The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) in collaboration with Sterling Bank Ltd., has unveiled a N5 billion initiative-Databanc loan to address financial gaps for small businesses.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the initiative was launched in Lagos with the theme: “Building with Data: Promoting Economic Growth through Data Driven Insights.”
Databanc is a five billion single digit loan to engender easier access to funds by Nano, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises ( NMSMEs).
Mr Bunmi Kole-Dawodu, the Lagos State Manager, SMEDAN, said the funding tool would be geared towards providing local and tailored made support for business at the smallest levels.
Kole-Dawodu added that the funding tool would provide access to markets and all factors to drive entrepreneurship.
The Director General, SMEDAN, Mr Charles Odii, said that data was critical to the agency to help it make more informed economic decisions to build small businesses ecosystem.
Odii said the agency as the vanguard for livelihood enhancement would continue to bridge the gap between the government and small businesses.
He decried that businesses were not taking advantage of the various interventions out there for them.
Mrs Bolanle Tyson, Head, SME Products, Sterling Bank Ltd., said Databanc was a five billion single digit loan to engender easier access to funds by nano and micro businesses.
Tyson said the Databanc, a formalised portal to access funding without human interface for businesses with tax identification number, registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, provided funding from N250,000 to N2,500,000 for one year.
