Business
Maritime Lawyer Advises FG On Freight Stabilisation Fund
A maritime lawyer, Mr Mike Igbokwe (SAN), has advised the Federal Government to establish a Freight Stabilisation Fund to protect shippers and the domestic economy from fluctuation.
Igbokwe gave the advice in paper titled: “Reflections on Selected Industrial Topical Issues: Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage), Freight Stabilisation & Inland Water Transportation’’, presented in Lagos at a retreat on Maritime and Transport Industry in Nigeria.
According to him, the fund will serve as a mechanism of protecting shippers and the domestic economy from fluctuation of freights to maintain a steady level of government revenue.
The legal practitioner said this was meant to avoid inflation and prevent overheating of the nation’s economy.
He said that high freight payable by Nigerian Shippers for exports and imports could lead to diversion of cargo to neighbouring ports where freights were cheaper.
Igboke said this would reduce patronage of Nigerian ports and reduce revenue of Nigeria Customs Service; create inflation of prices of imported raw materials and cargo that would be passed to consumers.
“Through freight stabilisation, carriers may come together ad agree on fixed freights that would be charged,’’ the maritime lawyer said.
He highlighted advantages of Coastal and Inland Shipping Act like the development of shipping and repairs industry; development and growth of domestic waterborne transportation; economic boom; and development and growth of domestic maritime infrastructure.
Igbokwe also mentioned creation of employment; revenue and conservation of foreign exchange; and avoidance of capital flight as well as Nigerian ownership and control.
The legal practitioner also talked about training and education of seafarers as well as safety of the environment.
He, however, noted the drawbacks of Cabotage Act like the controversial definition of “vessel’’ without specifically stating rigs “but stating it as a vessel under the Guidelines for its implementation.’’
“Non-distribution of the funds of Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) for the purpose it was created.
He said he was not aware of any indigenous shipping company or Nigerian that had benefitted from the CVFF.
Igbokwe also mentioned multiple charges and fees charged by the multiple government agencies (NIMASA, NPA, PPMC, DPR) on cabotage vessels.
According to him, the charges increased cost of cabotage shipping and discouraged investment in cabotage shipping.
The maritime lawyer said cabotage had not been in the front burner as a catalyst for local shipping development as intended by stakeholders and the National Assembly.
He, however, commended the National Assembly for enacting several maritime laws to move the industry forward.
Igbokwe mentioned the NPA Act, the Nigerian Shippers; Council Act, the NIMASA Act and the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry Local and Content Act.
“ It (NASS) can do better in making maritime laws and updating old maritime laws to meet current challenges without delay,’’ Igbokwe said.
He urged the National Assembly to assist the executive in unlocking potential of the maritime sub-sector to encourage economic growth by creating the enabling environment for indigenous shipping industry to develop and play its role in quickly passing all maritime industry bills.
The bills are: the National Transport Commission Bill; Ports and Harbour Bill; Cabotage Act (Amendment); and the Sea Carriage Bills.
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.