Niteon Launches Africa’s First Manufacturers’ Neobank

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Niteon Launches Africa’s First Manufacturers’ Neobank to Unlock $200B Export Market

Published

2 days ago

September 17, 2025

BONA NAIJA

Niteon launches Niteon Capital, the first neobank for African manufacturers, powering export growth with tailored finance solutions.

Niteon, one of Nigeria’s largest digital export marketplace, has announced the launch of Niteon Capital, the first neobank built specifically for African manufacturers.

Founded by Nigerian entrepreneurs, Tony Nwose and Daniel Chukwuemelie, the US-based startup has already built a reputation for helping verified African manufacturers, spanning agriculture, fabrics and minerals products connect seamlessly to international buyers. With operational footprints in the US, UK, Canada, and South Asia, and a recent FDA Global Partner License unlocking export access to the United States, Niteon is already a formidable force in African digital trade.

The launch of Niteon Capital (www.niteoncapital.com), comes as the company gears up for its $1.5 million equity and $5 million debt seed round, signalling a bold expansion into fintech infrastructure to complement its fast-growing marketplace, and taking aim at a deeper, more entrenched problem: Manufacturers’ finance.

“African manufacturers are doing the hard work, but they’re being underserved by traditional banks. There’s no financial infrastructure built for them,” says CEO Tony Nwose. “Niteon Capital changes that.”

The Manufacturer’s Bank: Tailored Trade Finance at Last

Unlike conventional digital banks, Niteon Capital isn’t designed for just anyone. It’s engineered specifically for manufacturers and exporters. This includes:
Invoice & Procurement Financing: To help factories fulfill large purchase orders without cash flow delays.
Sharia-Compliant Financing: Opening access to ethical financing models for manufacturers across Northern Nigeria and other Islamic markets.
Export Wallet Accounts: A revolutionary new financial tool that allows manufacturers to operate export-ready accounts with built-in tax advantages, carbon credit earnings, and multi-currency support.
Infrastructure Loans: Medium-term financing to upgrade machinery, facilities, or logistics capabilities—ensuring African manufacturers can meet global standards.

The entire system is embedded directly into Niteon’s growing export ecosystem, reducing friction between buyers, sellers, logistics providers, and now… banking.

Positioned for Global Scale

The launch of Niteon Capital marks a key inflection point in Niteon’s trajectory, from a B2B marketplace into a comprehensive export ecosystem. It’s not just about matching buyers and sellers anymore. It’s about solving the systemic constraints that have stifled Africa’s trade capacity for decades.

Backed by global players like Seedstars, Tomi Davis, TVC Labs, Zenith Bank, and the Development Bank of Nigeria, Niteon is now positioning itself as a TradeTech leader, building infrastructure that rivals anything on the continent.

“We’re not just scaling a platform,” co-founder Daniel Chukwuemelie adds. “We’re building the financial engine behind Africa’s industrial growth story.”

Next Stop: Seed Round

As Niteon rolls out Niteon Capital across its network, the team has opened its $1.5M equity and $5M debt seed round to strategic partners looking to accelerate African trade. The funding will power neobank expansion, licensing, deeper AI integration, and onboarding of over 20,000 manufacturers by Q4 2025.

This is not just another fintech product. It’s a blueprint for how Africa will finance its own industrial future from factory floor to global warehouse.

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Fidelity Bank Extends GAIM 6 Promo, Raises Cash Rewards to ₦189m

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Elon Musk Reclaims Richest Person Title After Larry Ellison’s $100 Billion Wealth Surge

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Dangote Refinery Rejects DAPPMAN’s ₦1.5trn Subsidy Demand

Published

6 hours ago

September 18, 2025

BONA NAIJA

Dangote Refinery rejects DAPPMAN ₦1.505 trillion subsidy demand

Refinery insists it will not absorb logistics costs as marketers push for annual discount; warns subsidy practices defrauded Nigeria for years.

Dangote Refinery has dismissed claims by the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), insisting that it will not bow to pressure to fund a subsidy of more than ₦1.5 trillion annually.

