Business
FG Deploys $500m For SMEs Dev
Small-scale businesses in Nigeria may soon receive a $1 billion lifeline, courtesy of the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Federal Government.
The AfDB may have concluded plans to disburse $500 million to the small businesses in the country, while the Nigerian government said it would set aside $500 million in bonds to assist the growth of the small business enterprises in the country.
President Goodluck Jonathan dropped the hint of the impending lifeline for the small scale businesses few days ago, while addressing the Nigerian workers.
Our correspondent reports that the theme of Jonathan’s address was, “Growing the National Economy for Job Creation and People’s Welfare.’’
He said that to further boost the economy, the government was on the verge of reducing the interest rate to single digit to facilitate borrowing. “All these are aimed at boosting the economy and creating more jobs,’’ Jonathan said.
The president also said that 10 power plants were being constructed to boost electricity supply. He added, “we are also building hydro-power plants in Mambilla and Zungeru, as well as, various other sub-stations across the country.
“All these are aimed at ensuring steady power supply in the country and boosting the economy through the creation of the job opportunities.’’
On workers’ welfare, Jonathan said the government was conscious of their suffering but added that efforts were being made to improve their lot.
According to him, the passage of the minimum wage bill into law has ensured that no employee earns less than N18,000. He gave an assurance that the proposed construction of 845,000 housing units for civil servants would be realisable. The president was represented by Vice-President, Namadi Sambo.
Also speaking, the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu said the enactment of the Employees Compensation Act would address insecurity in the work place, he stressed that workers, who sustained injuries during while on service must be compensated.
He added, “we shall also continue to come up with policies to encourage and promote social dialogue, as well as, the establishment of viable, collective machinery in both the public and private sectors of the economy.’’
The minister expressed delight at the patience and attitude workers displayed during negotiations for the minimum wage, noting that Nigerian workers were among the best in the world.
Abdulwaheed Omar, chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), said although the economy was said to have grown by more than six per cent, unemployment and poverty remained critical challenges facing the nation.
Omar urged the government to take steps to quickly reverse the current rise in the inflationary level.
“What we seek is a balance and inclusive growth; what is needed is the developmental state that will lead to creation of an economy that is people centred, one that would promote true development and not jobless growth,’’ he said.
Chairman of the Trade Union Congress, Mr. Peter Esele, said the challenge facing the country was to generate more wealth to meet a growing population that was projected to double in 2050.
Esele noted that increasing the size of the economy would require an annual gross domestic productivity growth in double digits to achieve the country’s 2020 millennium goal.
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.
