Business
Economic Dev: IPMAN Tasks FG On Modular Refinery Investment
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigerias (IPMAN), South-West Chapter, has urged the Federal Government to encourage investors to invest in the nation’s modular refinery to boost economic growth.
Its South-West Zonal Chairman, Alhaji Debo Ahmed, on Monday said in Lagos, that unless government made the processes less cumbersome, it would be difficult to attract investors.
According to him, government should make the acquisition of licences timely and also ensure infrastructure development as well as security of assets.
“Government should also provide additional incentives to investors to facilitate the establishment of modular refineries in the country.
“`Incentives in the form of tax reliefs, customs and excise duties, value added tax waivers and accelerated capital allowances will help to boost investments in the refining space,’’ he said.
Ahmed said that investing in modular refineries would also serve as a way to end fuel scarcity.
He said that the modular refineries could help to address any shortfall in fuel supply pending when additional refineries would be built.
“It will also boost the country’s revenue generation and address frequent fuel scarcity usually experienced during the Yuletide seasons.
“My expectation in 2019 is for the government to invest more on modular refineries to be able to have more petrol locally and to address scarcity,’’ he said.
Ahmed said that government had performed credibly well in the downstream sector in 2018 in ensuring that there was no scarcity.
He said that it could crown it by building more modular refineries.
According to him, a modular refinery is cheaper to build and it can move from one place to another.
“A modular refinery is capable of refining between 10,000 and 35,000 barrels of crude oil per day,’’ he said.
The IPMAN zonal leader also urged the government to provide incentives that would attract investors to the oil and gas sector.
He advised government to consider opening of depots in the hinterland to address the ongoing gridlock in Apapa, Lagos.
Ahmed said that the oil and gas industry would attract investment if the government could sign the Petroleum Industry and Governance Bill (PIGB).
This, he noted, would also help investors to know ‘where to pitch their tent’ when making efforts to invest.
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.