Business

Edun Meets Microsoft Delegation, Assures Conducive Business Environment For Multinational Tech Giants

Published

1 year ago

June 10, 2024

Joel Ajayi

The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, has assured of government’s dedication and commitment towards creating a conducive business environment that will enable multinational companies to expand their investments in the country with a view to contributing to the nation’s economic growth and development.

He Edun gave the assurance when he received and met with a delegation in his office in Abuja from Microsoft Nigeria, led by the Country Manager Nigeria, Olatomiwa Williams.

The Minister welcomed Microsoft’s commitment to Nigeria and emphasized the administration’s understanding of the strategic importance of sector leaders like Microsoft.

The meeting, he said, marks a significant step forward in fostering a collaborative relationship between the federal government and multinational technology companies, driving economic development and innovation in Nigeria.

Speaking earlier, Microsoft Country Manager for Nigeria, Olatomiwa Williams, stated that the team was on the visit to address recent media reports and explore potential areas of collaboration between the federal government and the technology giant.

The Managing Director reassured the Minister that Microsoft remains committed to its operations in Nigeria, contrary to recent speculation.

He expressed the company’s desire to partner with the government in areas of mutual interest, including cyber security and youth upskilling.

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Business

TAJBank Emerges Nigeria’s Biggest Non-Interest Bank

Published

2 weeks ago

October 23, 2025

The Gleamer

Cyril Ogar

After five years of operations in Nigeria’s rapidly evolving non-interest banking (NIB) space, TAJBank Limited has become the biggest player in the NIB subsector based on its total assets and gross earnings values.

Disclosing this during his paper presentation on the key performance indices in the non-interest banking space over the past few years at a seminar organized by Leaders Corporate Services with the theme “Roles of Non-Interest Banks In SMEs’ Financing” for SME entrepreneurs yesterday in Abuja, an investment expert, Mr. Olabode Akeredolu-Ale, maintained that based on the non-interest banks’ approved financial statements for the half year 2025, TAJBank currently remained the biggest in terms of its total assets.

The expert, a chartered stockbroker, specifically confirmed that his recent investment researches on the NIBs and their financial performances showed that TAJBank, with its total assets rising to N1.017 trillion in half year 2025 up from N953.098 billion as of December 2024, which is about N53 billion higher than the nearest NIB’s assets, now ranked top in the banking subsector.

According to him, TAJBank’s gross earnings for H1 2025 also surged to N53.752 billion from N32.86 billion as of December 2024, representing a 64% growth, and higher than the nearest NIB’s gross earnings in the period under review.

This is even as he disclosed that on the NIBs’ earnings per share during the half year, TAJBank reported N61.36 kobo earnings per share, about 92% higher than the earnings per share of the next NIB during the period.

Akeredolu-Ale, who is also a chartered accountant, clarified: “The figures I am reeling out here on the NIBs are sourced from the banking and capital market regulatory institutions’ platforms, which anyone can access to verify.

“I am part of this event because of my research interest in non-interest banking and how the players in the subsector in Nigeria can help to leverage their competencies in innovation and ethical banking to support our MSMEs.

“Today, the MSMEs cannot access DMBs’ loans due to high lending rates and other inclement macroeconomic factors. This is where I think the NIBs have become very crucial to Nigeria’s economic growth.

“Overall, my findings on the NIBs indicated that they are all trying their best with non-interest loans to support entrepreneurs, particularly the MSMEs owners. I have advised those of them at this seminar to explore the cost-friendly financing options of the NIBs to grow their businesses by opening accounts with the NIBs”, the expert added.

Another speaker at the event, Benjamin Chukwudi, also commended the NIBs for their “catalytic roles in helping SMEs to access interest-free loans and providing them the needed financial management advisory, which have been helping them in sustaining their operations in the face of rising cost of doing business in the country.”

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