GeTS Launches AI-driven CALISTA™ Intelligent Agent (IA)

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GeTS Launches AI-driven CALISTA™ Intelligent Agent (IA)

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach – 23rd
October 2019 – Global eTrade Services (GeTS), a global trade
platform company, today announced the launch of CALISTA Intelligent Agent (IA)
— built to optimise supply chains by unlocking the power of artificial
intelligence.

 

CALISTA™ Intelligent Agent is available on
CALISTA™ — an interoperable, neutral and trusted supply chain
orchestration platform.
 CALISTA IA can provide users with
insights on route options, free trade agreements, import, export formalities
and other value-added services.  It can
help to provide optimised freight options, based on budget, preferred timeline
and modalities.  Users are also able to receive
updates of cargo status and movement.  CALISTA
IA will recommend the best next steps to take in case of any unforeseen
circumstances.  With the options and
recommendations, users can execute relevant actions to orchestrate their
end-to-end supply chain.

 

Powered by GeTS’ vast experience in trade facilitation
and growing network of established partnerships, the CALISTA™ platform
currently has 28 Customs nodes linking countries such as China and US,
with more than 175,000 connected parties globally.  With the always-on CALISTA IA, businesses
will not require deep knowledge in trade and geopolitical landscape to conduct
trade.

 

CALISTA IA is infused across the different
applications on CALISTA, providing users with the useful insights, on-time notifications
and relevant recommendations as they orchestrate their supply chain activities.
 Users can also access CALISTA IA via desktop
and mobile phone seamlessly.

 

Mr
Eugene Wong, Chairman of CrimsonLogic and GeTS said: “Today, companies who
conduct cross-border trade need to be swift to not only act on their intent,
but also ensure their trading strategies are up-to-date and accurate. 
CALISTA IA adds to the overall trade proposition offered through CALISTA to
enhance trade orchestration, and digitally transforming the global supply-chain
to make it even more intelligent and borderless.” 

 

Early adopters of
CALISTA IA include BINAL Asia Pacific (SG), CWT Logistics, Elite International Logistics, PIL Logistics, PT Electronic Data Interchange Indonesia,
and Swivel Software.

 

Mr Chong Kok Keong CEO of GeTS said: “With CALISTA IA,
we are harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to collate and analyse real-time
data to devise the ideal trading strategy to assist the global business
community.  Businesses can adapt to the
shifting geopolitical landscape or other environmental factors when trading.  CALISTA IA unlocks valuable trading insight and
strategies to help businesses trade at peak efficiency and accuracy, thus
making trade more accessible, easier and predictable.”

About Global eTrade Services

Global eTrade
Services (GeTS), a global leading trade platform company, is shaping the future
of trade and supply chain with its innovative use of technology and deep G2B
and B2B domain expertise. GeTS enables the orchestration of physical
logistics, compliance and financial requirements of trade and supply chain
seamlessly, smartly and securely, thus powering global trade by making it accessible,
predictable and easier to fulfil. The company has linkages to 28 Customs
nodes across the world, with more than 175,000 connected parties and
conducting more than 18 million transactions annually. 

 

About
CrimsonLogic

CrimsonLogic is a
partner to governments and businesses globally. For over 30 years, CrimsonLogic has
partnered customers to innovate sustainable world-class solutions, products and services
in Trade, Legal and Digital Government, enabling significant transformations that
have positively impacted governments, businesses and communities.

Zenith Bank Plc 9M’19: Pre-tax earnings rise to highest in over 11 quarters

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Zenith Bank Plc 9M’19: Pre-tax earnings rise to highest in over 11 quarters

CardinalStone Research

Zenith Bank Plc (ZENITHBANK: TP 29.21 – BUY) has reported a 4.8% YoY increase in EPS to N4.80 for 9M’19 in its latest filing with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). The growth in earnings was largely propelled by stronger trading income (+26.3% YoY) and net fee income (+11.9% YoY).
Some positives:
  • Gross loans grew by 12.9% to N2.2 trillion from the level as at Q2’19. Year-to-date, the bank has been able to grow loans by 9.3% which is an improvement from the contraction of 3.2% observed as at Q2’19.
  • We like that asset quality did not deteriorate, despite the strong loan growth observed in the quarter under review. Thus far the bank has been able to keep its NPL ratio within the CBN’s guideline of 5.0% (9M’19: 4.95%; FY’18: 4.98%)
  • We note the 27.9% QoQ increase in net interest income during the quarter. We believe this was supported by improvement in net interest margin (NIM) from 8.6% in Q2’19 to 8.7% in Q3’19, as well as a 5bps decline in cost of funds during the period.
  • Operating expenses declined by 25.7% QoQ, which we believe was partly impacted by the completion of AMCON payments for the year in Q2’19. Consequently, the cost to income ratio moderated to 42.1%, the lowest in over 7 quarters. We also note the 61.1% QoQ reduction in impairment charges in Q3’19, which, in addition to the observed growth in risk assets, led to a significant moderation in the cost of risk to 0.8% from 2.4% in Q2’19.
  • Overall, earnings before taxes printed strongly in Q3’19 to N64.5 billion (+18.6% QoQ), the strongest performance in over 11 quarters.
Some concerns:
  • Non-interest income (-39.0% QoQ) came in weaker in Q3’19. Noticeably, net fees and commission income slumped by 41.4% QoQ, while net trading gains also weakened by 41.7% during the quarter.

