eTransact Golf Classic: how super fintech facilitates business collaboration

As the eTranzact Golf Classic concluded on Saturday, April 29, 2023, Nigeria’s super fintech company, eTranzact reaffirmed its commitment to facilitate more business collaborations within the public and private sectors in the country.

The tournament, which was held from Thursday, April 27 to Saturday, April 29, 2023 at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Estate, off the Lekki-Epe expressway, Lagos had Category 1 amateur golfers and professionals alike duking it out for fun and glory while racking up ranking points on the Professional Golfers Development Tour.

For the management of the company, which is a pioneering fintech company at the forefront of connecting businesses and agencies in Nigeria, they had found the game of golf best suited to their quest to create more avenues for productive business-to-business collaborations in Nigeria.

Managing Director, Niyi Toluwalope had made this clear during the media conference held at their Victoria Island office before the tee-off of the tournament,

“We are a super fintech that works with businesses and governments to facilitate seamless trade and exchange of value, while working with other fintechs to drive successes across sectors. It is therefore not unexpected that we want to create more platforms for business leaders to network and drive more collaborations.

“Golf is a game of precision that develops the mind of the players, teaches spontaneity, focus and concentration, while encouraging strategic thinking and creative problem solving. These are all qualities that successful business leaders must possess regardless of age and experience.

“Therefore, having identified the role that sport plays in our society, we have chosen it as our way to connect business leaders and professionals who have embraced it to relax and refresh their minds to face the rigors of creating more innovative ideas that will grow African economies, he said.

eTranzact bias for youth

In an interview with journalists, the Deputy Managing Director, Hakeem Adeniji-Adele, described the Golf Classic as a launching pad for the company’s greater commitment to the promotion of sports and the overall well-being of Nigerians. He described the sport’s core target group as smart, discerning and innovative individuals. “These are the ideals we strongly believe in at eTranzact”.

The MD likewise promised that the eTranzact Golf Classic would be the beginning of the company’s investment in the development of sports in general in Africa, especially due to the company’s bias towards the young population.

He says: “It is clear that sport is very important to young people across Africa, and as a leader in the youth-dominated fintech space, it is a natural desire for us to constantly create and support ideas that bring excitement with development together for the younger demographic.

“We hope that the eTranzact Golf Classic will also help us gradually get younger people more interested in playing golf because of its many mental and physical benefits. The future of our industry and indeed Africa for business is the youth and we might as well start building the lifestyle that helps them keep their minds fresh and creative for the growth that the continent depends on them for.”

He added that looking ahead to the next few years, eTranzact will continue to collaborate with public and private stakeholders to drive more growth for the Nigerian and African economies.

“As Nigeria’s Super Fintech of choice, eTranzact is committed to providing payment technology support, facilitating trade and exchange of value between businesses, governments and its people through safe and secure channels.

“The growth of African economies is highly dependent on leveraging technologies like ours to turn ideas into real opportunities. That’s why we will continue to work with governments, agencies and businesses across the continent to achieve prosperity,” he said.

Exciting finale

As the tournament reached its climax after three days at the beautiful Lakowe Lakes and Golf Resort, there was great excitement for the players, the organizers and their sponsor.

Francis Epe of Ikoyi Club 1938 Lagos emerged the winner of the tournament, defeating about 80 other professional golfers from across Nigeria and other countries.

While presenting the championship trophy to the winner at the closing ceremony on Saturday, MD/CEO of eTranzact International PLC, Niyi Toluwalope, expressed satisfaction with the quality of the competition and the high standard of play on display, pledging that the fintech company would become a long-term partner with the golf club .

“We are delighted to support professional golfers with an opportunity like this to further develop their game towards excellence at the international level, while providing the business community with the appropriate atmosphere to meet and drive innovation. Innovation is the hallmark of the eTranzact brand, and that is the essence of our investment in this tournament.

“I hope that the event has been fun for all our guests and participants. I hope that skills have been learned, people have met, ideas have been shared and collaborations are underway,” he said.

He went on to present a giant check of 1.5 million naira to the champion and the others who also received cash prizes and other gift items from eTranzact. He also presented several consolation prizes across different categories, explaining that the eTranzact Golf Classic was designed to ensure that everyone is a winner.

Francis Epe collected 210 points with a score of six under par to win the 54-hole tournament. The second position was won jointly by the trio of Ayisah Anan Lucky of Achimota Golf Club, Ghana, Bako Kamalu of IBB International Golf and Country club, Abuja and Mike Ubi of Python Golf Club, Port Harcourt, all tied on 212, after 54 holes.

The champion expressed gratitude to eTranzact for sponsoring the tournament and investing in the careers of several professional golfers. He recognized the platform as one that would help develop the sport in Nigeria.

For category 1 amateurs, Oluremi Olukoya emerged the winner with Emmanuel Samuel and Oluwatoba Olusegun second and third. There were also prizes in the ladies category where Funke Oguntonade won for the longest drive, leaving Jummai Abdullahi with the second prize. Jason Kim won for the men. The visiting amateur players at the event had nine-handicap Dr. Vitus Ezenwa crowned the winner, while Lanre Shagaya and Yemi Ajibola took second and third respectively.

The PGD Tour management commended eTranzact for giving the golfing community in Nigeria a new outlook that professional golf as a career is still a viable job. According to Lakowe Lakes Golf Manager, Femi Olagbenro, their partnership with eTranzact took things several steps further, even though it was the third edition of the competition. He affirmed that the game of golf brings people together and promotes collaboration off the field, and these values ​​obviously reflect the premium brand such as eTranzact.

The excitement did not end with the professionals and amateur players. Members of the staff and management of eTranzact also had their share of the fun in a mini-competition where they tested their golfing skills and went home with cash prizes and some other goodies.

The Chairman, eTranzact International PLC, Wole Abegunde, commended his team for supporting golf professionals in Nigeria. “We need to develop golf in Nigeria. Look at the US Tour today, top competitors from Asia have taken over. They came from their countries; they didn’t grow up in the US and they earn dollars.

“As I have always said, if the likes of Jay Jay Okocha, Kanu Nwankwo, Mikel Obi can go to the UK to play in the Premier League and make a lot of money for themselves and their relations in Nigeria, then our golfers in Nigeria, if well supported in terms of tournaments and infrastructure can also make it big, he said.

The eTranzact Classic had a 10 million naira pooled purse for professionals, while Category 1 amateurs playing alongside professionals had gift cards for their stakes.