Former Nigeria football player guilty of match-fixing in Sweden

Former Nigeria international Dickson Etuhu has been found guilty of attempted match-fixing by a Swedish appeals court.

The Court of Appeal in Stockholm said in a release on Wednesday that it was clear that Etuhu and an unnamed former player tried to influence AIK keeper Kyriakos "Kenny" Stamatopoulos to fix a match in Sweden's top division in 2017.

Etuhu, who played for several English clubs including Manchester City, Sunderland, Preston, Blackburn and Fulham, escaped a jail sentence but was instead fined and sentenced to serve probation, without further details being made public.

The 37-year-old, who left AIK Solna in 2016, says he will be appealing against the ruling at the Supreme Court.

The court said that "the content of what the men submitted to the player (Stamatopoulos) was so clear that it should be considered a criminal offer of bribe."

Etuhu had intially been acquitted by a court last year but that was appealed by prosecutor Johan Lindmark, who told local Swedish newspaper Expressen that he was satisfied with Wednesday's outcome.

"It was with satisfaction that I received the verdict today," Lindmark said.

"I had appealed on the grounds that I thought the court of law would change and was not surprised when I saw the verdict."

Etuhu played 20 times for the Super Eagles including twice at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2008 and 2010 as well as the World Cup in South Africa.

By Simon Reeves

BBC

Nigeria security agency denies shooting supporters of detained activist

Nigeria's state security agency on Wednesday denied that its officers opened fire on campaigners calling for the release of a Nigerian activist and former presidential candidate who remains in detention despite having been granted bail.

Omoyele Sowore, who ran for president as a minor candidate in the February election in which former military ruler President Muhammadu Buhari secured a second term in office, was arrested in August for calling for a revolution.

In September Sowore pleaded not guilty to charges of treason, money laundering and harassing the president. He was granted bail on Oct. 4 but he has not been released because the Department for State Security (DSS) says the conditions have not been met.

Supporters of Sowore, who founded Nigerian online news organization Sahara Reporters, staged a protest at DSS headquarters in the capital, Abuja, on Wednesday during which they said the security agency's officers opened fire on them.

But the claims were denied by the DSS.

"Despite serial and unwarranted provocations, the Service, as a professional and responsible Organization, did not shoot at the so-called protesters," the DSS said in a statement.

Sowore's continued detention has prompted some to criticize Buhari over his administration's record on human rights, particularly a lethal crackdown on followers of a Shi'ite leader who has been detained by the government since 2015 without a trial.

Nigerian campaign groups, including Concerned Nigerians Group and the Coalition in Defence of Nigerians Democracy & Constitution, issued a statement in which they said "violent attacks" on protesters at DSS headquarters show that Buhari "is running a dictatorship again".

Buhari was Nigeria's head of state between December 1983 and August 1985, after taking power in a military coup. He was also replaced by the military.

Sowore was granted bail so long as a number of conditions were met including the provision of 100 million naira ($277,777) with two sureties.

The DSS, in its statement, said it reiterated its "avowed readiness to release Sowore" once the people who provided surety for him had presented themselves.

Femi Falana, a lawyer representing Sowore, on Wednesday called on the DSS to release his client from "illegal custody".

He accused the DSS of "aggravating the felony of contempt of court by asking sureties who had been verified by the trial court to report in its office for an illegal verification".

(Reporting by Camillus Eboh; Additional reporting by Abraham Achirga; Writing by Alexis Akwagyiram; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)


Reuters

PalmPay launches in Nigeria

Africa focused payment startup PalmPay has launched in Nigeria after raising a $40 million seed-round led by Chinese mobile-phone maker Transsion.

The investment came via Transsion’s Tecno subsidiary, with participation from China’s NetEase and wireless comms hardware firm Mediatek — a Transsion spokesperson confirmed to TechCrunch.

PalmPay had piloted its mobile fintech offering in Nigeria since July, before going live today at a launch in Lagos.

The startup aims to become Africa’s largest financial services platform, according to a statement.

As part of the investment, PalmPay enters a strategic partnership with mobile brands Tecno, Infinix, and Itel that includes pre-installation of the startup’s app on 20 million phones in 2020.

The UK headquartered venture — that was also founded with Chinese seed investment — offers a package of mobile based financial services, including no fee payment options, bill pay, rewards programs, and discounted airtime.

In Nigeria, PalmPay will offer 10% cashback on airtime purchases and bank transfer rates as low as 10 Naira ($.02).

In addition to Nigeria, PalmPay will use the $40 million seed funding to grow its financial services business in Ghana. The payments startup has plans to expand to additional countries in 2020, PalmPay CEO Greg Reeve told TechCrunch on a call.

