- July 9 2024
Moody’s downgrades Kenya’s credit rating after Ruto scrapped controversial taxes
Moody’s, a credit rating agency, has cut Kenya’s sovereign rating into junk, citing the country’s diminished capacity to pay its debts after recent protests forced President William Ruto to withdraw a controversial tax bill that would have raised billions in revenue. On Monday, the credit agency downgraded Kenya’s credit ratings by one level to Caa1 from B1 for local and foreign currency long-term issuer ratings and foreign-currency unsecured debt. After two weeks of protests, Kenya withdrew the controversial tax measures to de-escalate tensions. President Ruto proposed a 9% spending cut to the 2024/2025 budget which Moody’s said will narrow the fiscal deficit. Moody’s does not expect the East African nation to come up with new revenue-raising measures following the recent protests that turned deadly on June 25, leaving at least 41 people dead. The scrapped 2024 Finance Bill contained measures to raise an extra $2.7 billion to help the country manage ballooning debt and fund development programmes. “The downgrade of Kenya’s rating reflects significantly diminished capacity to implement revenue-based fiscal consolidation that would improve debt affordability and place debt on a downward trend,” Moody’s said in a statement. “In particular, the government’s decision not to pursue planned tax increases and instead rely on expenditure cuts to reduce the fiscal deficit represents a significant policy shift with material implications for Kenya’s fiscal trajectory and financing needs.” While the cuts announced by Ruto are expected to improve the country’s liquidity, the credit assessor maintains that Kenya’s fiscal deficit will reduce gradually than previously projected. It expects East Africa’s largest economy’s debt affordability to be weaker for longer. “As a result, we now expect the fiscal deficit to narrow more slowly, with Kenya’s debt affordability remaining weaker for longer. In turn, larger financing needs stemming from a wider deficit increase liquidity risk against more uncertain external funding options,” Moody’s said.
Read More- July 9 2024
Mastercard Foundation convenes EdTech conference on resilient and inclusive learning in Africa
The Mastercard Foundation, an international non-governmental organisation, kicked off its inaugural EdTech conference on Monday in Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, with a conversation on advancing education with technology. “How do we build resilient and inclusive EdTech ecosystems?” asked Rosy Fynn, Country Director Nigeria, Mastercard Foundation, in a hall of over 500 people. She posed this question to the opening panel: Dr Bosun Tijani, Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy; Joseph Nsengimana, Director, Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning; and Albert Nsengiyumva, Executive Secretary, Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA). Tijani pointed out the need for a growing literacy agenda where Africans can be digital literates, as well as bridging a connection between the government and private sector. For Nsengimana, success in EdTech can be achieved when ecosystem players design a forward pathway with inclusivity in mind. One solution is a collaboration between EdTech innovators, telcos, and the government. Nsengiyumva called for more synergy between policymakers, and foundations invested in education. Joseph Nsengimana, the director of the Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning, said conversations regarding helping EdTech companies are part of why the conference is hosted in Nigeria. “We want to bring stakeholders and the government together to have conversations about what is missing, ” said Nsengimana on the sidelines of the conference. “What is your wish list? What goals do you want to see that will make your job easier.” With over 200 tech hubs in Africa, funding constraints have slowed growth in the EdTech sector. Despite receiving $81 million of investments in 2021, the number of funded companies in Africa fell from 29 in 2021 to 23 in 2023. Limited access to internet connectivity, infrastructure, and electricity are some of the roadblocks to EdTech’s growth. Funding constraints and scalability also emerged as critical pain points. The Mastercard Foundation hopes to address these issues by sharing successful strategies and fostering ICT innovations. “If you look at the publishing, the publishers are making money from books. How can we make it make sense for the investor? Nsengimana added. The Foundation plans to facilitate knowledge sharing among the 144 startups it has already supported.
