At the event, it was noted that Nigeria has the highest number of Internet users in Africa, while data showed that the country still has one of the highest average costs of smartphones.

As such, citizens spend over 30 percent of their monthly income to purchase one, and this endangers Nigeria’s 2025 broadband penetration target. Therefore, with the option to Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) identified as one of the initiatives to grow smartphone penetration to 60percentt by 2025, MTN and Intelligra’s partnership is seen as a unique variant of BNPL that hopes to address this problem.

Speaking on the partnership with Intelligra, Chief Marketing Officer, MTN Nigeria, Adia So, said: “With this partnership, customers will have the opportunity to; subscribe to any of the MTN bundle plans for as low as N7,000/month and walk away with a smartphone of your choice; pay over six – 12 months with as little as N0 initial deposit; plans are bundled with up to 100GB of data and 250 voice minutes monthly.

“Redeem a one-time free screen replacement when broken and receive a one-time free phone replacement when stolen, provided the customer has an active and up-to-date subscription.” 

“The partnership with Intelligra will drive financial inclusion, the digital goals of financing devices, and making them accessible to the average man. It would also grant customers access to the Internet, entertainment, and education and allow users to communicate easily,” she added.

So who said the offer is a pocket-friendly route to owning a smartphone and by walking into any select MTN, SLOT, and other retail stores across the country, “MTN customers can acquire quality smartphones without breaking the bank.  The offer comes with added benefits of monthly data allowance and voice call minutes, tenor periods (up to 12 months), increased financed amount (up to N500,000), and device protection against theft and screen damage.”

According to Chief Executive Officer/Founder, Intelligra Solutions Ltd, Tayo Ogundipe, “This partnership with MTN, the foremost telecom provider in Africa, and collaborations with financing institutions including StanbicIBTC, VFD Mfb, Personal Trust Mfb, Credit Direct Ltd and others has helped find a solution to smartphone penetration for Africans through increased digital and financial inclusion. The ecosystem also includes leading smartphone retail chains in Nigeria, SLOT, and other major retail players across the country. These collaborations offer MTN users across the country, a unique, convenient, simple, and flexible variant of BNPL with their choice of premium, quality brands including Samsung, Nokia, Tecno, Infinix, and iTel models.”