PalmPay received its approval from the Nigerian Central Bank as a licensed mobile money operator in July. During its pilot phase, the payments venture registered 100,000 users and processed 1 million transactions, according to a company spokesperson.

With its payments focus, the startup enters Africa’s most promising digital sector, but also one that has become notably competitive and crowded — particularly in the continent’s largest economy and most populous nation of Nigeria.

By a number of estimates, Africa’s 1.2 billion people represent the largest share of the world’s unbanked and underbanked population.

An improving smartphone and mobile-connectivity profile for Africa (see GSMA) turns this scenario into an opportunity for mobile-based financial products.

That’s why hundreds of startups are descending on Africa’s fintech space, looking to offer scalable solutions for the continent’s financial needs. By stats offered WeeTracker, fintech now receives the bulk of VC capital and deal-flow to African startups.

Nigeria has multiple new digital-payments entrants — see Chippercash — and several firmly rooted later stage fintech players, such as Paga and recently confirmed unicorn Interswitch.

PalmPay CEO Greg Reeves believes the company can compete in Nigeria and across Africa based on several strategic advantages. A big one is the startup’s support from Transsion and partnership with Tecno.

“On channel and access, we’re going to be pre-installed on all Tecno phones. Your’e gonna find us in the Tecno stores and outlets. So we get an immediate channel and leg up in any market we operate in,” said Reeve.

Tecno’s owner and PalmPay’s lead investor, Transsion, is the largest seller of smartphones in Africa and maintains a manufacturing facility in Ethiopia. The company raised nearly $400 million in a Shanghai IPO in September and plans to spend roughly $300 million of that on new R&D and manufacturing capabilities in Africa and globally.

In addition to Transsion’s support and network, Reeves names PalmPay’s partnership with Visa . “We signed a strategic alliance with Visa so now I can deliver Visa products on top of my wallet, link my wallet to Visa products and give access to someone who’s completely unbanked to the whole of the Visa network,” he said.

Another strategic advantage PalmPay may have as a newcomer in Africa’s fintech space is Reeve’s leadership experience. He comes to the CEO position after serving as Vodaphone’s global head of M-Pesa — one of the world’s most recognized mobile-money products. Reeve was also a GM for Millicom‘s fintech products across Africa and Latin America.

“I’ve had my fingers in mobile financial services for the last 10 years,” he said.

Reeve confirmed that PalmPay has local teams (and is hiring) in Nigeria and Ghana.

With the company’s launch and $40 million raise — which is potentially the largest seed-round for an Africa focused startup in 2019 — PalmPay’s bid to gain digital payment market share is on.

The Transsion led investment also serves as a big bold marker for China’s pivot to African tech in 2019. It follows several big moves by Chinese actors in the continent’s digital space.

These include Opera’s $50 million investment in multiple online verticals in Nigeria and a major investment by Chinese investors in trucking logistics startup Lori Systems this week.

By Jake Bright

Techcrunch

Related story: Digital payment firm of Nigeria Interswitch gets $1b valuation after Visa investment

Digital payment firm of Nigeria Interswitch gets $1b valuation after Visa investment

Nigerian digital payments firm Interswitch confirmed today it has reached unicorn status after Visa acquired a minority equity stake in the firm.

“The investment makes Interswitch one of the most valuable African fintech businesses with a valuation of $1 billion,” Interswitch said in a release to TechCrunch.

The Visa investment could create the first of two market distinctions for Interswitch — as it shouldn’t change the Lagos based company’s plans to go public.

“An IPO is still very much in the cards; likely sometime in the first half of 2020,” a source with knowledge of the situation told TechCrunch on background.

Interswitch did not reveal the amount of Visa’s investment and would not confirm Sky News reporting Monday that pegged it at $200 million for 20%.

Whatever the exact number, Interswitch’s confirmation of a $1 billion valuation marks another milestone in African tech.

Only one VC backed startup, turned later-stage company on the continent — e-commerce venture Jumia — has generated enough revenue and capital to achieve a ten-figure valuation.

For the near to medium-term, Interswitch could stand as Africa’s sole tech-unicorn, since Jumia’s volatile share-price and declining market-cap since an April IPO have dropped the company’s worth below $1 billion (for now).

Founded in 2002 by Mitchell Elegbe, Interswitch pioneered the infrastructure to digitize Nigeria’s then predominantly paper-ledger and cash-based economy.

The company now provides much of rails for Nigeria’s online banking system that serves Africa’s largest economy and population. Interswitch offers a number of personal and business finance products, including its Verve payment cards and Quickteller payment app.

From its home-base of Nigeria Interswitch has expanded its physical presence to Uganda, Gambia and Kenya .

Interswitch also sells its products in 23 African countries and launched a partnership in August for its Verve cardholders to make payments on Discover’s global network.

