Event Name: International Islamic Microfinance Seminar
Event Date: July 1-2, 2013
Event Location: Nanet Suites, Abuja, Nigeria
Event Name: International Islamic Microfinance Seminar
Event Date: July 1-2, 2013
Event Location: Nanet Suites, Abuja, Nigeria
US-based payment solutions company MasterCard reportedly has introduced a new internet payment service called “SME Online” for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.
Hasal Microfinance Bank Limited, a Nigerian microfinance institution (MFI), reportedly has provided NGN 6 million (USD 37,900) in asset financing to the Integrated Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria, a group of rice farmers based in the Nigerian state of Nassarawa, for farming equipment intended to boost productivity.
Mutual Benefit Assurance Plc, a Nigeria-based provider of insurance and other financial services, recently announced that it has established a microfinance bank (MFB) to promote its microinsurance offerings, which carry premiums as low as NGN 50 (USD 0.30) per three day period covering up to NGN 100,000 (USD 600) in hospital expenses and in the event of loss of life.
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), a quasi-independent agency of the federal government that insures deposit-taking financial institutions, recently announced that it will grant an undisclosed amount of financial assistance to distressed microfinance banks (MFBs) and primary mortgage banks (PMBs) recently closed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Virtual Terminal Network (VTN), a Nigerian mobile payment company, is reportedly partnering with Western Union Company, a US-based financial services company, to allow VTN customers to deposit Western Union money transfers directly into their VTN VCash accounts for access via their mobile phones.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has agreed to extend the deadline by one year for microfinance banks (MFBs) to recapitalize as needed to avoid closing branches to comply with CBN’s regulatory framework that was revised in 2011 to limit the number and locations of branches MFBs can operate based on their level of capital.
The federal government of Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the government of the Nigerian state of Borno and several other organizations reportedly have launched a financial inclusion initiative that will provide financial services to the un-banked at post offices.
“Banking on Change: Breaking the Barriers to Financial Inclusion;” published by Plan UK, Barclays and Care International UK; January 2013; 28 pages; available at: http://www.careinternational.org.uk/research-centre/microfinance/251-banking-on-change-breaking-barriers-to-financial-inclusion
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s central bank, and the National Association of Microfinance Banks (NAMB), a trade group of 820 microfinance banks (MFBs) in Nigeria, recently agreed to establish a technical committee to address the recapitalization and other steps that some MFBs must undertake to comply with the Revised Microfinance Policy Framework that took effect January 1.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s banking regulator, has introduced a three-tiered set of “Know Your Customer” (KYC) requirements for financial institutions that is intended to improve financial inclusion.
The National Association of Microfinance Banks (NAMB), a trade group of 820 microfinance banks (MFBs) in Nigeria, reportedly issued a statement calling for a deadline extension for the implementation of the revised Microfinance Policy Framework, the regulatory guidelines established in August 2011 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s apex bank.
Event Name: African Information & Communication Technology Exhibition & Conference (AITEC) Banking & Mobile Money West Africa 2013: Consolidating and Monetizing the Gains of Innovation
Event Date: March 13-14, 2013
Event Location: Lagos, Nigeria
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s banking authority, reportedly has amended its microfinance guidelines to permit state governments to establish microfinance banks.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s central banking authority, reportedly has decided that telecommunications companies will not be allowed to become licensed mobile money operators for fear that they will limit competition within the industry.
The Bank of Industry (BOI), which was established by the Nigerian government to promote the industrial sector in Nigeria, recently announced plans to establish a microcredit fund to assist microentrepreneurs in an effort to promote financial inclusion and reduce the risks associated with the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) industry.
The government of The Nigerian State of Cross River reportedly has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Bank of Agriculture, a development finance institution owned by the federal government of Nigeria, to raise NGN 200 million (USD 1.27 million) for a loan fund to support agricultural small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the state.
Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission, an independent regulatory body, reportedly has warned microfinance banks (MFBs) in the country that they risk being shut down in 2013 if they do not adhere to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), a set of standards meant to harmonize accounting practices globally.