

The rail transportation data for Q2 2018 reflected that a total of 730,289 passengers travelled via the rail system in Q2 2018 as against 748,345 passengers recorded in Q1 2018 and 596,792 in Q2 2017 respectively, representing 22.37% growth YoY and -2.41% growth QoQ.

Similarly, a total of 85,816 tons of volume of goods/cargo travelled via the rail system in Q2 2018 as against 79,750 recorded in Q1 2018 and 18,212 in Q2 2017 respectively, representing 371.21% growth YoY and 7.61% growth QoQ.

Revenue generated from passengers in Q2 2018 was put at N435,965,777 as against N413,057,019 in Q1 2018. Similarly, revenue generated from goods/cargo in Q2 2018 was put at N159,079,963 as against N151,279,394 in Q1 2018.


SOURCE : https://brandspurng.com/730289-passengers-traveled-via-rail-in-q2-2018-nbs/

Total Nigeria Plc and Stallion Group automotive members have signed a lubricant supply agreement following their choice of the Total Lubricant brand as the recommended lubricant sales partner for all motor brands assembled and sold by the group in Nigeria.

The networks will receive access to high-performance Total Quartz and Rubia automotive lubricants that will suit all Nissan, Hyundai, Volkswagen, IVECO and Ashok Leyland specifications, as well as other brands managed by the Stallion Group.

Included in the agreement, is a full program to provide technical training, marketing support tools and lubricant analysis services to Stallion Group network for automobile/equipment monitoring. Stallion Group’s customers will benefit from this partnership by having access to Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) specified lubricant.

Managing Director, Total Nigeria Plc, Imrane Barry, expressed pleasure with the partnership as it provides a channel for OEMs like Stallion Group brands to have access to genuine Total Lubricants and world-class technical and marketing support.

In his words: “Satisfying our unique customer needs is very important to Total, which is why Total is dedicated to continuous investment in research and innovation in pursuit of developing products and services of the highest quality to best satisfy our clients’ requirements.

This has led to the development of a product range for over 400 unique Industry applications that are tailor-made to suit a wide range of Industrial Lubrication needs. Total Nigeria Plc is glad to be partnering with Stallion Group Automotive and looks forward to a fruitful relationship.”

Managing Director, Stallion Automotive Group, Parvir Singh, said the group has always believed and focused on delivering best services at reasonable prices to customers, and now together with Total, it will surely further enhance on reaching the customer satisfaction levels.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/total-stallion-partner-on-lubricant-supply/

The African Development Bank called on global partners to join hands to lift one billion people worldwide out of hunger and said it was leading the way by investing US$24 billion in African agriculture over the next 10 years in the largest such effort ever.

“We are not winning the war against global hunger,” Bank President Akinwumi Adesina told an agriculture conference at Purdue University in Indianapolis on Tuesday, 25 September.

“We must not get carried away,” he added, referring to statistics showing a decline in the global population living on less than two dollars per day. In reality, the number of hungry people in the world had increased from 777 million in 2015 to 815 million in 2016, he said citing the latest World Food Security and Nutrition data.


Adesina told the audience that included researchers, implementing organizations, business leaders, policymakers and donors that simple technical and scientific methods were already making a whole difference to farm yields and income in Africa. While such technologies to deliver Africa’s green revolution exist, they are mostly just sitting on the shelves, he said.

“The release of water-efficient maize varieties now allows farmers to harvest good yields in the face of moderate drought,” he noted. “Today, rice varieties exist that can give yields of 8 tonnes per ha. Cassava varieties exist with yields of up to 80 tonnes per ha. Heat tolerant and disease resistant livestock and technologies for ramping up aquaculture exist.”

Bank experts put current comparative yields at 1.5-2 tonnes per ha for rice and 10-15 tonnes per ha for cassava.

What was needed urgently was the deployment of supportive policies to ensure technologies are cascaded down to millions of farmers. “All Africa needs to do is to harness the available technologies with the right policies and rapidly raise agricultural productivity and incomes for farmers and assure lower food prices for consumers.”

The Bank has launched its Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT), a $1 billion initiative to extend the use of farm technologies. TAAT is currently engaging seed companies, public and private entities, and financial institutions in 27 countries to make technology available to a total of 40 million African farmers.