Please click here for the full result.

Zenith Bank grows profit by 4.5% to N150.7 billion as at September 2019

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Zenith Bank grows profit by 4.5% to N150.7 billion as at September 2019

Zenith Bank Plc, on Wednesday, released its unaudited financial statements for the nine months ended September 30, 2019, to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and a brief analysis showed an improvement from what was realized in the same period of last year.

Zenith Bank’s gross earnings in the last three quarters of 2019 stood at N491.2 billion, representing a 3.5% increase compared to the bank’s gross earnings of N474.6 billion during the comparable period in 2018.

However, the net interest income reduced by 6.08 percent majorly influenced by lower interest and similar income, which went down to N321.9 billion from N339.1 billion, indicating a decline of 5.07 percent. The interest and similar expense decreased in the period under review to N107.3 billion from N110.6 billion.

For the impairment charge, it was higher by 28.0 percent, closing at N18.3 billion in Q3 2019 compared with N14.3 billion in Q3 2018, while the net interest income after impairment charge rose to N196.4 billion from N214.2 billion.

According to Zenith Bank, its net fee and commission income stood at N73.9 billion as at September 30, 2019 against N62.0 billion as at September 30, 2018, while the trading income was N66.9 billion as at the end of the third quarter of this year versus N52.9 billion in the same time of last year, with other income closings higher to N16.1 billion compared with N13.8 billion.

In the results, the lender said in the first nine months of 2019, it used a total of N57.1 billion as personnel expenses, higher than N51.7 billion in Q3 2018, while N102.7 billion was expended on operating costs, also higher than N109.9 billion spent for the same purpose 12 months ago.

A look at the bank’s bottom-line indicated that the profit before tax increased by 5.32 percent to N176.2 billion from N167.3 billion, while the profit after tax rose by 4.51 percent to N150.7 billion from N144.2 billion, with the earnings per share rising by 4.80 percent to N4.80 against N4.58 in Q3 2018.

For its balance sheet, the lender showed much resilient with a 6.41 percent year-on-year improvement in its total assets, which rose to N5.978 trillion in Q3 2019 from N5.618 trillion in Q3 2018, while the total liabilities year-on-year rose to N5.107 trillion from N4.840 trillion.

During the period under review, Zenith Bank grew its customers’ deposits to N3.952 trillion from N3.276 trillion, while its loans and advances rose to N2.043 trillion from N1.825 trillion, with investment in securities reducing to N492.0 billion from N590.3 billion.

Download the full Zenith Bank Plc 9M 2019, Financial Result, Click here.

Watch Adewale Akinnuoye Agbaje Talk To Toolz On Painful Story Behind Farming

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Watch Adewale Akinnuoye Agbaje Talk To Toolz On Painful Story Behind Farming

OAP Toolz seats with British Nigerian Actor Adewale Akinnuoye Agbaje to discuss his biopic movie and directorial debut; Farming on this Accelerate Special. Toolz goes in-depth with Adewale as they go through backstories of his life, growing up away from his family and being raised by white foster parents.

The writer and director go into details about the impacts of the Farming practice that was popular in Britain in the 60s and 70s where Nigerian parents gave their children up to white foster parents for periods and some even left their children in those foster homes. Adewale goes on to share how the journey to writing and directing Farming was a therapeutic one for him and how it was a major part of his discovery of self-love.

The African Boom In Investment In Communications Infrastructure

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The African Boom In Investment In Communications Infrastructure

TMT Finance Africa 2019, returns to London on November 28, 2019, with a renewed agenda, investing in the next phase of digital infrastructure and the leadership strategies for growth and cross-border investments in Africa.