In a statement issued yesterday, the refinery said the controversy with DAPPMAN stems from marketers’ demand for an annual subsidy of ₦1.505 trillion to cover coastal freight, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) charges, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) fees, and pumping costs. This, according to Dangote, would translate to an additional ₦75 per litre on petrol and diesel, which the marketers expect the refinery to absorb.

“We will not increase our gantry price to accommodate such demands, nor are we willing to pay a subsidy of over ₦1.5 trillion — a practice that historically defrauded the Federal Government,” the company said. “Marketers are free to lift products directly at our gantry and benefit from our logistics-free initiative.”

The refinery disclosed that it maintains a monthly closing stock of 500 million litres, adding that between June and September it exported 3.2 million metric tonnes of refined products. Over the same period, it alleged, marketers imported 3.6 million metric tonnes, describing the imports as “dumping” that undermines the economy and welfare of Nigerians.

Dangote Petroleum Refinery reaffirmed its support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reforms, noting that its operations are helping to stabilise the naira, cushion the effect of subsidy removal, strengthen Nigeria’s refining capacity, boost foreign exchange earnings, and create jobs.

The company stressed that it enjoys a strong working relationship with government agencies but will not hesitate to hold institutions accountable where necessary.

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Business

Fidelity Bank Extends GAIM 6 Promo, Raises Cash Rewards to ₦189m

Published

1 day ago

September 17, 2025

BONA NAIJA

Fidelity Bank extends GAIM 6 promo, increases rewards to ₦189 million

Fidelity Bank extends GAIM 6 promo to Nov 30, 2025, raising rewards to ₦189m. Over ₦30m and a ₦10m grand prize still up for grabs.

Fidelity Bank Plc has announced a three-month extension of its flagship savings promotion, the Get Alert in Millions (GAIM) Season 6, with the campaign now set to run until November 30, 2025.

In addition to extending the deadline, the bank has increased the total cash rewards from ₦159 million to a record ₦189 million, citing overwhelming customer feedback and demand for more participation time.

Launched in November 2024 with an initial nine-month run ending in August 2025, the GAIM 6 promo has received full regulatory approval for its extension.

Speaking at a press briefing, Osita Ede, Divisional Head, Product Development at Fidelity Bank, said:

“Our decision to extend the GAIM 6 campaign is borne out of the feedback we received from our customers and prospects. They asked for more opportunities to benefit from the promo, and we listened. With management and regulatory consent, we’re thrilled to keep the excitement going for another three months.”

So far, 20 customers across Nigeria have received ₦1 million each in the 7th and 8th monthly draws. Winners are selected through electronic draws supervised by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) and other regulators to ensure fairness.

Over ₦30 million remains to be won in upcoming draws, including ₦2 million for the second runner-up, ₦5 million for the first runner-up, and a ₦10 million grand prize in the final draw.

Through GAIM 6, Fidelity Bank aims to deepen Nigeria’s savings culture while rewarding loyalty and supporting financial empowerment.

Fidelity Bank serves over 9.1 million customers through 255 business offices and digital platforms in Nigeria, as well as its UK subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited. The bank has received multiple awards, including Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria (Euromoney Awards for Excellence, 2024) and Excellence in Digital Transformation & MSME Banking (BAFI Awards, 2024).

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Elon Musk Reclaims Richest Person Title After Larry Ellison’s $100 Billion Wealth Surge

Published

1 week ago

September 11, 2025

BONA NAIJA

Elon Musk

Elon Musk has reclaimed his position as the world’s richest person, after briefly being overtaken by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, whose fortune surged by a record-breaking $100 billion in a single day.

Ellison’s wealth jumped to $392.6 billion on Wednesday, propelled by Oracle’s stunning quarterly results and a wave of new multibillion-dollar AI cloud contracts. The surge momentarily placed him ahead of Musk, valued at around $385 billion at the time, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

But by the close of trading, Oracle’s share price dipped from its highs, allowing Musk to reclaim the top spot with an estimated net worth of $384 billion.

