📶Nigeria Fines Telcos $8.85M

Plus: 📺MultiChoice Lowers DStv Prices

Innovation Village
January 30, 2026

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TGIF👋

Nigeria’s small and medium-sized businesses just received a major vote of confidence. Moniepoint has disbursed ₦1 trillion to 70,000 Nigerian businesses, a move that goes beyond numbers to signal trust, support, and a commitment to growing the country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

For many business owners, access to capital is often the biggest hurdle to scaling operations, hiring staff, or expanding markets. By putting significant funds directly into the hands of SMEs, Moniepoint isn’t just fueling day-to-day operations—it’s enabling businesses to innovate, compete, and contribute more meaningfully to the economy. This isn’t just a fintech milestone; it’s a reminder of how targeted financial support can ripple across communities, livelihoods, and the wider business landscape.

Let’s dive in👇

Today’s Menu ☕️

📶Nigeria Fines Telcos $8.85M Over Poor Network Quality
🏢 Moniepoint Gives ₦1T to 70,000 Nigerian Businesses
📺 MultiChoice Cuts DStv Prices, Adds Shared Payments
💵MTN MoMo Launches Low-Cost International Transfers
🎵Spotify rolls out group chats

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📶TELECOMS

Nigeria Fines Telcos $8.85M Over Poor Network Quality

Nigeria’s telecom regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has announced fines totaling ₦12.4 billion ($8.85 million) for mobile operators that fail to meet service standards. The crackdown targets repeated network issues such as frequent call drops, slow data speeds, prolonged outages, and poorly maintained infrastructure.

The move marks a shift from the NCC’s previous reliance on warnings and compliance discussions, signaling a more assertive regulatory approach to protect subscribers. Consumers have long complained about poor network quality, unexplained data depletion, and delayed refunds for failed transactions. While the NCC has already introduced a 30-second automatic refund framework effective March 1, 2026, rules addressing data transparency are still being developed...........….continue reading

🏢FINTECH

Moniepoint Gives ₦1T to 70,000 Nigerian Businesses

Moniepoint Group disbursed over ₦1 trillion in loans to 70,000 Nigerian micro, small, and informal businesses in 2025, highlighting fintechs’ growing role in bridging the small business credit gap. Using transaction and point-of-sale (PoS) data instead of traditional credit scores, the company assessed cash flow and repayment capacity to extend meaningful working capital, with an average loan of ₦14.3 million.

Businesses accessing these loans saw an average 36% increase in transaction value, benefiting sectors like retail, food, and building materials. Moniepoint also processed over ₦412 trillion in payments across 14 billion transactions and upgraded its microfinance bank to a national licence, positioning data-driven lending as a scalable alternative to traditional banking for Nigeria’s underserved SMEs...........….continue reading

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📺MEDIA

MultiChoice Cuts DStv Prices, Adds Shared Payments

MultiChoice has taken significant steps to make DStv more affordable and accessible for Nigerian households. The company has permanently reduced the prices of DStv decoders, lowering the initial cost barrier for new subscribers and making it easier for former users to return. In addition, MultiChoice introduced a shared payment feature, allowing subscribers to split their monthly fees with family or friends—reflecting how households often share financial responsibilities for essentials like rent or electricity.

These measures respond to growing pressures from inflation and competition from streaming platforms such as Netflix and YouTube, which offer flexible, on-demand content at competitive prices...........….continue reading

💵CROSS-BORDER PAYMENTS

MTN MoMo Launches Low-Cost International Transfers

MTN Mobile Money Zambia has introduced a new international remittance service, enabling users to send money from their MoMo wallets directly to bank accounts in the EU, UK, and Canada. This makes MTN MoMo the first mobile money provider in Zambia to offer direct wallet-to-bank international transfers to these regions. The service is highly affordable, with fees starting from as low as K5, and supports globally recognised banking identifiers like IBAN, SWIFT, Sort Codes, and Routing Numbers.

Designed to simplify cross-border payments, the service caters to personal, business, and educational transfers, offering speed, security, and regulatory compliance..............….continue reading

🎵MUSIC STREAMING

Spotify rolls out group chats

Spotify has launched group chats, allowing users to share podcasts, playlists, and audiobooks with up to 10 people. The feature builds on Spotify’s existing messaging functionality, enabling conversations with users you’ve previously shared content with, such as collaborators on playlists or Blends. Messages are encrypted at rest and in transit, though not end-to-end.

This move is part of Spotify’s broader strategy to make its platform more interactive and community-focused. Group chats aim to boost engagement, foster collaboration, and transform passive listening into a social experience, complementing existing features like podcast comments, follower activity, and friends’ listening insights. The initiative also aligns with industry trends of integrating social tools into streaming services to increase retention and organic content discovery...........….continue reading