With over 70 TMT C-Level key financial decision-makers announced to speak from across telecoms, infrastructure, smart cities and fintech, sessions from MTN, Orange, Dsquared, Seacom, Standard Bank, Vodacom, Africa Data Centres and Dark Fibre Africa make TMT Finance Africa 2019, the most influential event to discuss the future of mergers and acquisitions within TMT in Africa.

The increasing pressure on telcos to diversify revenue streams is expected to be one of the key driving factors for M&A transactions in Africa, according to Mohamed Dabbour, EVP, Head of Africa at Millicom. “As organic growth can be slower, we’ll see telcos acquiring companies in other sectors such as fintech and digital services and technologies. The fintech industry remains very fragmented and keeps on attracting a large number of companies in Africa.”

Telecom infrastructure is another sector that has enjoyed a tremendous amount of activity over the past few years and it is expected to continue to do so due to the increasing demand for data. “I believe we will continue to see infrastructure consolidation, as FTTH and FTTB gather more momentum in many African markets where fibre infrastructure is still developing, says Byron Clatterbuck, CEO of South African submarine cable and fibre company SEACOM. Datacentres, both large and small, will continue to attract investment.”

A few select markets are underpinning the main bulk of transactions and investment activity across the region. South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya are among the most active, while Ethiopia is opening its telecom market and is expecting new investors to target the country. Stephane Duproz, CEO of Africa Data Centres stated, “Research suggests that African private equity activity has remained stable over the past seven years, which indicates that investors are confident in the long-term feasibility of the continent.”

TMT Finance Africa 2019 is limited to 350 attendees and will feature 75 speakers across 24 sessions. Panels include;

Future Africa Telco Panel – Leadership strategies for regional growth

Sandile Ntsele, CFO; MTN SA

Diego Gutierrez, COO; International Business, Vodacom

Elisabeth Medou Badang, SVP Africa; Orange MEA

Mohamed Dabbour, EVP, CEO Africa; Millicom

Investing in next-generation broadband and wireless infrastructure

Lanre Kolade, CEO, Csquared

Byron Clatterbuck, CEO, Seacom

Antonio Nunes, CEO, Angola Cables

Marco De Assis, CEO, Group Vivendi Africa

The Future TowerCo – The Next Phase of Digital Infrastructure Investment 

Nathan Foster, CEO; Atlas Tower

Morenikeji Aniye, CEO; Hotspot Network Limited

Wole Abu, CEO; Pan African Towers

Keith Boyd, SVP, CCO – Africa; American Tower Corporation Alexander Leigh, Group CCO; Helios Towers

For more information about TMT Finance World including the full programme and tickets please visit TMTFinance.com/world-congress/africa or contact enquiries@tmtfinance.com for speaker and sponsor opportunities.

Read our full interview with to Mohamed Dabbour, Millicom. Byron Clatterbuck, CEO, Seacom and Stephane Duproz, CEO of Africa Data Centres by visiting TMTFinance.com/world-congress/africa/press

Industry Experts Converge As C&I Leasing Launches Online Recruitment Portal, Getajobng

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Industry Experts Converge As C&I Leasing Launches Online Recruitment Portal, Getajobng

It was a brilliant meeting of minds on Wednesday, 16th October 2019 as human resources experts, professionals from various industries in the private sector gathered to witness the launch of GetAJobNG, the online recruitment portal especially designed to bridge the gap between recruiters and job seekers.

The public sector was not left out as the NYSC State Coordinator for Lagos was in attendance, represented by Mrs Stella Talatu Nweke, Acting Director, Skills Acquisition & Entrepreneurial Development, NYSC Lagos.

Recruiters and job seekers can now visit www.getajobng.com  and enjoy a seamless and transparent recruitment process that is built on technology.

Getajob Leverages Technology To ‘Bridge Gap Between Recruiters And Job Seekers, Reduce Unemployment’

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Getajob Leverages Technology To ‘Bridge Gap Between Recruiters And Job Seekers, Reduce Unemployment’

C&I Leasing Plc on Wednesday 16th October 2019, announced the launch of GETAJOBNG, an online recruitment platform set to revolutionize the hiring and job search process for companies and candidates across the country.

In an exclusive ceremony which held at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, the launch featured a gathering of industry experts in the private and public sector, including human resource and brand experts from telecommunications, FMCG, financial services, oil & gas, manufacturing, engineering, transportation and consulting firms.

Giving the welcome address, Mr Andrew Otike-Odibi, Managing Director /Chief Executive Officer  C&I Leasing Plc, said that the business service conglomerate had built competence in the Human Resource (HR) business in the last 20 years, making it easier to identify challenges and opportunities in personnel outsourcing and recruitment. According to him, GETAJOBNG was set up to end the “disturbing trend of having a sea of talents and a large pool of companies looking for these talents but no bridge connecting them”.