Oracle’s AI-Fueled Boom

The dramatic swing was driven by Oracle’s transformation into a major player in AI cloud infrastructure. The company reported:

12% revenue growth year-on-year, reaching $14.9 billion.

Cloud revenues up 27%, to $7.2 billion.

Cloud infrastructure revenue up 54%, to $3.3 billion.

Oracle also revealed contracts with OpenAI, Meta, Nvidia, AMD, and Musk’s own AI venture, xAI. Its pipeline of future business is unprecedented: Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO), or contracted revenue yet to be delivered, soared to $455 billion, up 359% from the previous year.

“Demand for Oracle’s AI cloud services is overwhelming,” said CEO Safra Catz, projecting that infrastructure revenues could hit $18 billion this fiscal year.

A Historic Wealth Surge

Ellison, who owns about 41% of Oracle (1.16 billion shares), saw his fortune balloon as the stock peaked at $345.68 per share.

The gain marked the largest single-day wealth increase ever recorded on Bloomberg’s index, surpassing Musk’s previous record of $63 billion in December 2024.

The spike also highlights Oracle’s remarkable pivot from traditional database software to a core provider of computing power for AI, with OpenAI alone contracting 4.5 gigawatts of data center capacity. Oracle’s close partnership with Nvidia, the leading supplier of AI GPUs, has further cemented its position.

Musk’s Grip on the Summit

Despite Ellison’s dramatic rise, Musk’s diversified empire helped him regain the crown quickly.

His wealth, still heavily tied to Tesla stock, has been pressured this year by weaker electric vehicle incentives and ongoing political controversies. Yet Musk also commands significant holdings in SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and xAI, giving him a broader cushion against market swings.

Musk has now held the title of world’s richest person for nearly four years, with only brief interruptions.

Market Volatility and Billionaire Rivalries

The back-and-forth underscores the volatility of modern billionaire wealth, where fortunes can rise or fall by tens of billions in a matter of hours. In the AI-driven era, stock valuations are increasingly tied to big cloud contracts, technological breakthroughs, and shifting market sentiment.

Oracle shares are up 45% year-to-date in 2025, far outpacing the broader market and even some of the “Magnificent Seven” tech giants. The company’s momentum signals that traditional software firms can reinvent themselves as critical AI infrastructure providers, challenging incumbents like Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.

Ellison’s Enduring Legacy

At 81 years old, Larry Ellison remains one of Silicon Valley’s most enduring figures. Since founding Oracle in 1977, he has turned the company into one of the world’s largest software and cloud infrastructure firms.

Beyond Oracle, Ellison has expanded into media, politics, and philanthropy — with his family leading the acquisition of Paramount Global and his continued influence in Republican circles.

His brief moment as the world’s richest person underscores not only his company’s resurgence but also the high-stakes race among tech titans to dominate AI infrastructure.

The Bigger Picture

Ellison’s one-day ascent and Musk’s quick recovery highlight the unpredictability of wealth rankings in the tech age, where AI and cloud computing have become the defining drivers of economic power.

As investors pour billions into AI infrastructure, the competition among the world’s wealthiest entrepreneurs is set to remain fast-moving, volatile, and closely tied to the future of artificial intelligence.

For now, Musk is back on top, but the contest is far from over.

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Business

Larry Ellison Overtakes Elon Musk as World’s Richest Person After $101B Wealth Surge

Published

1 week ago

September 10, 2025

Bona Naija

Larry Ellison Becomes World’s Richest, Surpassing Elon Musk

Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison has become the world’s richest person after an unprecedented $101 billion boost to his fortune, pushing his net worth to $393 billion. The jump follows Oracle’s stunning quarterly earnings and a record-breaking stock surge.

According to Bloomberg, Oracle shares soared by 41% on Wednesday the company’s biggest single-day gain since 1992 lifting Ellison’s wealth above Elon Musk’s $385 billion fortune. The surge marks the largest one-day increase ever recorded on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index.

