ISPON wants Nigerian banks to invest in tech startups

ITRealms:

The Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), has called on banks in Nigeria to throw their weight on technology startups, reports ITRealms.

ISPON President, Chief Pius Okigbo, made this call and commended Nigerian banks for their foresights in funding various tech startups in the 1990s and 2000s such as Interswitch, ValuCard (Unified Payments Limited), ATMC, NIBSS, Credit Registry and CRC Credit Bureau, all financed by various consortia of Nigerian banks.

According to him, as technology startups increasingly penetrate traditional banking segments, including payments, wealth management and billing, major global banking giants are not sitting on the sidelines. Six major American banks - Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo - have made strategic investments in 30 technology companies since 2009, according to CB Insights data.

ISPON suggested that a second wave of investments in tech startups would require the establishment of Special Purpose Vehicles [SPVs] following global precedents, as was the case with Citi Bank that incorporated Citigroup Venture Capital business  through which it invested in i-Flex Solutions Limited,  driving the "FLEXCUBE' suite of products to adoption by more than 100 financial institutions in over 40 countries. 

Okigbo also said the six major American banks have invested in 30 tech companies since 2009, according to CB Insights data. 

Out of the six banks, he said, Citigroup has been the most active primarily through its Citi Ventures, which has invested in tech startups ranging from Betterment, Jumio and Square. Goldman Sachs has already ventured into financial tech startup with thematic investments across payments technology and big data finance.

Therefore, ISPON urged the banks to study how Deutsche Bank is building a strong ecosystem for innovations and take a lesson from it. Deutsche Bank would open three innovation laboratories in Berlin, London and Silicon Valley, as part of a EUR1 billion spend on digital initiatives over the next five years.

The giant German bank, Okigbo pointed, would help the organisation to develop new products and services from three global tech hubs, strengthening its ability to innovate and deepening relationships with smart tech startups. 

“Nigerian banks should take advantage of the huge innovation awakening that is sweeping across Africa and particularly Nigeria to refocus their plans and place their bets on fintech startups. It is particularly sad that no bank is participating in DEMO Africa, a flagship launch pad for emerging technology and trend hosted in Lagos in 2014.  Many venture capitalists from around the world were present”, Okigbo said.

+ITRealms DSA +Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) +DEMO Africa 

 

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ISPON rewards Imoke, Johnson at President’s dinner

ITRealms:

The Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON) last weekend, hosted stakeholders to its annual President’s dinner at Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island in Lagos, with Cross River State Governor, Senator Liyel Imoke and Minister of Communication Technology, Dr. Mrs. Omobola Johnson standing up to be counted, reports ITRealms.

This year’s edition, held on Friday, March 6, 2015, ITRealms also reports, had its theme: Software and Local Content in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Ecosystem, witnessed the presentation of awards to individuals and the state that have played key roles in ICT in the country. 

They included the Honourable Minster, Ministry of Communication Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, and the Executive Governor of Cross River State, His Excellency, Senator Liyel Imoke and Cross River State Government for supporting and promoting software in Cross River.

In his welcome address, the chairman of the occasion and immediate past president of ISPON, Dr. Chris Uwaje, ITRealms learnt, thanked the present leadership of ISPON for making this year’s President Dinner possible and stressed that it is time for less talk and more action on how to tap from this multibillion dollar sector of the economy through local content, ITRealms reports

Senator Imoke in his opening remarks, said, his people share a common vision with ISPON in positioning Cross River for application of ICT and the benefit therein as a leader in the technology. 

The minister, Mrs. Omobola Johnson said ISPON is doing a good job and stressed the need to acquire relevant skill in the industry. According to her, ITRealms learnt, her ministry is working closely with both states and private sec

tor in ensuring the growth of ICT in the country

President of ISPON, Mr. Pius Okigbo, Jr. thanked all the guests, saying that he is happy that the President’s Dinner which usually takes place in February and which was nearly marred by the election time table, finally became a reality.

The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Dr. Ernest Nwakpa, spoke on the progress which NCDMB has made since the president, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, signed the Local Content Policy into law in 2010, noting, they have been able to change the mindset of Nigerians to believe in the local content initiative.  

“How can we get our people to go entrepreneurial” he asked, stressing that this government is supportive of anybody wishing to do business in Nigeria. He went further to say that over the past 50 years past governments had concerned themselves with selling of oil and collecting royalties but all that have changed now since 2010, ITRealms gathered

He harped on capacity building, making sure that foreign companies doing business in Nigeria set up facility in Nigeria, that way, job creation and other ancillary services would be enhanced for Nigerian’s benefit. 

ITRealms further reports that Nwapa told ISPON to define what they want to do, noting that what is required basically is communication between ISPON, the oil and gas sector, maintaining that NCDMB is looking forward to working with ISPON.

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE

 

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Access to broadband not cheap – Jim Ovia

VC Covenant Univesity Prof. Charles Ayo, Jim Ovia second from left with ISPON president 
Chris Uwaje and wife, Prof Charles Uwadie ISPON VP John Obaro and Mr Agu

The chairman, Visafone Communications Limited, Mr. Jim Ovia, has warned that despite the clamour for broadband in the country, it may not be as affordable and cheap as most Nigerians were made to believe.

In a speech as a special guest speaker at the 2013 Presidential Dinner organized by the Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON) in Lagos, last weekend, Ovia insisted that the event signifies that software industry in Nigeria is recognized, given the attendance of the dinner.

“So, what is needed more is the passion not profit oriented at the initial times. So, the best way to invest in ICT, especially software, is the passion,” he said.

Ovia warned that access to broadband is not cheap and may not go down, ultimately.

Broadband refers to using signals over a wide range of frequencies in high-capacity telecommunications, especially as used for access to the Internet.

“Access to broadband is not cheap and may not go down eventually, the only technology that can be cheap today is the voice,” he asserted.

Hence, access to data at broadband speed, Ovia said, cannot be cheap, stressing though that internet penetration is about 23 per cent, but the broadband is about 2-3 per cent at present.

Nollywood is more popular now because its access online, urging that Nigerians should take advantage of Internet based on the anticipated evolution of broadband for more business and investment.

ITRealms recalls that the term broadband, according to experts at Wikipedia refers to the wide bandwidth characteristics of a transmission medium and its ability to transport multiple signals and traffic types simultaneously. The medium can be coax, optical fiber, twisted pair or wireless.

In contrast, baseband, describes a communication system in which information is transported across a single channel.

Prior to the invention of home broadband, dial-up Internet access was the only means by which one could access the Internet and download files such as songs, movies, e-mails, etc. It would take anywhere from 10–30 minutes to download one song (3.5 MB) and over 28 hours to download a movie 700 Mega Bytes (MB).

Dial-up Internet was also considered very inconvenient as it would impair the use of the home telephone line, and users would contemplate whether or not to get a second line, and if doing so was worth the cost.

In 1997, the cable modem was introduced, although the common use of broadband didn't begin rising until 2001. Having a broadband connection enabled one to download significantly faster than on dial-up.

As with many new technologies, most consumers were unable to afford the cost of faster Internet service.

However, high costs weren't a factor for long as by 2004, most average American households considered home broadband service to be affordable. Since its inception, broadband has continually strengthened and available connection speeds continue to rise.

Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times. Its origin is in physics, acoustics and radio systems engineering, where it had been used with a meaning similar to wideband. However, the term became popularized through the 1990s as a vague marketing term for Internet access.
 

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