Combining targeted subsidies for farmers with a market-based system for rapidly expanding access to financing for farmers and agricultural value chains is the fastest way to get many people out of poverty to a sustained pathway for economic growth, Adesina added.

The conference on “ Scaling Up Agricultural Technologies for Transformation” marked Adesina’s fond return to his alma mater.

“It was here, as a graduate student, that I began the journey of searching for ways to get technologies into the hands of millions of farmers,” he said. Adesina was to go on to make a huge impact on the transformation of agriculture in Africa, including implementing game-changing policies in his years as Nigeria’s Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development before taking up his post at the Bank in September 2015.

Adesina said the situation in Sub-Saharan Africa needed particularly urgent intervention due to the ravages of climate change. The International Food Policy Research Institute estimates that Africa will add 38 million to its number of hungry people by 2050 as a result of climate change.  The Institute forecasts that Africa will experience major food shortages by 2020 and beyond, while malnutrition will be on the rise over the next 20 years.

The Bank’s ongoing initiatives had the objectives of growing income for farmers, stabilizing prices for staple crops, reducing losses and stimulating multiplier effects in local economies.  With its Staple Crop Processing Zones and other initiatives, the Bank is demonstrating how this can be done.

“The African Development Bank put feeding Africa as one of its topmost priorities when it launched its Feed Africa strategy (http:///2Q7A04c) in 2015 and is investing $ 24 billion in agriculture for Africa over 10 years – the largest ever such effort,” the Bank President said. Across Africa, the Feed Africa Strategy (http:///2Q9GnUv) is supporting the development of policies, markets, infrastructure and institutions that will ensure that agricultural value chains are well developed and that technologies reach several millions of farmers.

Adesina called for global partnerships to establish Staple Crop Processing Zones across Africa.

“The SCPZs will provide several advantages for rural economies. They will create markets for farm produce. Raw materials will no longer be moved out of rural areas but as finished value-added products. Post-harvest losses will be substantially reduced. Well, integrated agricultural value chains will develop, with supportive logistics, especially warehousing and cold chains,” Adesina added.

The African Development Bank has already started investments to develop these SCPZs in a number of pioneering African countries, including Ethiopia, Togo, Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique. It expects the processing zones to be active in about 15 countries in the near-term.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/afdb-seeks-partnerships-to-lift-1-billion-people-out-of-hunger-globally/

Oil prices burst out of the gates on Monday with strong gains, pushing WTI over $70 and Brent over $80 per barrel. Over the weekend, OPEC+ decided to take no further action to increase production even as Iran continues to lose supply at a torrid pace. Saudi Arabia said it would likely increase output in October but declined to offer specifics. The inaction was met with fears of a supply crunch from the market, pushing Brent up to its highest level in years. A growing number of analysts see higher prices as likely, perhaps even as high as $100 per barrel. 

Europe to establish Iran workaround. The European Union said on Monday that it would set up a special financial vehicle to allow Iran to evade U.S. sanctions. The “special purpose vehicle” would allow European companies to continue to do business with Iran while insulating them from the wrath of the U.S. Treasury. The announcement comes as U.S. President Trump will address the UN General Assembly this week, and the EU decision will put the two sides at odds. Iran’s oil supply losses are mounting, and it is unclear to what extent the EU financial vehicle will stem the tide.

Oil majors agree to reduce methane emissions. A group of the world’s largest oil companies agreed to lower methane emissions from their operations over the coming years. The Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI) calls for a reduction of methane emissions by a fifth by 2025. ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) and Chevron (NYSE: CVX)recently joined the initiative and said they would limit methane emissions to 0.25 per cent of total production, compared to 0.32 percent in 2017. The OGCI pledge calls for a reduction to 0.20 per cent. The OGCI consists of companies accounting for a third of global oil and gas production and includes BP (NYSE: BP), Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A), Total (NYSE: TOT) and national oil companies in China, Mexico, Brazil and Saudi Arabia.

Easing of U.S. methane rules boosts marginal wells. The Trump administration is in the midst of rolling back limits on methane emissions from the oil and gas industry, a move that could boost small marginal wells. Stripper wells, which produce less than 15 barrels of oil equivalent per day, could be one of the biggest beneficiaries from the deregulation, according to S&P Global Platts. While minuscule on their own, stripper wells collectively account for around 10 percent of U.S. oil production.

