LASUED wins gold @Lagos Campus Beach Soccer 2025 - ITREALMS

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It was a thrilling and fun-filled Saturday, July 26, as football enthusiasts trooped to Atican Beach, Lekki, in large numbers to enjoy the beautiful game at the Lagos Campus Beach Soccer 2025.
Lekki on Saturday July 26, 2025.

After hours of intense competition on the scorching sandy beach, accompanied by electrifying music from DJ Bright, the Lagos State University of Education (LASUED) emerged as the gold medal winner, having secured the highest number of points across all their matches.

FirstBank clarifies, reassures on Gold Standard banking services - ITREALMS

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FirstBank Nigeria has clarified some misleading reports and reassured customers of gold standard banking services, reports ITREALMS.

A press statement from FirstBank noted that reports regarding a commercial transaction between First Bank of Nigeria Limited (FirstBank) and General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL) that is currently a subject of litigation.

As a responsible and law-abiding corporate citizen of Nigeria with utmost respect for the courts, FirstBank will not be able to offer comments on issues which are pending for determination by the courts, as such issues are sub-judice.

However, we are constrained to issue the following clarifications to correct the sponsored but false narratives on the matter presented in some of the media publications.

There is a subsisting commercial transaction between FirstBank as lender, and GHL as borrower, where FirstBank extended several credit facilities to GHL for the development of some Oil Mining Lease assets.

These facilities are backed by very robust loan agreements executed by the parties in which the obligations of the parties are clearly defined and the security arrangement clearly spelt out.

While FirstBank has diligently performed its obligations under the loan agreements, at the root of the present dispute is FirstBank’s demand for good governance and transparency in the transaction, which GHL rejected.

Upon FirstBank’s realization of breaches on the part of GHL including diversion of proceeds, FirstBank requested that an independent operator mutually acceptable to both parties be appointed in line with the terms of the agreement, to operate the financed asset in a transparent manner that will bring greater visibility to the project, protect the interest of, and bring value to all stakeholders. Not only did GHL roundly reject this reasonable and fair request, rather GHL insisted that FirstBank avails it with more funding. GHL refused to execute the terms of offer stipulated by the Bank for the availment of additional funding but rather proceeded to commence needless Arbitral proceedings.

GHL issued a notice to initiate arbitration and has no substantive claim pending at the Federal High Court. GHL approached the Federal High Court solely to seek preservative orders pending arbitration. Some of the preservative orders sought by GHL were granted while others were denied.

FirstBank is the only party that filed a substantive claim against GHL at the Federal High Court and the subject matter of FirstBank 's claim is not identical with the dispute GHL submitted to arbitration because FirstBank's claim is in respect of subsequent credit facilities granted to GHL and the offer letters and finance documents pertaining to the subsequent transactions clearly state that the disputes arising from the subsequent facilities are to be resolved by a court of competent jurisdiction in Nigeria and not by arbitration.

Consequently, it is incorrect to assert that FirstBank abused the process of the court.

GHL off-took crude from the Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel and diverted the proceeds. The Bank had no choice as a secured lender, under these circumstances of continued breaches, non-payment of due obligations and attempts to shield the Bank away from agreed security and repayment sources, than to approach the court for legal remedies, to preserve assets, recover the diverted proceeds, prevent reoccurrences and safeguard FirstBank’s interest. It is clear to us that the courts do not support or protect illegalities and breaches of contracts.

FirstBank has a long and very rich history of supporting and providing for the financial needs of its customers over its more than 130 years of unbroken existence. FirstBank remains committed to ensuring that it continues to support legitimate business aspirations of its teeming customers. At the same time, FirstBank is committed to the building of a strong credit culture where borrowers pay their debts when they borrow and will always take appropriate steps, within the ambit of the law, to resist attempts by borrowers to repudiate their repayment obligations.

We wish to assure FirstBank’s numerous customers, stakeholders and the general public that FirstBank remains solid, calm, steadfast and unflinching in its resolve to continue to provide first-class services to its teeming customers within and outside the country.

FirstBank also wishes to respectfully thank our shareholders for the indicatively oversubscribed Rights Issue of its parent Company, First Holdco Plc (“FirstHoldco”), in the first round of its capital raise and looks forward to an equally successful final leg of the recapitalization exercise when it is announced by FirstHoldco.

Adeduntan: FirstBank is future-proof, remains committed to gold standard in banking excellence - ITREALMS

Guest Interview@ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

With over 4.6 trillion-naira loans to customers in Q3 2023, FirstBank is committed to economic growth and transformation says the Group Managing Director of FirstBank of Nigeria Limited, the premier bank in Africa, Dr. Sola Adeduntan, in this interview with Festus Akanbi in readiness for the 2024 journey.

 The global community is yet to recover from the hostilities in Eastern Europe and the Middle East and the wars do not look as if they will end soon. How can Nigeria, a leading  producer of oil, take advantage of the attendant disruptions to world order to reposition its economy instead of continuing to count the losses of the wars?

