Dun & Bradstreet buys Orb Intelligence

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Dun & Bradstreet buys Orb Intelligence

Dun & Bradstreet, a provider of business decisioning data and analytics, has acquired Orb Intelligence, prominent digital business identity and firmographic data provider. 

“The acquisition of Orb Intelligence cements our strategy to link the digital and physical worlds in the largest global repository of B2B data, and to provide enriched firmographic data to customer profiles to help our clients more effectively execute campaigns to improve customer interactions and revenue returns,” says Michael Bird, President, Sales & Marketing Solutions, Dun & Bradstreet. “Clients can rely on Dun & Bradstreet as the one-stop-shop for all of their data-driven, decision-making and customer engagement needs.”

Orb Intelligence is a digital business identity and firmographic data provider that offers high quality, the global database of information and attributes on 57 million companies, with a focus on building a digital view of a business’s presence, including web domains, URLs, IP addresses and social networks. The company provides the data backbone to many of today’s most well-known B2B sales, marketing and analytics organisations focused on digital marketing or sales initiatives.

“To be acquired by Dun & Bradstreet, which helps companies leverage data and insights to accelerate revenue, lower cost, manage risk and transform for greater competitiveness, is a wonderful culmination to the journey Orb Intelligence began in 2013,” says Maria Grineva, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Orb Intelligence. “We are excited to join Dun & Bradstreet and look forward to working alongside their talented team to deliver a differentiated set of solutions to help businesses improve their competitiveness and growth.” 

With the acquisition, clients will benefit from Dun & Bradstreet’s growing portfolio of digital solutions and expertise, including:

Linked Digital Identity: The cross-validation of data across both online and offline sources will create the most accurate and comprehensive view of businesses and attributes that can be used for digital ABM initiatives and targeting by marketing and sales teams.

Digital Activation: Orb Intelligence data will provide continuous improvements to D&B Audience Targeting, D&B Visitor Intelligence, D&B Hoovers and D&B Lattice, improving the reach and accuracy of anonymous visitor match, programmatic targeting and sales outreach.

Measurable Impact: The combined data cloud will simplify the connection and segmentation of audiences, the creation of artificial intelligence (AI) models, and activation of channels through the D&B Lattice Customer Data Platform (CDP), to deliver the best sales and marketing campaigns.

The transaction closed on 8 January 2020. Financial terms have not been disclosed.

World’s largest brewer signs 10-year renewable electricity deal

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World’s largest brewer signs 10-year renewable electricity deal
  • AB InBev is one of many major firms attempting to power its operations with renewable sources.
  • The brewer will be supplied with power from two solar facilities to be built in Spain.

The world’s largest brewer, AB InBev, has signed a deal with renewable energy developer BayWa r.e that will see the drinks giant purchase 100% renewable electricity for its brewing operations in Europe.

Under the 10-year virtual power purchase agreement, announced on Thursday, the brewer will be supplied with power from two solar facilities that have a “combined power output” of nearly 200 megawatts (MW). Breaking the deal down, AB InBev will get more than 130 MW of these sites’ output.

The agreement will cover 14 breweries: five in Belgium, four in Germany, two in the Netherlands, two in the Canary Islands, and one in Luxembourg. The U.K. and Russia have previously signed agreements for renewable electricity.

Under the new deal, BayWa r.e. is to both fund and develop the two solar plants in Spain. One of these schemes will be dubbed the “Budweiser Solar Farm,” with the new sites set to be up and running by March 2022.

AB InBev said the solar plants would provide its breweries with 250-gigawatt hours of renewable electricity annually. Over the course of the power purchase agreement, this equates to enough electricity to power nearly 670,000 homes in Europe, according to the company.

AB InBev is one of many major firms attempting to power its operations with renewable sources.

Last October, Amazon announced three renewable energy projects, including its first in Scotland. The tech giant said the facilities would provide energy to its Amazon Web Services data centers.

In March 2019, Microsoft signed a 15-year power purchase agreement for the energy produced by a 74-megawatt solar power facility in North Carolina.

This African Country Has The Most Powerful Passport On The Continent

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This African Country Has The Most Powerful Passport On The Continent

While Asia continues to outshine other continents on the world stage for the most powerful passports, African countries seemed more relegated to the behind positions.

Japan – for the third time – is the country with the strongest, according to exclusive data from the 2020 Henley Passport Index. Closely following is Singapore, holding on to its second place.

