Business
IT Expert Harps On Crime Reduction
The Chief Executive Officer, Teledom Group, Mr. Emmanuel Ekuwem has urged government at all levels to invest in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions, to reduce the increasing crime rate in Nigeria.
Ekuwem, the past President of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), gave the advice at a news conference in Lagos, recently.
He said that the growing rate of insecurity in the country had become a source of worry and concern to government, hence the need to find a lasting solution to it.
Ekuwem said that corporate institutions, religious stakeholders, social groups and all stakeholders in the Nigeria project were also disturbed by the development.
“Armed robberies, assassinations, kidnappings, religious disturbances and ethnic riots are no longer strange occurrences in our society, as they have become the order of the day, in virtually all parts of the country.
“A day hardly passes without our national dailies carrying banner headlines of unabated criminal activities and security lapses in one part of the country or the other,’’ he said.
Ekuwem said the country could not be developed in ICT and still be in distress.
“It is with this in mind, that the Technology Development Company (TDC) Ltd, in collaboration with Gamnet Solutions Ltd, plan to hold a stakeholders’ Summit on ICT Intervention in National Security Emergency,” he stressed.
Ekuwem said that the summit with the theme, “National Security Emergency: Information and Communications Technology to the Rescue’’ would hold on September 7 at Eko Hotel, Lagos.
He said that the purpose of the summit was to mobilise players in the ICT sector in Nigeria to plan and devise effective technology and system interventions that would enhance the efforts of the security forces.
“There is need to enhance the efforts of our security forces in combating the increasing wave of criminal activities in all parts of the country, especially as the 2011 general election is at the corner.
“It is an opportunity for ICT industry operators to formulate an enabling framework for putting in place a communication system that will enhance our internal security network.
The former ATCON chief said the growing insecurity in the country had retarded the nation’s economic development, “as it creates fear in the minds of would-be investors’’.
“It diminishes the good image and reputation of Nigeria in the comity of nations, especially against the background of the war against terrorism.
“It also creates a deep sense of hopelessness and poor feeling of national well-being and restrain the movement of notable Nigerians and expatriates to certain areas of the country because of fear of being kidnapped or killed by hoodlums,’’ Ekuwem said.
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.
