The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), in partnership with Sterling Bank, has introduced Databanc, a revolutionary new platform.
The portal would act as the exclusive source of information about Nigerian enterprises, enabling decision-makers to provide tailored interventions and assistance to the MSME ecosystem.
The platform is expected to furnish SMEDAN with valuable insights that it may employ in carrying out its purpose about policy formation, intervention program implementation, and other activities, such as finance, that facilitate the expansion of small enterprises in Nigeria.
Additionally, The Nation reported that the platform will offer a distinct identity for small businesses, their advocates, and the industries in which they operate.
Through this platform and the N5 billion single-digit loan program, for example, Sterling Bank and SMEDAN are collaborating to encourage the development and expansion of small enterprises and collectively grow the Nigerian economy.
Speaking during the platform’s debut, Sterling Bank’s executive director of commercial and institutional banking, Tunde Adeola, stated that the fund and platform represented the bank’s commitment to expanding the country’s real sector of the economy.
Adeola said:
Similarly, SMEDAN’s director-general, Charles Odii, emphasised how the initiative aligns with agency’s goal of democratising credit access for nano and microenterprises.
Odii was represented at the event by Levi Anyikwa, the director of Agribusiness Development and Access to Finance.
He confirmed that SMEs continue to have a major obstacle in getting access to financing, and scheme is dedicated to removing that obstacle.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in November 2022 between SMEDAN and Sterling Bank was highlighted by Odii as a crucial step in the direction of digitizing and streamlining lending procedures.
Also speaking, Bolanle Tyson, the head of SME digital products at Sterling Bank, stressed the importance of the bank’s strategic focus on the HEART of Sterling forward strategy, which stands for health, education, agriculture, renewable energy, and transportation.
Tyson outlined the innovative support package, including access to capital at single-digit interest rates, alongside essential resources such as capacity building, marketing support, and infrastructure development.
Tyson said:
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported that Sterling Bank Plc secured a $75 million deal with the African Export-Import Bank to foster non-oil exports in Nigeria.
The bank said the funding secured during the just concluded Intra-Africa Trade Fair in Cairo, Egypt, would help address forex issues.
According to the bank, the deal would boost trade financing in the country through facilitating intra-Africa trade, Punch reports.
Proofreading by James Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at TimesNow.com.ng.
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
