Business
3,000 Beneficiaries Receive AB Microfinance Credit Facilities
As part of effort to empower lives, AB Microfinance Bank has extended several credit facilities to 3,00 beneficiaries in Lagos, Nigeria.
Mrs. Corinna Hever, Head, Banking Services of the firm who disclosed this to journalists at the one year anniversary of the bank in Ikeja recently said, through the credit facilities a lot of Nigerians have been empowered.
This, she stated has created employers of casour, thereby eradicating poverty as a result of job creation.
She said that, the beneficiaries are artisans, market men and women, small scale business owners, among others who have shown that they are worthy to be credited individuals.
She said, that the beneficiaries accessed credit facilities ranging from N5,000 naira to N1 million to either start a new business or sustain the existing ones.
On repayment rate, she noted that some customers are now paying hack, while new ones are being granted credit facilities. The bank officer hinted that within the one year of operation of the firm, it has a deposit base of 2,500 and 3,000 loan beneficiaries. To her, no collateral is required to apply for loans, while loan seeker needs not to open an account before accessing loan facilities. Hener said that business plan of an individual, as well as guarantors are the only collaterals required from the would-be beneficiary.
She added that customers can access financial or social assistance from three branches of the firm in Lagos State.
Advising the active poor to always use the loans for the purpose it’s meant for, adding that this is the only way their lives could change fir better.
Speaking earlier, Mr. Micheal Barleon, managing director said his bank will continue to offer finance services to micro, small and medium – sized enterprise (MSMEs) in the lower income strata of the country.
He stated that, there is need for the poor to survive, the bank would be ready to offer them uncollateralised credit facilities.
He said the bank believes in the development of the micro businesses, in order to reduce the poverty rate, while in the same vein, creates employment opportunities that will fast frack economic growth and development.
The bank boss stressed that his firm has different credit products that will take care of the financially hand- capped but active poor, adding that, Nigerians have a lot to benefit from the service of the bank.
According to him, “we choose Nigeria as a destination because the country is a good place to do business especially Lagos, considering the kind of business opportunities therein.”
Reacting further, he believes microfinance is a tool that could help the low income people and society grow in leaps and bounds.
Though there is competition in the microfinance industry, he emphasised that AB MFB has good credit products that will take care of the yearnings and aspirations of the people.
While comparing Nigeria with other countries where the bank has branch, he indicated that there is a huge demand for microfinance service here more than in other countries because of the huge population.
This, he noted informed the decision of the bank to give out loans and qualitative products that meet the demands of the market. Our plan is to reach out to the lower income groups that really need our service, he said, stressing that the microfinance clients, must have the capacity to repay before granting them loans.
Barleon disclosed that the capital base of the bank is around 500 million euro, promising that the firm would continue to grow at the rate of 100 per cent per year.
Cornerstone of Financial Services
A survey of more than 1 000 global finance leaders undertaken by digital payment network Ripple shows that 72% of respondents believe they need to offer a digital asset solution to remain competitive.
According to Ripple, leaders from the banking, fintech, corporate and asset management sector have made it clear that the “digital asset revolution is happening now”.
“Digital assets are quickly becoming a cornerstone of financial services, underpinned by progressive regulation, growing interest from Tier-1 banks, a steady consumer shift from banks to fintech providers, and booming stablecoin adoption,” Ripple says.
The survey was conducted in early 2026 and the findings released in March.
Stablecoin Boon or Bane?
Ripple has experienced significant success in the stablecoin sector since launching its Ripple USD (RLUSD) stablecoin in 2024.
With a market cap of $1.56 billion, it is considered a major regulated player in the market.
No doubt the platform was pleased to learn through its own survey that financial leaders were most bullish about stablecoins.
Roughly three-quarters of respondents believed they could boost cash-flow efficiency and unlock trapped working capital.
Ripple noted that finance leaders were thinking about stablecoins as more than “just a new way to execute payments”; instead, they viewed them as effective tools for treasury management.
In March 2026, Ripple began testing a new trade finance model built around RLUSD in a bid to increase the speed of cross-border payments.
The pilot initiative, developed alongside supply chain finance company Unloq [https://unloq.com], is running on the XRP Ledger inside a testing framework developed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
The Asian city-state is one of the platform’s biggest growth markets.
The idea behind the project is to see whether stablecoin-based settlement can streamline trade finance, too often hampered by reliance on intermediaries and slow reconciliation.
The only potential drawback is that if the initiative takes off, the Ripple to USD price could be negatively affected.
Ripple has always championed its native XRP token as a bridge asset, the “middleman” in the process of a financial institution turning dollars in the US into pounds in the UK, for example.
Ripple converts dollars into XRP and then back into pounds.
If RLUSD can do exactly the same thing, questions will be asked about XRP’s relevance.
That is a bridge Ripple will have to cross if it gets to that point.
Tokenisation Partners
Another interesting finding from Ripple’s survey is that most banks and asset managers are seeking tokenisation partners to help execute their strategies.
Some 89% of respondents said digital asset storage and custody were top priority. “Token servicing/lifecycle management also ranks highly for banks at 82%, while asset managers place greater emphasis on primary distribution at 80%,” Ripple found.
The survey also revealed that just more than half of fintechs and financial institutions want an infrastructure provider that can offer a “one-stop-shop solution”. This rose to 71% among corporate financial leaders.
Ripple attributes this to institutions and firms wanting uncomplicated, cohesive systems.
Infrastructure Rules
In its final analysis, Ripple says companies across the board are looking for partners and solutions that are “secure, compliant, battle-tested and that enable growth and execution”.
“The message is clear: infrastructure decisions made today will shape competitive positioning tomorrow.”
No surprise that this is precisely where Ripple is placing much of its focus.