The opposite end of the index shows African and Middle Eastern nations in omnipresence. An interesting finding in the report is the general decline in the value of African passports in the past 10 years.

The ranking is based on the passports’ total visa-free score and data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

While the decline is blamed on conflict and political instability, Seychelles emerged as the African country with the most powerful passport on the continent.

The ranking, more interestingly, remains unchanged, especially as Mauritius and South Africa retain their second and third respective positions on the index.

Last year, Seychelles was also rated as the most powerful country in Africa. It was ranked in category 23 on the world list and has a mobility score of 137. Its visa-free access is to 104 countries, Visa on arrival: 33, and Visa required: 61.

On the flip side of the conundrum, Somalia is the African country with the weakest passports. The East African nation occupies the bottom position alongside Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan. They round the last five passports in terms of access, each offering holders entry to fewer than three dozen destinations around the world.

Here is the list of strongest passports in Africa, from least to most:

  • Somalia

Global ranking: 104

Visa-free access to no country.

  • Libya

Global ranking: 102

Visa-free access to 37 countries.

  •  Sudan

Global ranking: 100

Visa-free access to no country.

  • Eritrea

Global ranking: 98

Visa-free access to no country

  • Congo (Dem Republic)

Global ranking: 98

Visa-free access to no country.

  • South Sudan

Global ranking: 96

Visa-free access to no country.

  • Ethiopia

Global ranking: 96

Visa-free access to 43 countries.

  • Nigeria

Global ranking: 95

Visa-free access to no country.

  • Djibouti

Global ranking: 95

Visa-free access to 46 countries.

  • Congo (Rep)

Global ranking: 94

Visa-free access to 47 countries.

  •  Liberia

Global ranking: 93

Visa-free access to no country.

  •  Egypt

Global ranking: 93

Visa-free access to no country

  • Cameroon

Global ranking: 93

Visa-free access to no country.

  •  Burundi

Global ranking: 93

Visa-free access to no country.

  • Angola

Global ranking: 93

Visa-free access to 49 countries.

Image: Seychelles News Agency

Weetracker

Equity market sustains new year bullish run, gained 9.07% w/w

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Equity market sustains new year bullish run, gained 9.07% w/w

The local bourse this week continued its excellent run in the New Year, as it closed  Northward in all the five trading sessions.

As such, the NSE-ASI and NSE-Market Capitalization value grew by 9.07% w/w and 16.55% w/w to close for this week at 29,415.39 absolute points and ₦15.17 trillion respectively as against 27,526.35 absolute points and ₦12.80 trillion last Friday. This is nominal terms translates to a week-on-week gain of ₦2.15 trillion in Market Capitalization.

It is pertinent to note that the variation in percentage gained in NSE-ASI and Market Capitalization was due to the listing of 33.86 billion ordinary shares of  50 kobo each at N35 per share by BUA Cement Plc, following the ratification of its merger with CCNN.

Four of the five sectors closed positive on a week-on-week basis, led by; Industrial goods (+22.27%), Banking (+8.36%) Insurance (+2.05%), and Consumer goods  (+0.82%), while Oil & Gas (-0.02%) sector closed negatively.

DANGCEM top the gainers’ table this week; appreciating by 21.13% w/w, while UPDCREIT shed 18.60 % w/w to lead the loser’s table.

Overall, a total turnover of 2.68 billion shares worth ₦32.65 billion in 30,956  deals was traded this week by investors on the floor of The Nigerian Stock  Exchange in contrast to a total of 2.31 billion shares valued at ₦21.68 billion that exchanged hands last week in 14,906 deals. A total of Fifty-one (51) equities appreciated at price during the week, higher than Forty-four (44) equities in the previous week. Twenty(20) equities depreciated in price, lower than twenty-  four(24) equities in the previous week, while Ninety-two(92) equities remained unchanged, lower than Ninety-seven (97)equities recorded in the preceding week.

Market Outlook: Week ending January 17, 2020

Though we anticipate seeing some profit taking by speculative investors in the early part of next week. We believe the market still has an attractive valuation to drive positive performance next week.

FX, EXTERNAL RESERVE & CRUDE OIL MARKET

The Naira this week strengthened against the USD at both Inter-bank rate and I&E windows. The Naira at the Inter-bank market this week closed at ₦306.95/USD compared to ₦307.00/USD last Friday, while it gained 0.65% at the I&E window to close at ₦362.60 /USD as against ₦364.98/USD last week Friday.

