Business
MTN Plans to Launch Bank
MTN South Africa chief fintech officer Kagiso Mothibi confirmed to Business Times that fintechs will be given an opportunity to participate in the banking system following an ongoing review of the payments system.
MTN plans to acquire a banking licence once the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) opens up its national payments system to fintechs and other non-banking entities, Business Times reports.
South Africa’s second-biggest mobile network operator already supports limited transactional banking services through its MTN Mobile Money (MoMo) service.
MoMo offers payments and money transfers to individuals and businesses.
Customers use their phone numbers instead of bank account numbers to identify digital wallets holding their money.
MoMo’s primary target customers are small or informal businesses like spaza shops and the low-income mass consumer market, both of which still rely heavily on cash.
As it stands, MTN or any other fintech which wants to offer these types of services without a banking licence must work through a licenced bank as a sponsor. For MoMo, MTN uses African Bank.
However, this past week, TechCentral reported that the SARB was working to enable non-banking entities like fintechs to gain direct access to the core clearing and settlements system.
SARB National Payments System department head Tim Masela said although banks were the backbone of the financial system in terms of savings and accounts, non-banks were offering convenient transactional services.
“We believe that we should move with the times and open up the system for the entry of non-banks,” Masela said.
MTN South Africa chief fintech officer Kagiso Mothibi confirmed to Business Times that fintechs will be given an opportunity to participate in the banking system following an ongoing review of the payments system.
“When that is rolled out, we’ll definitely be looking to pursue our own licence,” Mothibi said.
Business
Reps summon Dangote and NMDPRA over fuel imports feud
The lawmakers have formally invited both parties to provide detailed explanations, stressing that only a full understanding of the issues will allow the National Assembly to broker lasting solutions.
The House of Representatives Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream and Midstream) has intervened to halt rising tensions between the Dangote Refinery group and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
The joint committee on Monday summoned Alhaji Aliko Dangote and the NMDPRA leadership to present their grievances before the committee, while both sides are ordered to cease all media hostilities pending a swift investigation.
The committees, jointly led by Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere and Hon. Henry Okogie, convened an emergency meeting to address what they described as “growing tension” threatening the stability of the downstream petroleum sector.
Ugochinyere said that the intervention was necessary to prevent further escalation at a critical time when government and industry stakeholders are working to stabilise supply, pricing, and regulation in the post-subsidy era.
“The renewed tension in the downstream sector, stemming from allegations by Alhaji Aliko Dangote against the NMDPRA, demanded urgent attention,” he said.
“The committee is committed to protecting the stability achieved in the sector.”
The lawmakers have formally invited both parties to provide detailed explanations, stressing that only a full understanding of the issues will allow the National Assembly to broker lasting solutions.
Business
Dangote appoints ex-CBN director Mahmud Hassan, as chief economist
In his new role, Hassan will serve as the Group’s top adviser on economic strategy, market trends, and policy implications, reporting directly to the President of the Group, Aliko Dangote.
The Dangote Group has appointed renowned economist and former Central Bank of Nigeria Director, Dr Mahmud Hassan, as its Group Chief Economist.
In a statement released on Monday, the Group said the appointment would strengthen its economic advisory capacity at a time of heightened global and domestic market volatility.
In his new role, Hassan will serve as the Group’s top adviser on economic strategy, market trends, and policy implications, reporting directly to the President of the Group, Aliko Dangote.
Dangote Group said Hassan brings more than 30 years of experience in economic policy formulation, financial sector regulation, and central banking to his new role.
During his long career at the CBN, he held several senior positions, including Director of the Trade and Exchange Department and Director of the Monetary Policy Department.
He also served as Secretary to the Monetary Policy Committee and as Special Assistant on Economic Policy and Research to the CBN Governor
Business
NBS says rebasing behind inflation’s dropping
NBS, in the report published on its website on Monday, headline inflation further declined to 14.45 percent compared with 16.05 percent recorded in October 2025.
The National Bureau of Statistics (nbs) attributes the droppings in headline inflation to the rebasing exercise it carried out five months ago, with the new base year set at 2024 instead of 2009.
NBS, in the report published on its website on Monday, headline inflation further declined to 14.45 percent compared with 16.05 percent recorded in October 2025.
NBS said that the Consumer Price Index rose to 130.5 points in November 2025 from 128.9 points in October, reflecting a 1.6-point increase from the preceding month (128.9).“
Looking at the movement, the November 2025 Headline inflation rate showed a decrease of 1.6 per cent compared to the October 2025 Headline inflation rate,” the NBS report read.
On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation stood at 1.22 per cent in November, higher than the 0.93 per cent recorded in October, indicating that average prices still increased at a faster pace during the month despite the moderation in annual inflation.
The statistical agency noted that on a year-on-year basis, headline inflation in November 2025 was 20.15 percentage points lower than the 34.60 per cent recorded in November 2024, largely reflecting the effect of the rebasing exercise, with the new base year set at 2024 instead of 2009.
Data from the report showed that the average CPI for the twelve months ending November 2025 increased by 20.41 per cent compared with the average of the preceding twelve months, representing a sharp slowdown from the 32.77 per cent recorded in November 2024.
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