Attaining gold data centre offers MDXi competitive advantage - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The General Manager, MDXI, Mr. Gbenga Adegbiji, has described the recent attainment of Gold Partner status of Microsoft offers the data centre a competitive advantage, reports ITREALMS. 

Reacting to the achievement, Adegbiji explained to ITREALMS that its an important step for MDXI in the drive towards supporting local companies face issues on digital transformation, particularly in relation to their data centre and computing platform strategies. 

The gold competency, he also said, provides MDXI with a competitive advantage that helps it to offer customers the most relevant Microsoft solutions in the market. 

"With this competency, MDXI is accredited as a partner to transform data centres into more flexible, scalable, and cost effective solutions using Microsoft Azure Cloud and hybrid solutions," he said.

Pointing that it will enable MDXI to deliver greater value to customers with best-in-class staff that have been subjected to rigorous exams, proven implementation and satisfaction references auditable.

ITREALMS further gathered, this demonstrated 'best-in-class' capability to meet Microsoft's customers' needs, whereas the gold data centre is the highest partnership level with Microsoft in Data Centre Competencies for Cloud Productivity.

He emphasised that attaining Gold Partner status is a crucial step for MDXI in driving towards supporting local companies on issues of digital transformation, mostly in relation to their data centre and computing platform strategies.

"To obtain the certification, MDXI has demonstrated the highest commitment to the integration of the latest Microsoft products, with proven expertise to help costumers drive innovative solutions on the latest Microsoft platforms," he declared.

Adegbiji also assured that as a SAP-certified provider of hosting services, MDXI offers cost-effective yet reliable delivery models for mission-critical applications for customers of SAP.

SAP customers that rely on MainOne’s data centre for hosting services are empowered to focus on the business value of their solutions and benefit from reduced operational expenses that a commercial data centre provides.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Lenovo YOGA Tablet Now in Nigeria

ITRealms:

Acclaimed largest Personal Computer (PC) company, Lenovo, has said its latest in stock, the Yoga Tablet 10 High Definition (HD+) in gold and silver, reports ITRealms.

Officials of Lenovo revealed to ITRealms that Yoga Tablet is now available at Slot and Microstation outlets across Nigeria.

According to ITRealms, the multimode Android YOGA Tablet 10 HD+, with its incredible battery of up to 18 hours^, refines the tablet’s unique design with Hold, Tilt and Stand Modes by infusing it with the latest technologies including a Full HD screen, Qualcomm Snapdragonprocessor and sharp high resolution camera.

Also, the original YOGA Tablet 10, ITRealms gathered broke the mold on the tablet design with this model for multimode tablets mostly with its new leading features.

Some of the features include that consumers would notice how the tablet’s 10.1-in 20/20 Vision display graphics seemingly pop off the screen.

“With Full HD 1920x1200 resolution, movies and photos look crystal clear and more like real life. With the new Smart Display, the tablet automatically adjusts the images and text on the screen to the ambient light, making it gentler on users’ eyes in all its modes,” were some of the features says an official.

In addition, Yoga Tablet was built for accessing multimedia on the go, apps and files load quickly thanks to its new Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor with quad core CPU and large storage. Running Android 4.3, the tablet features rich Dolby® audio, 10 point multitouch, a micro USB port supporting on-the-go technology and an optional keyboard. For capturing mobile memories in even sharper pictures, the YOGA Tablet 10 HD+ comes equipped with a new high definition 8MP rear camera.

Packed with even more valuable features, the YOGA Tablet 10 HD+ retains the key design and technologies users love about the original YOGA Tablet 10, starting with its incredible up to 18 hours of battery life¹. The tablet’s signature three modes – Hold, Tilt and Stand – continue to give users a better way to use the tablet in nearly any situation. 

The tablet’s unique cylindrical battery allows them to hold it for reading or browsing the Internet, or they can place it in Tilt Mode for a better viewing angle on a desk or tablet. They can also deploy the new and improved kickstand that extends from the tablet’s battery cylinder to position it in Stand Mode. Stand Mode provides a more stable way to enjoy movies and photos without propping the tablet up with a cover and now stands upright from between 30 and 80.

Lenovo’s three DOit apps make sharing, synching and protecting data on the YOGA Tablet 10 HD+ simple. With SHAREit, users can instantly share pictures, videos, music files, documents, contacts and even apps with up to five devices without an Internet connection. It wirelessly transfers information or even the app itself between devices at up to 40x faster than Bluetooth.

SECUREit optimizes and protects users’ mobile data with its menu of data-protection tools. With a single touch, it protects against viruses, spam and malware, and if the tablet becomes lost or stolen, anti-theft protection locks it down. 

SECUREit acts as a privacy guard to protect against unwarranted access to users’ private information and also makes the tablet operate faster by taking actions such as closing redundant background apps.

Remmy Nweke 

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Pix; Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10