On the other hand, the balance of the foreign reserve this week fell by $200 million from last week position of $38.49 billion to $38.29 billion (9-Jan-2020).

Oil prices within the week shot to $70 a barrel due to the tension in the Middle  East.

However, the commodity lost w/w as the threat of war in the Middle East, a major oil-producing region, receded and investors switched their attention to economic growth prospects and demand for crude. The Brent benchmark crude oil price declined by $3.67/barrel w/w to $64.93/barrel as against $68.60/barrel last week.

Precious metal edged down week-on-week, after breaking the $1,600 level on Wednesday for the first time in nearly seven years as easing tensions in the  Middle East prompted investors to move back to riskier bets

Gold spot price gained 2.32% to $1,559.89 per Ounce. Similarly, cocoa spot price grew by 1.50% to close on Thursday at $2,486.18 per Ton.

NSE Delists A.G. Leventis Nigeria From Its Daily Official List

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NSE Delists A.G. Leventis Nigeria From Its Daily Official List

We refer to our market bulletin of 27 December 2019, wherein the Market was notified of the full suspension placed on the shares of A.G. Leventis (Nigeria) Plc (A.G. Leventis or the Company) for the purpose of determining the shareholders that will qualify to receive the scheme consideration from the Scheme of Arrangement between A.G. Leventis and the holders of its fully paid ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.

Further to the approval of the Company’s application to delist its entire issued share capital from The Nigerian Stock Exchange (The Exchange), please be informed that the entire issued share capital of A.G. Leventis was on Tuesday, 7 January 2020, delisted from the Daily Official List of The Exchange.

Photo News: Sanwo-Olu in crucial visit to Bariga Market

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Photo News: Sanwo-Olu in crucial visit to Bariga Market

Yesterday, after his interaction with over 2,000 teachers currently in training at CMS Schools Complex Bariga, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu stopped at Bariga market to interact with the traders.

The Governor, however, encouraged them to keep their environment clean and safe.

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LASEPA to ban Single-Use Bags within its Premises

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LASEPA to ban Single-Use Bags within its Premises

The Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, LASEPA, is set to ban all single-use plastic bags within its premises from Monday, 13th January 2020 in a move to protect the environment and encourage eco-friendly products while calling for suitable and multiple-use alternatives to prevent pollution and avoid disposal problems.

A release issued by the General Manager of the Agency, Dr. Dolapo Fasawe recently, noted that “As the Environmental police of the State, LASEPA should set good examples for others to emulate, hence the reason why we are using our premises as a pilot scheme to drive home our zero plastic waste campaign and its attendant effects on human health and environment”.

She explained that in order to drive home the importance of the campaign, the Agency will be providing multiple-use cloth bags to all staff within the first week of implementation to substitute old unfriendly materials after which same bags can be purchased from the Agency at a minimal fee.

While enjoining all staff and visitors to LASEPA premises to support and comply with the directive, Fasewe averred that the move would be extended for wider implementation in all government facilities and the entire State after the successful implementation of the pilot scheme.

“Single-Use plastics represent the epitome of a throwaway culture that ends up in landfills, oceans, waterways and the environment, causing environmental and health hazards. The replacement will be made with recyclable and reuseable cotton cloth bags or paper bags that are eco-friendly and naturally decomposes”, Fasawe said.

The General Manager, thereby, called for societal change against the use of single-use materials, charging corporate organisations, companies and industries to embrace the new holistic approach by using recyclable and reusable materials that are cost-effective, environmentally-friendly and devoid of nuisances and pollution.

The pilot scheme, according to Fasawe, would serve as a blueprint and guide towards government policy thrust for protecting the environment and making it more habitable for all residents.

Ikoyi, Victoria Island Clean-Up Begins… 36 Vehicles Impounded, Four Persons Arraigned, Convicted (Photos)

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Ikoyi, Victoria Island Clean-Up Begins… 36 Vehicles Impounded, Four Persons Arraigned, Convicted (Photos)

The Lagos State Government on Friday commenced the enforcement exercise to clean-up Ikoyi and Victoria Island and impounded 36 exotic cars as well as trucks from an illegal car mart and mechanic workshop located on the pedestrian walkway along Murtala Mohammed Drive, formerly Bank Road in Ikoyi.

During the enforcement action led by the Chairman, Task Force on Environmental and Special Offences, CSP Yinka Egbeyemi, four persons were also arrested and promptly arraigned before a mobile court.

