Bankers’ Committee Archives — Business Bells

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  • CBN’s Digital Currency To Kick Off  Before End of 2021 – Bankers’ Committee

    CBN’s Digital Currency To Kick Off  Before End of 2021 – Bankers’ Committee

     

    The Director-Information Technology Department, Central Bank of Nigeria, Mrs Rakiyat Mohammed, has said that the banking regulator will launch a digital currency before the end of 2021.

     

    Muhammed disclosed this during a press briefing on the Bankers’ Committee meeting on Thursday.

     

    “As I said before the end of the year, the Central Bank will be making special announcement and possibly launching a pilot scheme in order to be able to be able to provide this kind of currency to its populace,” she said.

     

    She said about 80 per cent of central banks in the world were exploring the possibility of issuing central bank digital currency and Nigeria could not be left behind.

     

    For over two years now, she added, the CBN had been exploring technology and had made tremendous progress.

     

    Explaining what the Central Bank digital currency would be, she said there were currently two forms of money in the country.

     

    She added, “We have in two forms in Nigeria as of now, there are the notes and there are the coins.

     

    “So the Central Bank currency is to be the third form of money which means just as we have electronic money, digital money is not new in Nigeria.

     

    “Just as we are about the third or fifth in the whole world as far as advancement in the use of digital money is concerned.

     

    “So this is going to compliment the coins and cash that we have.

     

    “The Central Bank digital currency will just be as good as you having cash in your pocket and even as you have the cash in your pocket, you are going to have the cash on your phone.”

     

    She said the Central Bank was looking at different use cases such as remittances.

     

    The director said, “We all know how money has to travel for someone to send money from Nigeria to abroad and it is a huge money in Africa.

     

    “We also know that recent report by EfiNA was that our target was to achieve 80 per cent financial inclusion. We are about 60 per cent and at the rate at which we are going, we are not going to meet this target.

     

    “Central Bank digital currency will accelerate our ability to meet this target.”

     

  • FG Approves Bankers’ Committee Takeover of National Theatre, N21.89bn Renovation

    FG Approves Bankers’ Committee Takeover of National Theatre, N21.89bn Renovation

    The Federal Executive Council on Wednesday approved a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Information and Culture and the Central Bank of Nigeria as well as the Bankers’ Committee for the renovation of the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos.

     

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja after a meeting of the council presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

     

    Mohammed said the CBN and Bankers’ Committee were willing to invest N21.89bn to renovate the National Theatre complex.

     

    He said the MoU provided that they would run the facility for 21 years before returning it to the Federal Government.

     

    Describing the development as ‘a landmark approval’, the minister said it would pave the way for investment in the creative industry as part of the resolve of the present regime to create at least one million jobs in the industry in the next three years.

     

    Mohammed said, “The President had in 2020 given approval to the CBN and the Bankers’ Committee to develop, refurbish, renovate the National Theatre and at the same time take over the adjoining lands to create a veritable creative industry where there will be four hubs: one each for films, music, IT and fashion.

     

    “The memo today (Wednesday) was for the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding for the refurbishment of the National Theatre.

     

    “The CBN and Bankers’ Committee are willing to invest N21.89bn to renovate, refurbish and commercialise (run it profitably) the National Theatre complex.

     

    “The MoU has a life span of 21 years after which it will revert to government. The important thing is that no job will be lost because after the National Theatre is renovated, a special purpose vehicle will be created to run it.

     

    “It cannot be business as usual; it will be a turning point in the creative industry in the sense that we are going to have a brand-new National Theatre, an event centre that will help in creating more jobs.”

     

    The minister added that the council approved N9.43bn for the completion of the Digital Switch Over, which had previously missed the deadline set for implementation.

     

    The Minister of Communication and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, disclosed that the council approved about N8.9bn for a new National Information and Communication Technology Park in Abuja to coordinate public and private ICT hubs in the country.

     

    He said a 4,200 square-metre land had already been acquired for the establishment of the park.

     

    He said, “The wisdom behind the ICT Park is for it to be a centre where public and private ICT hubs are going to be coordinated by the Federal Government, where young innovators with crazy and disruptive ideas will be mentored and all what they need provided for.

     

    “We will provide enabling environment for them to utilise and come up with disruptive technologies.

     

    “This is the first of its kind in Nigeria. We have so many parks and hubs but they are regional. This one will be central and will be a centre of job creation for our teaming youths.

     

    “It will be a centre where technology will be developed and incubated. It will play a significant role in reducing unemployment.”