Access Bank partners SME.NG to roll out Ebi Marketplace -

SME.NG in partnership with Access bank Plc and other leading institutions, are launching the Ebi Marketplace.

SME.NG in partnership with Access bank Plc and other leading institutions, including the Bank of Industry (BOI), LAPO Microfinance Bank, Chapel Hill Denham, and the Impact Investment Foundation Nigeria are launching the Ebi Marketplace – a Nigerian innovation for female entrepreneurs.

The Ebi Marketplace consists of an access to capital market, an e-commerce mall and a knowledge market for female entrepreneurs in Nigeria seeking to digitize their businesses.

Conceptualised and developed by SME.NG as a tangible solution to the impact of COVID-19 on female entrepreneurs, the Ebi Marketplace aims to close the gender digital divide in Nigeria by supporting women’s digital literacy and financial inclusion, while providing access to capital and markets.

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Thelma Ekiyor, the brain behind the Ebi Marketplace stated that SME.NG is committed to investing in facilitating female entrepreneurs’ profitability, so that they are positioned for infusion of capital.

According to her, this innovation is supported by Nigerian investors for the Nigerian market.

“We at SME.NG see ourselves as an indigenous solutions provider in Nigeria’s SME ecosystem. Women in Nigeria establish businesses more than men but struggle to grow beyond a certain point. We believe we have a strategic role to play in breaking that financial and growth ceiling,” she noted.

Hope Moses-Ashike

Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks. She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings. Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.