“It’s very frustrating because the companies can’t move forward without the right talents and the talents are there and trying to gain access to these companies but they can’t,” he said.

“That’s where we got thinking and although we saw there were a lot of job sites, there were a lot of things that were not connecting. Thankfully, this is the jet age. The age of technology. We go into a lot of research and thanks to our team, who put that together, we now have GETAJOBNG.

“We’re bringing forth GETAJOBNG to act as a bridge between the sea of talents and the companies that require those talents.”

The C&I Leasing MD further revealed that the GETAJOBNG platform has adopted tested methods to identify skills and traits, and match the candidate to the right opportunity, thereby reducing the unemployment rate in the country and helping businesses grow, with plans to extend to Ghana and other parts of Africa.

‘THE EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS ISSUE’

Mrs Amina Oyagbola, Managing Consultant, AKMS Consulting Ltd and keynote speaker at the event,  delved into the key challenges with recruitment in Nigeria. She noted that Nigeria ranked 152 out of 157 countries in the World Bank Human Capital Index, yet as of 2018, nearly a quarter of the workforce was unemployed and 20% underemployed.

This she said, was largely as a result of the “employability skills” that many graduates lacked, making it hard for them to transition into the workplace.

While proffering solutions to the challenges listed, Mrs Oyagbola advised that job seekers be strategic in their search, get professional help, and clarify their needs before they go searching.

On the recruiter’s side, she advised that hiring managers should reposition their employer brand and regularly engage with the talent community. Citing GETAJONG, Mrs Oyagbola advised hiring managers to use technology to streamline their recruitment process.

UNVEILED TO A ROUSING APPLAUSE

With excitement and anticipation brimming in the air after a demo video was played, the GETAJOBNG portal was unveiled to rousing applause by the distinguished guests present. Chief Henry C. Okolo, Chairman, Board of Directors, C&I Leasing Plc led members of the management team including Mr Otike-Odibi, the MD/CEO, Mr Alex Mbakogu, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer and Ms Maureen Ogbonna, Group Head, Human Resources and Strategy. Mrs Oyagbola joined the group to mark the momentous occasion.

Cutting the ribbon to unveil the GETAJOBNG portal, Chief Okolo said the launch comes at an opportune time as companies struggle to fill in-demand roles in the face of a more complex hiring environment, growing talent gap and limited resources. He charged job seekers and recruiters to key into the fit-for-purpose solutions that GETAJOBNG has on offer.

GETAJOBNG FUNCTIONALITIES

After the unveiling, Mr Temitope Niyi, Consultant for GETAJOBNG, showcased a live presentation of the portal’s distinguishing features. In his words, GETAJOBNG utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning to match candidates to recruiters. By using skill-based tests, knowledge-based tests, psychometric tests, on-premise interviews and scheduled interviews to test the candidates, he said the platform “creates a seamless recruitment process for recruiters, accelerating candidate flow and reducing the cost and time to hire.”

First Bank Was Awarded The Best Private Bank And Best Retail Bank In Nigeria

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First Bank Was Awarded The Best Private Bank And Best Retail Bank In Nigeria

In recognition of its commitment and leading role at providing bespoke financial services to its customers and the public in general, through its numerous state of the art and innovative financial products and services, First Bank of Nigeria Limited has been awarded the Best Private Bank and Best Retail Bank in Nigeria Awards respectively by World Finance Magazine and Global Banking and Finance Review.

Speaking on the Bank’s recognition for the Best Retail Bank in Nigeria award, Wanda Rich, Editor, Global Banking & Finance Review said “With 125 years of continuous banking operations, First Bank of Nigeria Limited is a pioneer in retail banking development in Nigeria. The bank is dedicated to providing customers with value-added products and services and as well as efficient and accessible banking services. Their commitment to retail banking is reflected in their strategic vision, organizational structure and strong risk management which contributed to their outstanding performance We look forward to seeing more from them for years to come.”

In a statement from the World Finance official website, the 2019 World Finance Banking Awards is organised to identify the banks across the world that have excelled across a number of areas, including corporate governance, sustainability and innovation, and have played a key role in the industry’s growth.

Appreciating the awards on behalf of the Bank, Dr Adesola Adeduntan, Chief Executive Officer, FirstBank said “these awards are dedicated to Nigerians, especially our customers for their patronage and trust in our services over the last 125 years. Indeed, the confidence reposed in us has spurred us to continually deliver the best wealth and financial management services to strengthen everyone’s contribution to national development. We are pleased to be the financial services gateway of the first choice to everyone.”