The individuals were arrested for various reasons including the conversion of a walkway on Bank Road into a beer parlour as well as transforming a pedestrian route into a car mart with 36 fairly-used vehicles displayed for sale.

The team also visited Adekunle Lawal (formerly McGregor Road) and Olawale Daudu Road (formerly Lord Rumens) to dismantle a makeshift Car Wash opposite Abraham’s Court, towing away four wrongly parked vehicles.

After the arraignment, a culprit, Mr Olowu Oladipupo was charged for converting the walkway into a beer parlour and fined N50,000 while all the cartons of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks displayed were confiscated.

On the other hand, three other persons – Lateef Olatunde, Damilare Taiwo and Lukman Jatto – who converted the walkway into a Car Lot were fined on each of the counts after pleading guilty while the 36 vehicles were impounded by the court.

Speaking with newsmen at the end of day one of the exercise, CSP Egbeyemi advised other owners of the illegal structures to remove them immediately, warning that today’s exercise was just a tip of the iceberg.

He affirmed that the Committee will actualise its mandate to rid Ikoyi and Victoria Island of all illegal structures and all environmental nuisance, hinting that the cleanup exercise would span the next six months with the support of other agencies such as KAI, Neighbourhood Safety Corps and LAWMA.

“As the exercise continues, commercial motorcycle riders plying restricted routes and commercial vehicles driving against traffic as well as those picking passengers on the main roads would also be apprehended and prosecuted”, Egbeyemi said.

The Task Force Chairman added that “night club owners and karaoke operators who encourage their customers to park their cars on main roads and make life difficult for residents to gain free access to their homes would also not go unpunished during this cleanup exercise”.

Recall that the Special Committee had earlier embarked on several awareness campaigns through the electronic, print and social media to sensitise residents, owners of illegal structures on setbacks, walkways, drainage alignments, roadside mechanics and squatters in the affected areas as well as the general public on the need for compliance, maintaining that anyone caught will be punished in accordance with the environmental laws of the State.

United Bank for Africa Plc Notifies of Board Meeting; To Consider And Approve Financials For FYE December 31st, 2019

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United Bank for Africa Plc Notifies of Board Meeting; To Consider And Approve Financials For FYE December 31st, 2019

The Board of Directors of United Bank for Africa Plc is scheduled to meet in Lagos at 09:00 AM on Monday, January 27, 2020, to consider, amongst other matters, the Audited Financial Statements and Reports for the year ended December 31, 2019, as well as proposals for the Final Dividend. The results would only be published after relevant regulatory approval.

In compliance with the post-listing requirements of the Nigerian Stock Exchange for quoted companies, United Bank for Africa Plc hereby declares the commencement of the closed period for trading in the Bank’s shares from January 12, 2020, in respect of the Reports and Financial Statements for the period ended December 31, 2019, as well as the Final Dividend.

Accordingly, no Director, person discharging managerial responsibility, employee with sensitive information, adviser, and consultant of the Bank and their connected persons may directly or indirectly deal in the Securities (Shares and Bonds) of the Bank until 24 hours after the release of the Audited Reports and Financial Statements of the Group for the period ended December 31, 2019, to the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

MTN Nigeria: $1.3 Billion Tax Claim – Nigeria’s Attorney General Withdraws Demand

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MTN Nigeria: $1.3 Billion Tax Claim – Nigeria’s Attorney General Withdraws Demand

MTN Nigeria is pleased to report that its legal counsel has received a letter dated 8 January 2020 from the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (the AGF) formally withdrawing his demand for N242,244,452,215.97 and USD$1,283,610,357.86 alleged revenue indebtedness.

The letter confirmed that following careful review and due consultation with relevant statutory agencies, the AGF has decided to refer the matter to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) with a view to resolving contentious issues.

MTN Nigeria will consequently follow due court process to withdraw its legal action against the AGF and engage with the FIRS and NC on the issues. MTN Nigeria remains committed to conducting its business in accordance with applicable laws in Nigeria.

Expressing satisfaction at the development, MTN Nigeria CEO, Ferdi Moolman said ‘’we are very pleased with the decision of the AGF and we commend him for his wisdom. We maintain our dedication to building and maintaining cordial relationships with all regulatory authorities in Nigeria and remain fully committed to meeting our fiscal responsibilities and contributing to the social and economic development of Nigeria.’’

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