Business
Ember Months: FRSC Warns Drivers Against Drink-Driving
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) last Friday cautioned motorists against drink- driving during the Yuletide, which it said usually resulted in road crashes.
The FRSC said that many lives had been lost, especially during Christmas as a result of alcohol consumption by drivers, adding that it was collaborating with other stakeholders against the practice.
The Head of Operations, Mrs Dayo Odeleye, who represented Mr Vincent Jack, the Sector Commander, Ondo State, gave this warning while speaking with newsmen after an ‘Ember Month Flag Off’ in Ore.
The Tide source gathered that the programme, which was tagged, “Right to Life not Negotiable’ was organised for commercial drivers and other road users in Ore.
Jack also urged road users to ensure that their vehicles were always in good condition and that they should cooperate with FRSC officials on the highways during and after the ember months.
“Road accidents around this time of the year are caused by human errors, especially drivers, who drink alcohol before setting out on their journeys.
“We are making serious efforts with stakeholders to rid-off alcohol sellers at motor parks for the safety of lives and property on our highways,” Jack said.
Earlier, Mr Phiilip Ozonnandi, the Unit Commander in Ore, had urged drivers to desist from the use of expired tyres and speeding, which he said were major causes of road crashes.
The commander also said that the FRSC personnel would be deployed to the Benin-Ore expressway to arrest erring motorists, who violated traffic rules throughout the festive period.
“We can no longer fold our hands and watch loss of lives and property because of speeding.
“I urge drivers to install speed limiter in their vehicles, which is more useful in the reduction of speed to save lives and property,’’ Ozonnandi said.
Meanwhile, Prince George Adenikinju, the Caretaker Chairman, Odigbo Local Government Area, also admonished drivers to always sensitise their members on road use and good conditions vehicles.
In his response, Mr Sulimon Maruf, the Zonal Chairman, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Ore Unit, who spoke on behalf of commercial drivers, urged his members to adhere strictly to traffic rules.
He also said that the FRSC effort was to ensure that drivers do not end up in hospitals or mortuaries, which could put their families in disarray.
In attendance at the event included representatives of transport unions including the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Amalgamated Commercial Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association of Nigeria (ACCOMORAN).
Also present were the FRSC Marshals, the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), officials of the Department of State Security (DSS) and Public Complaints Commission.
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.