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- July 9 2024
How to track a phone number in 2024
The need to track a phone number in 2024 can arise for various reasons. Perhaps you received a missed call from an unknown number, or are curious about a number associated with a suspicious message. While there’s no guaranteed foolproof method, here’s a breakdown of available options to consider when tracking a phone number in 2024. Important disclaimer Legality and ethical considerations surround tracking phone numbers in 2024. It’s vital to adhere to all applicable laws and regulations in your region. This guide explores publicly available methods and does not endorse any techniques that might violate privacy laws. Using online search engines An essential initial step for tracking a phone number in 2024 involves using online search engines. Here’s how it works: Enter the phone number: Simply type the complete phone number (including area code) into your preferred search bar. You may use Google. Analyse search results: The search engine might return various results associated with the number, including: Business listings if they belong to a company. Social media profiles if the number is linked to an account. Public records or news articles mentioning the number (limited cases). Effectiveness of this method of tracking a phone number The effectiveness of this method depends on the phone number’s usage. Business numbers are more likely to yield relevant results compared to personal numbers. Phone number lookup services with Third-Party options Several third-party websites and apps like TrueCaller offer reverse phone lookup services in 2024. These services claim to provide information about a phone number, including the owner’s name, address, and carrier. Important considerations: Accuracy and cost: The accuracy of information provided by these services can vary significantly. Some services might require a subscription fee. Privacy concerns: Carefully review the privacy policies of such services before using them. Proceed with caution: While reverse phone lookup services can be tempting for tracking a phone number in 2024, approach them cautiously due to potential limitations and privacy concerns. Using social media platforms to track phone number in 2024 Social media platforms can be a source of information for tracking a phone number in 204, but with limitations. Here’s why: Public profiles: If the phone number is linked to a public social media profile, you might find the owner’s name and some basic details. Limited scope: This method only works if the phone number is publicly associated with a social media account. Ethical considerations: Social media platforms typically have guidelines regarding user privacy. Avoid practices that might violate those guidelines. Official channels: Limited applicability In specific situations, contacting official channels might be necessary for tracking a phone number in 2024. Here are some examples: Law Enforcement: If you have a legitimate reason to track a phone number related to a crime or safety concern, you can contact law enforcement officials. Debt collection: If you’re being harassed by unknown callers, you might need to report the number to the relevant debt collection agency. Note: Reporting to official channels often involves legal requirements and specific procedures. Ensure you understand them before proceeding. Final thoughts Tracking a phone number in 2024 should prioritise legal and ethical considerations. Use publicly available information and exercise caution with third-party services. If necessary, consider seeking assistance from official channels.
Read More- July 9 2024
TLcom-backed Okra expands into cloud services
Okra, a Nigerian fintech whose APIs allow banks and other financial service providers to access customers’ data, is building a cloud infrastructure for businesses to host their data and run workloads. With Nigerian startups keen to reduce costs as inflation accelerates and interest rates remain high, Okra believes it can build a cheaper and more reliable alternative to foreign cloud providers like AWS and Azure. “Like every other business, we were doing market research to find more revenue streams,” one highly placed employee said in March, confirming its new cloud adventure. Fara Ashiru, Okra’s CEO did not respond to a request for comments. Nigerian cloud providers lobby government and PFAs for local data storage With this expansion, Okra joins a growing band of local cloud service providers rising to meet the demands of startups, big businesses, and government agencies. Some include Nobus Cloud Services, MainOne Cloud, Web4Africa, Galaxy Backbone, and Layer3 Cloud. While Africa’s cloud computing is highly contested, it is relatively large and the potential customers are willing to spend on reliable service. Open finance, the space Okra currently operates in, is currently a smaller opportunity. Okra’s open banking APIs enable third-party financial service providers to have responsible access to the bank information of their customers. The fintech’s expansion comes three months after it shut down three of its open finance products—Balance, Income, and Transaction—which helped digital lenders determine the creditworthiness of borrowers and facilitate loan repayment. “These products did not make any business sense to hold on to,” an Okra employee told TechCabal. There is very little visibility into the revenue of these open finance startups because they are private companies. One African early-stage investor questioned the market opportunity of open finance. “It is a small market and there are three big players who have raised a lot of money,” said the investor who asked not to be named so he could speak freely. “Eventually there will be one market leader.“ Okra has raised about $16.5 million while major competitors, Mono and Stitch, have raised over $17.6 million and over $52 million respectively. Okra did respond to requests for comments about its expansion. The market for companies that provide open finance APIs has also been limited by the central bank’s slow progress on open banking regulations. Despite adopting open banking regulations in March 2024, there is still an absence of common data-sharing standards. Consequently, some open banking users design their services to account for possible lapses in judgment by the technology. For example, digital lenders, aware of the imperfections of these tools in assessing creditworthiness may still apply risk premium to those loans. Okra had been working to partner with banks to standardise the banks’ APIs ahead of the enforcement of the open banking regulation, according to one person familiar with the business. In turn, Okra planned to use the relationship to improve the reliability of its open banking services. “Operating in silos with banks incentivises unreliability, and if there are no means to hold all partners accountable, scaling will be too risky and hard,” the person said.
