Author: News Room

First City Monument Bank has opened a new round of applications for its SheVentures proposition, offering zero-interest loans of up to N10m to women entrepreneurs to improve access to working capital and support business growth. The bank said in a statement on Tuesday that the facility provides loans ranging from N500,000 to N5m under a general category, and N5m to N10m for sector-specific businesses, with funding capped at up to 50 per cent of an applicant’s average monthly turnover. The offering carries a zero per cent interest rate, with charges embedded in a transparent structure. Repayment is structured over four…

Myles Lewis-Skelly has moved to within touching distance of a long-standing UEFA Champions League record held by Nigerian great Nwankwo Kanu after emerging as one of the youngest semi-final starters in the competition’s history, The PUNCH reports. The Arsenal teenager has now started three Champions League semi-final matches, placing him among an elite group of young players to feature at such a high level. According to statistics platform Squawka, only Iker Casillas and Kanu have made more semi-final starts as teenagers, with both recording four. Lewis-Skelly’s rapid rise has been underlined by his growing influence in Arsenal’s European campaign. The…

Stablecoins are more likely to go mainstream if adopted by major technology companies, a shift Bitwise says could help push the market closer to a projected $4 trillion by the end of the decade.Bitwise chief investment officer Matt Hougan said on Tuesday that DoorDash and Meta’s recent use of stablecoins for payments in limited projects is likely “the real killer app of stablecoins.” “On a relative basis, these are not a big deal. Both are pilot projects and the dollar amounts are small,” Hougan wrote. “But they’ve answered a question I’ve had about stablecoins for a long time. They’ve also increased…

The Other Bennet Sister‘s Dónal Finn is joining the ranks of other iconic fictional regency men who yearn — including Bridgerton‘s Jonathan Bailey. Finn, 39, spoke exclusively to Us Weekly about TV fans who have compared his character, Mr. Tom Hayward, to Bailey’s Anthony Bridgerton, joking, “I hadn’t heard of the Bridgerton school of yearning but I should enroll.” Despite not being familiar with season 2 of Bridgerton, Finn has been a big fan of Bailey’s work. “I love Jonathan Bailey. He is a pretty inspiring man — and pretty easy man to fall in love with after I watched…

Simisola Fajemirokun-Ajayi, a senior special assistant on strategy, investment and partnership to former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has purchased the All Progressives Congress (APC) expression of interest and nomination forms to contest the 2027 House of Representatives election. Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi completed the purchase of the forms on Wednesday in Abuja. She is seeking to represent the Ile-Oluji/Oke-Igbo/Odigbo Federal Constituency of Ondo State. The former minister’s aide gained public attention in June 2024 following reports that she accused a Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Ibrahim Lamuwa, of sexual harassment. At the time, Mr Tuggar, who was still…

Troops of the Nigerian Army have killed two armed bandits and recovered ammunition and a motorcycle during clearance operations in Zamfara State. The operation was conducted under the Joint Task Force, North West, Operation FANSAN YAMMA, as part of ongoing efforts to dismantle terrorist hideouts and restore peace in affected communities. This was contained in a statement on Wednesday signed by the Media Information Officer of the operation, Colonel Aliyu Danja. According to the statement, the successes were recorded during coordinated clearance operations targeting identified bandit enclaves within the Bagega–Sunke forest corridor. It added that additional bandits were believed to…

The New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, has said it will deploy all lawful means to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to comply with existing court orders regarding the party’s leadership dispute. The party stated this in a release issued on Wednesday by its Secretary General, Mr. Ogini Olaposi, following a closed-door meeting between selected NNPP executives, their legal counsel, Segun Fiti, and the INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, in Abuja. Olaposi said the meeting was convened to address concerns over INEC’s alleged failure to implement court judgments on the NNPP leadership tussle, but described the engagement as inconclusive…

Former Manchester United midfielder, Owen Hargreaves, has backed Arsenal to beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final. Speaking to TNT Sports on Wednesday, the former Bayern Munich star backed the current Premier League league leaders to get the better of the French Ligue 1 champions. However, Hargreaves cautioned that PSG possess multiple attacking threats capable of causing damage. “Arsenal have a chance [to win the Champions League ahead of PSG], without a doubt,” Hargreaves said. “With their defence, goalkeeper, and Declan Rice deeper in midfield. “They can definitely do it in a one-off game. But PSG have so many…

The management of the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, Kogi State, has expelled eight students over examination malpractice. This was contained in a letter signed by the Deputy Registrar (Academics), Mr Eli Gbadufu, made available to journalists on Wednesday in Lokoja. According to the letter, the decision was ratified by the university’s Senate at its 30th regular meeting held on Wednesday, April 29, 2026. “The expulsion followed investigations by the Examination Misconduct Committee into violations recorded during the first semester examinations of the 2025/2026 academic session,” the statement noted. The letter stated that the affected students were found…

The Kogi State Government has confirmed the safe rescue of all victims abducted from the Daarul-Kitab Islamic Orphanage in Lokoja. The confirmation came in a statement issued on Wednesday in Lokoja by the state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr Kingsley Fanwo. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that gunmen attacked the orphanage on April 26 and abducted 23 pupils, including the proprietor’s wife. The government had earlier confirmed the rescue of 15 victims on April 27 following intensified security operations across the state. Fanwo said the remaining nine victims regained freedom during a rescue operation conducted in the early…