Business
Traditional Ruler Decries Misuse Of National Budget
The Oluwo of Owu-
Ijebu, Oba
Michael Adeshina, in Lagos State, has expressed concern over the misuse of
national budget in the name of constituency projects by lawmakers.
Adeshina expressed the concern in an interview with newsmen
in Abuja on the sideline of a programme organised by the Federal Ministry of
Water Resources on the effective utilisation of water resources in the country.
He said that the diversion of budgetary alloocation to
lawmakers in the name of constituency projects had stalled the completion of
various projects across the country.
“One person because
he occupies a privileged position in the parliament says he wants a
constituency project then you take government money to do a project that
probably doesn’t rhyme into the national water planning and then you say it’s
constituency project.
“Which constituency? Is it operating outside Nigeria? Are you
doing it with your own money, is it something you are bringing back from Abuja
to say this is what I want to do for my people with my own money?
“No. It is the government money, the money that should have
been used to benefit all that a few people say come and do this in my
constituency and that reduces the budget available for the ministry and for the
water corporations in the various states.
“Constituency projects are hardly completed, in fact, less
than 25 per cent are completed and the money is spent.’’
He also urged the Federal Government to continue to maintain
a cordial relationship with other African countries who share trans-boundary
water sources.
“We have a commission where all those countries are but we
must continue to be friends before we can enjoy it.
“In Central Africa, we are bringing water from River Congo,
pumping it through many countries before you recharge it to Lake Chad.’’
Adeshina said that the resuscitation of the Lake Chad basin
would boost agriculture and Nigeria’s economy.
“With the water you are getting in Lake Chad, it’s an
investment.
“If you recharge the Lake Chad, you will do a lot of
irrigation schemes for which you can plant rice, plant wheat instead of
importing and so on, that would offset the cost and it will also provide
employment.’’
Our correspondent reports that Nigeria requires 14.5 billion
dollars to transfer water from Ubangi River in the Congo to recharge the Lake.
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.