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- July 9 2024
TechCabal Daily – Nigeria wants to create its own blockchain
In partnership with Share this newsletter: Lire en Français اقرأ هذا باللغة العربية Good morning You can still get an early bird ticket to the second edition of TechCabal’s Moonshot Conference! From October 9–11, 2024, at the Eko Convention Centre, Lagos, Nigeria, you can join Africa’s biggest thinkers and players like join Iyin Aboyeji, Wiza Jalakasi, June Angelides, Kola Aina on a global launchpad for change. If you want to join these stakeholders in Africa’s tech ecosystem for three days of insightful conversations, then get an early-bird ticket to Moonshot 2024 at 20% off. In today’s edition OPay gets order to recover $456,00 from customers NITDA wants to create its own blockchain technology to secure data Niger Telecoms to reach remote areas with 16 new sites Norfund to invest $20 million in fintech The World Wide Web3 Opportunities Cybercrime OPay gets order to recover $456,000 from customers Speed in Nigerian banking was an evolution to solve that pesky trust problem you’ve read about somewhere. Instant transfer, for instance, was a boost for business, cutting down wait time and ensuring that sellers didn’t need to hold your shirt as you concluded a transaction. But even instant transactions were not fast enough to solve the trust problem in all instances. In many informal transactions, cash remained king, as transfers sometimes took 30 minutes or even hours to reach the recipient. One could sit in a restaurant, hours after demolishing eba and vegetable soup, but be held in a soft hostage situation because the restaurant owner hadn’t received the payment transfer. Solving that problem needed tremendous speed. And players like OPay, Moniepoint and Palmpay soon figured it out. If customers can receive payments in seconds or minutes, that’s how you truly solve for trust in the most sceptical Nigerian. But speed has a tradeoff. When you move fast, you break things. For Opay, this break came in the form of a technical glitch that allowed some customers to shop online for months without getting debited. These customers racked up a ₦714 million bill ($456,000) and many have refused to pay. While OPay has gotten a court order to begin recovering the funds in most value, you get the sense that there’s a bigger story here. While we’ll share that story tomorrow, catch up on our reporting here. Process payments smoothly with Moniepoint And we’ll have processed almost 5,000 more by the time you’re done reading this. Your business payments can be one of them. Click here to sign up. Crypto NITDA wants to create its own blockchain technology to secure data “Nigerium” is a hypothetical element with atomic number 444 and the symbol “Ngr”. Thanks to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), it is also a proposed blockchain technology for Nigeria—like Ethereum. To hear NITDA tell it, Nigerium is a critical element in Nigeria’s digital future. NITDA says the blockchain smart contract will be the backbone of a new, secure digital identity system. It’s envisioned to not only protect citizens’ data but also streamline government services. The move to blockchain technology will ensure that the data of Nigerians is immutable, transparent, and secure from unauthorised access or manipulation, preventing embarrassment like the last data debacle. NITDA will argue precedent to pull from. China launched RealDID in 2023 to verify the real-name identities of its 1.4 billion population. The success of Nigerium will hinge on robust cryptographic protocols, scalability to handle millions of identities of Nigerians, and most crucially, public trust. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Building a national blockchain is no small feat. It’ll take brains, resources, and a heap of political will. Issue USD and Euro accounts with Fincra Create and manage USD & Euro accounts from anywhere. Fincra allows you to issue accounts to your users, partners & customers to collect payments without the stress of setting up and operating a local account. Get started today. Internet Niger Telecoms to reach remote areas with 16 new sites In 2016, Niger merged its public telephone and mobile communications companies into one entity—Niger Telecoms—to expand its market share in the mobile communications market. Fast forward to 2024, and Niger Telecoms is still playing catch-up with other telecoms in the country, holding a mere 6% market share. But don’t count it out just yet. Niger Telecoms has just planted 16 new telecom sites in the Maradi region, part of a larger plan by the National Agency for the Information Society of Niger to connect 1.4 million people living in 2,111 communities with mobile and broadband internet services over the next six years. Each site is a complex hub of pylons, power systems, and networking equipment, capable of transmitting voice calls, routing