U.S. oil exports to China hit by the trade war. China has declined to put tariffs on U.S. crude, but the trend of escalating purchases could come to an end anyway. Unipec, the trading unit of state-owned Sinopec, has reportedly shelved plans to increase oil imports from the United States due to the trade war. Bloomberg reports that Unipec had planned to increase imports to 500,000 bpd next year, up from an average of 300,000 bpd year-to-date.

Permian natural gas discounts widen. Prices for natural gas from the Permian plunged to new lows last week. Gas prices at the Waha hub in West Texas dropped to a record low $0.61/MMBtu, losing $1.06/MMBtu in a single day, according to Natural Gas Intelligence. Prices rebounded somewhat at the end of last week, but the underlying dynamic that is crushing prices has not changed. Pipeline constraints have meant that takeaway capacity has been essentially fully utilized for the last few months. However, news that Southern California Gas Co., a major buyer of Texas gas, had nearly filled its storage tanks, raised new fears of reduced purchases. The result could be a worsening glut of gas trapped in the Permian.

Offshore oil drilling servicers attract investors. Offshore oil rig suppliers such as asTransocean (NYSE: RIG) and Diamond Offshore Drilling (NYSE: DO) are attracting attention as the sector sees a revival and share prices are relatively cheap. “So here we are in mid-September and the trade beckons again,” Credit Suisse wrote in a note to investors. “This time, however, we are one year closer to a recovery after 4 1/2 years of decline, with the drilling contractors sounding more optimistic than in years, with small, light green shoots being seen.”

S&P Global Platts considers the alternative to Brent. S&P Global Platts, which operates the Brent crude benchmark, initiated a consultation on Monday to assess whether the Brent benchmark should give way to other markers as the North Sea loses some relevance. Declining production in the North Sea, particularly from the streams that factor into Brent, has sparked a search for alternatives.

Keystone XL clears hurdle, could begin construction in 2019. The U.S. State Department issued another environmental review in response to a federal judge ruling from this summer, potentially clearing the way for the project to move forward. A spokesman for TransCanada (NYSE: TRP) said that construction could begin next year.

Trump admin weakens oil-by-rail regulations. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) finalized a rule change on Monday, no longer requiring rail companies that carry crude oil or other flammable material to install electronically controlled brakes intended to reduce derailments.

WoodMac: Oil market in danger of long-term supply crunch. Wood Mackenzie said in a new report that upstream development is too sparse to satisfy demand in the years ahead. A lack of spending, new FIDs, and new discoveries spell trouble. “A supply gap opens up in the mid-2020s, reaching 3 million b/d by 2030, 7 million b/d by 2035 and a formidable 12 million b/d by 2040. Barring technology breakthrough beyond what we already assume, we’ll need new oil discoveries,” WoodMac said.

Mexico considers the state-owned natural gas company. Mexico is weighing the creation of a state-owned company dedicated to the upstream production of natural gas. The new company would receive all the non-associated gas assets currently under Pemex’s control.


SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/brent-oil-hits-its-highest-level-since-2014-oilprice-report/

Nigeria’s digital publishing company, Publiseer, today, announced that they are now part of Ally, an exclusive Google platform that virtually connects promising, tech-enabled, emerging market startups with the “Diaspora+” to close expertise and funding gaps. With Ally, Google has synthesized the feedback and shared experiences of African startups to design a platform that meets their most important needs. 

Google Ally learns more about African startups and matches them with the right resources to help them accompany their company goals. Startups are matched with an ally whose experience and expertise could help them and their product. Publiseer has been selected to join the Ally matching pilot.

Startups accepted into the investment readiness pilot get objective, documented feedback on their pitch deck from experts that have either raise or invested in startups. Also, they get live pitch practice and feedback, feedback on fundraising strategy, and follow up ally sessions to focus on closing gaps relevant to fundraising.

Publiseer is a digital publishing company that helps independent African authors and musicians to distribute and monetize their books, audiobooks, songs and music videos across hundreds of digital stores worldwide, at no charge, with just a single click. Founded August 2017, Publiseer has received numerous awards and recognitions, including emerging a finalist at Harvard Business School New Venture Competition, a feat that brought the young digital publisher into the limelight.

SOURCE: https://brandspurng.com/google-welcomes-publiseer/