A Very Big Question To Christians & Muslims, Moses Was Not A Christian Or Muslim, God Used Him To Bring Israel Out Of Egypt – Bishop Sam Zuga

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A Very Big Question To Christians & Muslims, Moses Was Not A Christian Or Muslim, God Used Him To Bring Israel Out Of Egypt – Bishop Sam Zuga

Bishop Sam Zuga of House of Joy ministry was recently sharing the word of God with his members then asked a big question of either being and Christian of Muslim and God still using you.

The Bishop gave a lot of example in the Bible of people who where either Christian or Muslim and God still using them, he ended the sermon by saying to his members in the Church.

“WHO SEND YOU”

READ BELOW:

Noah was not a Christian or Muslim, but God used him to preserve humanity.

Abraham was not a Christian or Muslim, yet God made him the father of all believers.

Moses was not a Christian or Muslim, God used him to bring Israel out of Egypt.

Joshua was not a Christian or Muslim, he detained the sun for 24 hours.

David was not a Christian or Muslim, God called him a man after His heart.

Elijah was not a Christian or Muslim, God took him to heaven alive.

Solomon was not a Christian or Muslim, God made him the richest and the wisest man that ever lived.

Jesus was not a Christian or Muslim, God used him to save humanity.

Peter and other Disciples were not Christians or Muslims but Jesus walked with them throughout His days of assignment or Earth

Paul was not a Christian or Muslim, he wrote almost half of the New Testament.

The name Christian was given to believers in Christ as an insult or mockery by unbelievers, long after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ at Antioch.

You made yourselves Christians and Muslims and are using it to hate yourselves, kill yourselves, imprison yourselves, unleash terror on yourselves to the amazement of the God you are claiming to defend, protect or worship.

The purpose of God creating Man was not to take him to heaven but to have Dominion on Earth. Live happily, successfully and peacefully on Earth while he acknowledges God as his creator but relate with Him as friends.

Keep hating and killing yourselves in the name of religion, you will end up losing God and the heaven you are claiming to bribe God for, by killing who you assumed is not worshipping God in the right way.

The question is; WHO SEND YOU?

History of the Slot Machine

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History of the Slot Machine

The slot machine is iconic when it comes to the history of gambling. Slot machine gaming is an absolute crowd favourite, actually earning more income for casinos than table game favourites combined. Their whimsical sound effects and visuals draw in crowds from all backgrounds and demographics to join in on the fun, and cost-efficient games from Slots Mummy. Just one small 1$ bet could land you a 6-figure jackpot, and since the game requires very little skill, it is also a favourite among beginner gamblers. But how did it come to be so popular in the casino world, both land-based and online? Read further to find out more about the History of the Slot Machine.

The Liberty Bell Slot by Charles Fey

Slot machines (sometimes called a “fruit machine” or “one-armed bandit”) date all the way back to 1895. The first slot machine is said to be invented by a car mechanic, Charles Fey in San Francisco. The machine was named, “The Liberty Bell” and was decorated with diamond, spade and heart symbols along with a picture of a cracked Liberty Bell. It had 3 spinning reels, a spin resulting in an impressive payoff of… fifty cents or ten nickels. You can go and have a look at this iconic machine in Reno, Nevada at the Liberty Belle Saloon and Restaurant.

Charles Fey went on to create more machines, including the Draw Power, the Three Spindle and Klondike. It is also worth noting that Charles Fey invented the trade check separator (found originally in the Liberty Bell) which distinguished fake coins from real ones – this trade separator is still used in slot machines around the world. Charles Fey rented his machines out to bars and saloons and split the profits with them 50/50.

How did the slot machine originally work?

Each slot machine had three metal reels, with 10 symbols painted on each of them. You would pull the provided lever to spin the reels and when it stopped, you would win a jackpot if three of the same kind of symbols lined up. The payout would be dispensed from the machine for you to take.

Popular as can be

As expected, the Liberty Bell became extraordinarily popular – because people love slot machines! Apparently, the demand was so high that Charles Fey battled to keep up as he could not build them fast enough in his small shop. When Gambling supply manufacturers wanted to purchase the rights to manufacture and distribute the Liberty Bell, Fey refused.

This resulted in Herbert Mills, Chicago based manufacturer of arcade machines, producing a new slot machine in 1907 – a knock-off of the Liberty Bell named Operator Bell. Herbert Mills was the first person to include fruit symbols including cherries, lemons and plums on slot machines.

As you now know, slot machine gambling only grew in popularity since its humble beginnings. There are now thousands of slot game machines to choose from both in land-based casinos and online. People loved slot machines when they began and we believe they will only become more loved as technology improves. 

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