data, and connecting the unconnected to the digital world. For farmers, it could mean real-time access to market prices. For students, it’s a gateway to online education. It’s a critical initiative in a country where almost 1 in 3 citizens, especially those in rural areas, face difficulty accessing mobile networks. These new towers aren’t just infrastructure—they’re lifelines. The battle between the Nigerien government and mobile network operators (MNOs) is a constant dogfight, as the latter have been fined more than 4.3 billion CFA francs ($7.1 million) for failing to meet quality of service standards—including failing to provide network access to rural Nigeriens. The potential payoff is enormous: With this development, increased connectivity could spur economic growth, improve education and healthcare outcomes in rural areas, and even enhance governance through better communication between citizens and authorities. It’s a step towards mobile inclusion that could help Niger leapfrog stages of development. Paystack Virtual Terminal is now live in more countries Paystack Virtual Terminalhelps businesses accept secure, in-person payments with real-time WhatsApp confirmations and ZERO hardware costs. Enjoy multiple in-person payment channels, easy end-of-day reconciliation, and more. Learn more on the Paystack blog → Funding Norfund to invest $20 million in fintech “Banking the unbanked” may have firmly entered the realm of cliches, but financial inclusion is still a problem to be
Read More- July 8 2024
Five interesting takeaways from GTCO’s “Facts Behind the Offer” presentation
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), the parent company of GTBank, Nigeria’s 5th biggest bank by assets, announced a public offer to raise ₦400 billion, joining Fidelity Bank and Access Bank to raise capital on the stock market to meet the capital requirements imposed by the Central Bank. On Monday, the lender held a “Facts Behind the Offer” presentation to investors, regulators, and stakeholders on the main floor of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX). Here are five interesting takeaways from the presentation. GTCO was always going to raise fresh capital According to GTCO’s GCEO Segun Agbaje, the plan to raise fresh capital was in the works months before the CBN increased the capital threshold for lenders by tenfold. “We aren’t only raising this because the Central Bank asked us to do so. We have decided before that we are going to raise capital. We are going to grow the business in Nigeria and grow the non-banking businesses,” he said. 90 billion shares up for grabs GTCO will offer 9 billion shares at ₦44.50 each. The lender hopes to conclude the offer by the first week of August. The Leading issuing house is Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited, while joint issuing houses include Absa Capita Markets Nigeria, FCMB Capital Markets, and Vetiva Advisory. Aggressive growth If there is anything to remember about the presentation, it has to be Agbaje’s emphasis on the lender’s growth and expansion ambitions. “There is no Nigerian company that has ever made a billion dollars in profit and we are going to be the first ones to give you that,” he said. GTCO, which has four main business segments, will use ₦370 billion of the total amount for the growth and expansion of the banking businesses (including recapitalisation of GTBank Nigeria). ₦22.4 billion will be used to expand the company’s asset management and pension business. It also plans to use N133 billion for corporate, commercial, and SME loans. The group will also expand to new countries like Senegal and grow existing subsidiaries like Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, and Kenya. GTCO’s thesis for expansion is about scale and not just building across different markets. “I am not going to name any bank. We aren’t in 40 countries, there is no business in 40 countries. It is a waste of time. We go to countries where there is GDP growth, youthful population, and loan-to-population ratio is low,” Agbaje said. Maximising shareholder value Agbaje spoke about how the group prioritises maximising shareholder value. GTCO has averaged a 29% return on average equity (RoAE) in the last ten years. The company, with a market capitalisation of ₦1.39 trillion, accounts for about 9% of stocks traded on the NGX. “If you have invested in us over the last ten years, your return is about 253%,” Agbaje said. New subsidiaries growing rapidly In the last two years, GTCO has made inroads into non-banking industries, launching three new businesses: a fintech subsidiary, HabariPay, GT Fund Managers, and GT Pension Managers. These businesses have grown 10x, Agbaje claimed. The group hopes to strengthen these businesses with the new capital. “In three years, these businesses must give us 5% of group profit and they must be number one, number two, or number three in whatever industry they find themselves,” Agbaje said.