Oracle’s AI-Powered Boom

Oracle CEO Safra Catz revealed the company secured four multibillion-dollar contracts during the quarter and expects more in coming months.

“Oracle has become a key provider of infrastructure that powers AI companies’ enormous demands for computing power,” Catz said, stressing the firm’s growing role in AI cloud services and database software.

In July, Oracle struck a deal to supply OpenAI with 4.5 gigawatts of electricity for its AI operations. The company also boasts a $455 billion AI services backlog, described by analysts as “staggering.”

Oracle’s valuation now sits just under $700 billion, with some analysts predicting it could soon cross the $1 trillion mark.

Ellison’s Rise to the Top

At 81, Ellison is Oracle’s largest shareholder and has built his fortune since co-founding the company in 1977 after dropping out of college. Beyond tech, he owns 98% of the Hawaiian island of Lana’i and is known for his investments in sports and real estate, including reviving the Indian Wells tennis tournament in California.

Ellison is also a close ally of former U.S. President Donald Trump, having appeared at White House technology events and being linked to potential acquisitions like TikTok.

The Global Wealth Race

Ellison’s rise comes during a massive AI-driven tech boom that has reshaped global markets:

Nvidia has become the world’s most valuable company with a valuation above $4 trillion.

Microsoft briefly joined the $4 trillion club, further cementing AI as the engine of tech’s next era.

Oracle’s stock has doubled in 2025, surging 103% year-to-date.

Musk, who first claimed the world’s richest title in 2021, has lost it multiple times to Bernard Arnault in 2021 and Jeff Bezos in 2024 — but often reclaimed it. Whether Ellison’s lead holds will depend on Oracle’s ability to sustain its AI-fueled growth.

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Business

Dangote Refinery Makes History: Sends First Petrol Cargo to the U.S.

Published

2 weeks ago

September 3, 2025

BONA NAIJA

Dangote Refinery sends first petrol cargo to the U.S.

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, owned by Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote, has sent its first gasoline shipment to the United States.

This monumental milestone marks Nigeria’s debut as a direct fuel exporter to America, signaling the country’s growing presence in global fuel markets.

A New Era for Nigeria’s Oil Industry

The $20 billion refinery, located near Lagos, dispatched a cargo of approximately 300,000 barrels to the U.S. East Coast, bound for New York or New Jersey. This historic shipment demonstrates Nigeria’s capability to not only meet domestic demand but also export fuel to international markets.

For decades, Nigeria has relied on imports to cover its fuel needs despite being Africa’s largest crude producer. The Dangote refinery’s success is a game-changer, enabling the country to reduce its reliance on regional suppliers and reach new markets.

Dangote’s Vision for African Energy Independence

Aliko Dangote, whose fortune is valued at $28.7 billion, describes the project as a step toward African energy independence. With its strategic location on the Atlantic seaboard, the refinery can ship fuel both east and west, giving it unusual flexibility. While the first U.S. cargo may not reshape the American market overnight, it has opened a new supply link across the Atlantic – one that did not exist before.

A Boost for Global Fuel Markets

The Dangote refinery’s expansion beyond Africa is noteworthy. Since June, it has sent cargoes to the Middle East and Asia, proving its competitiveness in global markets. The refinery’s output has helped plug gaps left by refinery outages in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, making it an attractive alternative source for buyers. With fuel inventories on the Atlantic Coast tightening and prices climbing, the Dangote refinery’s U.S.-bound cargo is well-timed to capitalize on emerging opportunities.

The Future of Nigeria’s Energy Sector

The Dangote refinery’s rise as a fuel exporter marks a turning point for Nigeria. As the country’s energy sector continues to evolve, the refinery’s success is expected to have far-reaching implications.

With Aliko Dangote devoting more time to oil refining and fertilizers, Nigeria is poised to reduce its reliance on imports and become a major player in the global energy market. The future looks bright for Nigeria’s energy sector, and the Dangote refinery is leading the charge.

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