Visa and Interswitch are touting the equity investment as a strategic collaboration between the two companies, without a lot of detail on what that will mean.

“The partnership will create an instant acceptance network across Africa to benefit consumers and merchants,” was the characterization offered in a press release.

Interswitch’s imminent IPO has been delayed for several years. CEO and founder Mitchell Elegbe told TechCrunch, “a dual-listing on the London and Lagos stock exchange is an option on the table,” in a January 2016 call.

In subsequent years, Elegbe and other Interswitch executives named Nigeria’s recession as a reason for the delay.

A number stories have surfaced, including Bloomberg News reporting in July, that the company was poised to go public on the LSE.

TechCrunch’s source close to the matter offered the latest indication that Interswitch will list on a major exchange by mid-2020.

With possible exits for backers Helios Investment Partners, TA Investments and IFC, Interswitch’s unicorn status and pending IPO could create more momentum for startup investment in Africa. VC to the continent has grown significantly over the last 5 years, but stands at just over $1 billion annually, per Partech numbers.

Interswitch could also be in a stronger position to offer more capital directly to the continent’s fintech startups by reviving its ePayment Growth Fund. The venture arm made two investments in 2015, but then went largely quiet.

By Jake Bright

Techcrunch

Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola donates $14 million to Save The Children Fund

Femi Otedola, one of Nigeria’s richest men, has donated NGN 5 billion (approximately $14 million) to the Save the Children Fund through his daughter, DJ Cuppy’s Foundation, to support various intervention programmes for destitute children in Nigeria’s north-east region.

It is believed to be the single largest individual donation to charity in Nigeria’s history.

Otedola made the donation on Sunday, November 10, 2019, at a ceremony organized by the Cuppy Foundation in Abuja to raise funds for Save the Children. Cuppy Foundation is a non-profit organisation established by Otedola’s daughter, Florence Otedola (aka DJ Cuppy). The charity works to improve the welfare of Nigeria’s vulnerable and marginalized children, focusing on early childhood education and healthcare among numerous other programmes.

Otedola, who announced the donation through his eldest daughter, Tolani Otedola, noted that the persistent crisis in Nigeria’s northeast region which is the result of armed conflict between state actors and non-state armed groups, has produced widespread unrest for many civilians and rendered millions of children in need of humanitarian assistance. He called on other wealthy Nigerians to emulate his actions.

“God has been so kind to me in life and I feel highly privileged. The only way I can show my gratitude to Him is to use my resources to support those who are underprivileged. This I intend to do for the rest of my life,” he said.

Responding to Otedola’s donation, Kevin Watkins, the CEO of Save The Children, pledged that every penny out of it would be spent improving the lives of the children affected by insurgency in the northeast. Otedola’s donation will be managed by the Save The Children Fund and will be used to finance various intervention programmes for children in Borno, Adamawa and Katsina.

Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osibanjo who was the guest of honor at the ceremony commended Otedola’s generosity and told the guests at the event that Nigeria’s richest people must refocus their minds on caring for Nigeria’s poor.

According to the Vice President, in 2015, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari established one of Africa’s largest social investment programmes in Africa with about N500 billion annually.

He added, “Yet we are far from where we ought to be. It is obvious that government cannot do it alone. So, we don’t need to be billionaires to do our part. It is time for every one of us to decide that we can make a difference to ensure that the poor and vulnerable are given a decent life.”

Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, also graced the occasion and donated N100 million ($275,000), to the Save The Children Fund. He also acknowledged Otedola’s philanthropy and noted that

“People find it very difficult in Nigeria to give money away but the more you give the more God blesses you. Femi, you are no more a rich man. You have joined the league of wealthy men. I have said I will give more of my money when I pass away,” Dangote said.

Otedola’s daughter, Ifeoluwa Otedola, popularly known by her moniker ‘DJ Cuppy’, is an ambassador of the Save the Children UK. She launched the foundation in August 2018 after making a trip to Maiduguri, Borno State, in Nigeria’s northeast region.

Speaking at the event, Miss Otedola said she started the foundation as a way of giving back to the less fortunate.

“Becoming an ambassador for Save the Children has exposed me to so many children around the world. I was able to visit Save the Children in Maiduguri with the help of my godfather Alhaji Aliko Dangote.”

The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children was established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic opportunities, as well as providing emergency aid in natural disasters, war, and other conflicts.

Energy tycoon Femi Otedola, 57, is one of Nigeria’s most revered philanthropists. Last December, he donated $6 million to construct a multi-storey building at the Augustine University in Epe, Lagos. Otedola, 56, made his fortunes in gas stations and shipping. He is now the owner and chairman of Geregu Power PLC, one of Nigeria’s largest utility companies.


By Mfonobong Nsehe

Forbes