Read More- July 8 2024
How businesses can prepare for the coming wave of technological disruption
This article was contributed to TechCabal by Teresa Morahan. In an era of unprecedented uncertainty, the headwinds facing businesses are stronger than ever. Businesses navigate a complex landscape where economic shifts and geopolitical challenges loom large on the horizon. In such turbulent times, the critical question is not whether change will occur but how effectively leaders can prepare for and adapt to it. Enter the Techtonic States research study by BDO Digital, a pioneering examination of the business landscape in 2026. This ground-breaking study envisions four distinct scenarios for the future, each shaped by the interplay of various factors. At the heart of every scenario lies one common denominator: technology. Indeed, technology’s transformative power emerges as the driving force behind resilience and innovation across all scenarios. Whether mitigating risks or capitalising on emerging opportunities, advanced digital solutions hold the key to success in the years to come. As leaders brace themselves for the challenges ahead, the message is clear—the ability to harness technology effectively will determine whether businesses thrive or falter. According to the findings of the Techtonic States study, a staggering 84% of business leaders believe that accelerating technological innovation is essential for survival. Incremental gains are no longer sufficient; organisations must embrace data-driven change to remain viable in an increasingly competitive landscape. From AI adoption to leveraging data analytics, businesses are doubling down on digital transformation to gain a competitive edge. However, amidst the promise of technological advancement, the looming threat of cyber risk persists. Across all scenarios outlined in the study, the spectre of cyber-attacks — including cyber fraud, espionage, and ransomware attacks — cast a shadow over business operations. In fact, cyber security is seen as the third most impactful risk to businesses over the next three years, after the cost of capital and economic downturn. Despite this awareness, our research reveals a concerning gap in cybersecurity preparedness, particularly among high-growth businesses. With cyber threats evolving in sophistication, organisations must prioritise investment in innovation and protection to safeguard their future. Yet, technology alone is not enough to guarantee success. As the study highlights, organisational culture plays a pivotal role in realising the full potential of technology. A receptive culture, aligned corporate goals, and a skilled workforce are essential ingredients for driving meaningful transformation. Unfortunately, many leaders express concerns about their organisation’s ability to fully leverage the benefits of technology due to a lack of implementation strategy and change management prioritisation. In an environment characterised by rapid change, agility and adaptability are more critical now than ever. Leaders must cultivate a culture of experimentation and openness to external expertise to stay ahead of the curve. Strategic partnerships also emerge as a crucial factor, with most leaders emphasising the importance of choosing innovation partners carefully for competitive advantage. As we stand on the cusp of a new era of technological disruption, the path forward is fraught with challenges and opportunities. The Techtonic States study serves as a wake-up call for businesses to embrace the spirit of preparedness, adaptability, and innovation. By leveraging technology effectively, fostering a culture of resilience, and forging strategic alliances, organisations can confidently navigate future uncertainties. The stakes are high, but the rewards for those who dare to embrace change are even more significant. The time to act is now. — Teresa is a Partner and Head of the Global Technology, Media and Entertainment, and Telecommunications teams at BDO Ireland. She has worked with clients ranging from large Indigenous companies to listed international groups with overseas operations. Teresa is a member of BDO International’s International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Working Party, which sets IFRS policy for the BDO global network.
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- July 8 2024
Collaboration is key for Unified Payments as it begins recording POS transactions
Collaborate. That’s a word Agada Apochi, the CEO of Unified Payments (formerly ValuCard), used six times in ten minutes as he talked about his company’s new license. It’s easy to understand why; Unified Payments is a product of collaboration, founded twenty-six years ago by 14 Nigerian banks. In April 2024, Unified Payments was granted a Payment Terminal Service Aggregator licence (PTSA), only the second to be issued by Nigeria’s Central Bank. PTSA holders must have a processing and switching licence, an average uptime of 99% in 2023, and ₦1 billion capital requirement. The licence allows Unified Payments to maintain a database of payment terminals and record point-of-sale (POS) transactions, which is crucial to transparency as agency banking has found itself at the focus of fraud claims. The ubiquity and convenience of POS devices (they outnumber ATMs by over a million) have made them the desired channel for cash withdrawals. Yet with massive popularity comes the attention of bad actors. In 2023, POS transactions contributed 14% of the total amount lost to fraud, according to the Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC), a financial research and advocacy organisation operated by the Central Bank of Nigeria. The central bank’s solution has been more transparency, requiring banking agents to register with Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission in May and now improving visibility into POS transactions. Unified