Business
Jonathan Tasks Niger Deltans On Industrialisation
Former President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan has tasked entrepreneurs of the Niger Delta origin on the industrialisation of the region.
Jonathan gave the charge while delivering his goodwill speech at the 48th birthday celebration of the Group President, Azikel group of companies,Dr Godbless Azibapu Eruani in Yenagoa,the Bayelsa State capital.
He called on entrepreneurs of the area to contribute towards the industrialisation drive of the oil rich region, saying that entrepreneurs of the Niger Delta origin could industrialize the region by locating their businesses in the area.
The ex-president who congratulated the celebrant on his birthday described him as a young entrepreneur with so much hopes and aspirations,noting that by venturing into business even as a physician,the Azikel group president has turned his fortunes around for the better,just as he said the celebrant has impacted lives in the Niger Delta region and beyond through his chain of businesses located in the region.
“I knew Eruani when I was Deputy Governor of Bayelsa state. He came visiting me with our father,the former Governor of the old Rivers state, the late Chief Milford Okilo of blessed memory.
“Then he was Okilo’s personal physician and so was not a hungry man, one because he was a Medical Doctor. And secondly he was also working with Agip, so he was doing well.I thanked him for taking good care of our father of blessed memory.
“So when I became Governor, and in the year 2006 I appointed him as Special Adviser and coordinator on HIV/Aids.He did very well in that office and even brought former Zambian president,the late Kenneth Kaunda to an event we organized on HIV/Aids down to Bayelsa State.
“I don’t know how he did it,but he told me he would, and did brought Kaunda to the event. Eruani is a smart and very intelligent young man. He has big dreams,hopes and aspirations. He succeeds in almost everything he sets his mind on to do. His businesses have created jobs for not only Bayelsans, but many other people across various states of the Niger Delta region and beyond”, Jonathan said.
Meanwhile,the group president, Azikel group of companies,Godbless Eruani has said he remains thankful to the former president for giving him the leverage to start up his businesses.
By: Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
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.