Payment’s history of battling fraud Unified Payment premiered cards with EMV chips—a global standard to improve card security—in Nigeria. “We enabled [Nigeria] to be compliant with [the] EMV standard, which led to a reduction of fraud at ATMs by over 99%. ATM fraud was eradicated,” Apochi said in his Victoria Island office. That history of tackling fraud at ATMs and providing payment processing services might have played a part in Unified Payments’ license as the central bank looks to provide Nigeria’s financial services industry with an alternative to NIBSS. “Upon getting our license, we had a meeting at the highest level between our company and NIBSS to understand [each other] and share points and ideas of how we can work together to ensure that there is service availability because what is most important to every operator and the Central Bank of Nigeria is service availability,” Apochi said. “As a processor switch, you are competing with others but as a payment terminal service aggregator, from our point of view, we are collaborating without any form of discrimination in the industry for the regulators to have oversight over what is going on,” Apochi added. Working with Fintechs The PTSA license will require Unified Payments to work with the leading companies in the agency banking sector, such as Moniepoint, Opay, and Palmpay. These companies have been in regulatory waters in recent months and in April, the central bank directed five Nigerian fintechs to pause onboarding new customers. That ban lasted six weeks and was lifted after fintechs committed to a list of conditions set by the central bank. For Agodi, Unified Payments will help fintechs “achieve their business goals without running afoul of” regulatory requirements. “The primary focus for us as a service aggregator is not about [the] enforcement of rules and regulations. It’s about enabling service providers, industry operators, to provide their services and solutions in compliance with rules and regulations defined by the Central Bank of Nigeria,” he said. Have you got your early-bird tickets to the Moonshot Conference? Click this link to grab ’em and check out our fast-growing list of speakers coming to the conference!
Read More- July 8 2024
Bridging the AI gap: Practical steps for enterprise adoption in Africa
This article was contributed to techCabal by Eric Munene. Is your business leveraging artificial intelligence? If not, you’re not alone. Andela’s research shows 61% of enterprise organisations haven’t adopted artificial intelligence (AI) tools. However, the landscape is rapidly evolving, with over 2,400 businesses in Africa specialising in AI. Statista projects the Generative AI market in Africa will soar to a staggering US$1.51 billion this year alone, with forecasts indicating a monumental rise to US$3.8 billion by 2028. But the reward is worth the effort, as companies failing to adapt risk falling behind more forward-thinking competitors. AI tools can make quicker work of large data sets and leverage the data companies already have. While most companies collect and store tons of data, they still need to utilise the revolutionary AI tools that can analyse and act upon that data intelligently. To support this significant digital transformation, we’ve created a design thinking model[pdf] with four steps to help businesses start an AI project. 1. Determine a use case Understanding where AI excels and where a business can most benefit is a great starting point. A few use cases include summarisation, documentation, content creation, design, programming, or personalisation. While there are many more use cases, we recommend starting within one of these realms. Many businesses need help managing vast quantities of unstructured data, such as processing countless PDFs to produce letters and legal findings, which traditionally consumes considerable manual effort in scanning and reviewing. Andela engineers have helped this process by leveraging ChatGPT into the business’s architecture to summarise the data, create content, and enable valuable conversations through prompts. As a result, the team has achieved an 80% reduction in time spent on researching and drafting, significantly streamlining their document processing workflow. Internally, Andela also leverages AI within the Andela Talent Cloud to efficiently automate and manage the complete global talent lifecycle. It’s a mix of a fantastic matching team and AI, which is why we have a 96% success rate. Powerful AI-matching algorithms learn from hundreds of touch points in the hiring journey to pinpoint the best engineers for the roles and skills required. Generate a company survey To get started, gather input from your company and home on where AI can be the most beneficial. We recommend generating a survey across the company to help with data-driven decision-making. Then, a steering committee was set up, comprising champions from all stakeholders related to the identified business problems. By having advocates across the business, you gain buy-in across the organisation to help get the transformational changes you want. Explain AI to your team Explaining AI and its potential is crucial to gathering the proper use cases. All your stakeholders likely have the info you need; they just need to know how it can work. It’s well worth speaking with your engineers to present various possible business use cases to the team or bringing in a consultant who can educate your teams on how AIs are trained. 2. Build a business case Next, leverage the data and input collected from the survey or committee to prioritise. Is there an overwhelming amount of employees interested in AI support for a particular area? For example, the summarisation of information, accounting, or personalising interactions with clients. Aggregate these results, identify common themes, and align them with overarching business benefits and a solid business case. Potential benefits may include cost reduction, productivity enhancement, revenue generation, competitive advantage, a deeper understanding of AI capabilities, or enhanced employee satisfaction. Incorporating a business case and ROI analysis will help determine the focal points for team development and the business objectives your generative AI project will advance. 3. Validate your customer journey Before you start any project, remember to stay focused on your customer. Get a clear picture of your customer journey and examine the pain points across awareness, consideration, decision, service, and advocacy. How does AI solve a real customer problem? Once you define your current customer journey, you can better understand what a new one might look like. 4. Define measurement Lastly, understand what metrics you will use to measure success and ROI. Ask yourself questions that you will get from the business to help define these. You can consider questions like: How is user engagement measured? How does AI help with retention through hyper-personalisation? How much can we reduce cost? How fast can a workflow or process be improved? What programming languages are your developers familiar with, and is the architecture scalable? What data do you need to make your AI successful? How can you ensure your AI meets ethical standards? Prerequisites Remember that as you define your project, you will also need a solid team to bring this vision to life. As new models and Generative AI processes mature and evolve, your team must be equipped with the relevant skills. The engine’s success depends on the models themselves and a supporting architecture and ecosystem. Depending on the use case, you’ll likely need large language model deployment engineers, data engineers, and software developers. New titles are also emerging, such as AI content design engineers, ethical engineers, AI auditors, AI security engineers, and prompt engineers. How does Andela help businesses in this space? Andela helps businesses streamline and automate their AI initiatives. Our AI and machine learning (ML) solutions power big data models and reduce the labour-intensive processes associated with them. Our GenAI Impact Assessment[pdf] is a tailor-made six-week program that focuses on identifying and realising a GenAI business solution. We set up a wholly managed team of experts to ensure the program’s success from start to finish. We can also help set up AI talent and teams at the production stage, meeting you anywhere in your AI journey. Explore AI solutions, establish and test infrastructures and AI models, create and define a model, and then learn how to scale it with the help of Andela’s skilled engineers. — Eric is the Director of IT at Andela and has over ten years of experience driving organisational growth and profitability.
Read More- July 8 2024
GTCO, banking’s efficiency leader, eyes $1 billion profit as it begins ₦400bn raise
Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO), a Nigerian financial services group valued at ₦1.39 trillion, flagged off its public offer to raise ₦400 billion to meet new capital requirements on Monday. While the Central Bank raised capitalisation requirements for the country’s biggest banks tenfold in March 2024, Segun Agbaje, GTCO HoldCo’s CEO, claimed the bank had a capital raise in the works anyway. In a passionate presentation on Monday, Agbaje defended the public offering, arguing that given the massive devaluation of the naira and the government’s stated goal of having a trillion-dollar economy, banks needed to shore up their balance sheets. GTCO, which began in 1990 as Guaranty Trust Bank backed by 42 shareholders and $2 million, must make a bull case because of accelerating inflation and historical skepticism of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX). The occasion called for bold predictions. “There is no Nigerian company that has ever made a billion dollars in profit and we are going to be the first ones to give you that,” said Agbaje. Beyond profitability, the financial services giant talked up its ruthless efficiency. “Cost to income ratio is about 16%. That means you’re running your organisation on blood. Cost has always been a source of competitive advantage.” “Our business model is very simple; we don’t go out and take money just for the sake of it because we want size. We concentrate on efficiency and profitability. Our balance sheet could be three times what it is today but we would be less profitable. The reason we’re profitable is that we’re a low-cost operator. “ What will GTCO use the money for? ₦370 billion of the total capital raised will be used for growth and expansion of the banking business (including recapitalistion) with a plan to “aggressively” roll out more branches in the next year. With 35 million retail customers and 2.9 million SME customers, GTCO believes the Nigerian banking sector is still significantly underserved. It will also expand to new countries and grow existing subsidiaries like Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, and Kenya. Despite these plans, the company will take a cautious approach to opening new subsidiaries. The group also plans to double down on acquisitions in Asset Management and Pension Fund Administrations, having used the strategy to drive growth. Both subsidiaries account for 1.5% of the group’s revenues. “We are not thinking of the next couple of years as baby step growth, we are thinking of the next few years as the years where we separate this bank and this organisation forever from everybody; we want a market capitalisation that Nigeria would be proud of,” Agbaje said. Having deliberately gone slow in growing its loan books as macroeconomic conditions on the continent worsened, GTCO believes it has the ingredients to convince the worst of skeptics to buy a “slice of the orange.”
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