Secure Electronic Technology Plc, also known as SET Plc, initially started out as a gaming/lottery company. It has since diversified, yet online gaming remains of its main focus.
It is a well-known fact that Nigeria has many sports lovers. For many years, millions of citizens have demonstrated their undying love and insatiable demand for all kinds of sports/games. As a result, the country’s gaming industry has continued to thrive, with many companies springing up ever so often to take advantage of the opportunities that abound.
One of such companies is Secure Electronic Technology Plc, which today claims to be the foremost and leading provider of online gaming experience in Nigeria. For over a decade, this company has grown and expanded, changed its corporate identity (albeit for good reasons), and floated its equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
But how much of this company’s story do Nigerians know about? How many people are even familiar with the services it provides? And come to think of it, is SET Plc really a force to reckon with in the Nigerian gaming industry? Let’s find out together, shall we?
Secure Electronic Technology Plc: A Corporate Overview
The corporate story of SET Plc began in 2001 when it was incorporated. It then received a three-decade-long lottery license from the Nigerian Government to conduct national lotteries in the country, backed by the National Lottery Act. It was the first ever company to receive such a license in the history of Nigeria.
Asides lottery and gaming, SET Plc has over the years gone on to explore other business opportunities; all within the ambit of technology and data management. Today, it is involved in the vending of airtime, provision of card payment solutions, trivia promo syndication, provision of central database and information processing services, and treasury/asset management services.
Meanwhile, online gaming remains a major business venture for SET Plc; from that it provides a considerable percentage of its income. Below are some of the gaming products provided by the company:
- 60F49: This is the company’s newest jackpot game in which lucky players could win an average of N24,000.
- 2SURE: Playing this game successfully could guaranty you a whooping N250,000 payout
- 50F90: Virtually all the lottery enthusiasts should be familiar with this game as it is quite a popular one.
- BETWAZOBIA: This mobile and online 24/7 game is said to be a revolution in the industry.
Please note that all the information on how to play and win these games can be found on the company’s website.
On the company’s name change and listing of stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange
On December 14, 2012, SET Plc became listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. This happened precisely two years after its original name National Sports Lottery Plc was changed to the current one. The company later explained in a statement that one of the reasons for the name change was to “reflect the new business model of the company which, as the name connotes, is the provision of secured electronic platform for lottery and financial and other transactions.”
Recall that as mentioned earlier, SET Plc had by this time transcended the lottery and gaming venture, while exploring the opportunities that abounded in the country’s growing financial technology ecosystem.
A quick look at the company’s Board of Directors
Dr Odulami Kola-Daisi serves as SET Plc’s Chief Executive Officer. He is a trained Medical Doctor, having graduated from the University of Jos in 1989 and completed his residency at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan. He is also an alumnus of the prestigious Harvard University.
Instead of pursuing a career in medicine, Dr Kola-Daisi chose to become a financial service professional, working as both a banker and a stockbroker. His first banking gig was at First City Monument Bank (FCMB) and later the now-defunct Spring Bank Plc where he rose to become an Executive Director.
Note that asides his position as the Chief Executive Officer, Dr Kola-Daisi also serves as the Chairman of Payment Technology Limited, a subsidiary of SET Plc.
Mr Akin Areola is a Member of SET Plc’s board of directors, serving in the capacity of an Executive Director. He has a B.Sc. Political Science from the University of Benin, and later graduated from the same university with a Master’s in Public Administration.
He is an experienced business executive who has worked in different notable corporations, including ABEX Express, DHL International, Trans-Nationwide Express Plc, and Red Star Express.
The company’s target market
Lagos-based SET Plc has a wide target audience. First and foremost, it targets gamers and lottery enthusiasts in Nigeria, providing the platform for them to play and win. The company also targets organisations in need of database and information processing/management. In the same vein, it targets all those in need of trivia promo syndication, providing the infrastructure and technical know-how.
Which companies are in competition with SET Plc?
While SET Plc operates in markets where endless opportunities exist, it also has to contend with other companies that pose as stiff competitors. In the area of gaming and lotto, some of its competition includes the likes of Gamsole, Kuluya, Bestman Games, SUREBET, BETNAIJA, Baba Ijebu Lotto, etc.
The company is also in competition with data management and electronic payment companies such as CHAMS Plc, Courteville Business Solutions Plc, CWG Plc, eTranzact, Cellulant, etc.
The company’s accomplishment over the years
Over the past 17 years since it was incorporated, SET Plc has recorded some interesting accomplishments. Today, it has some of the largest Point-Of-Sales (POS) machines in Nigeria and the entire Sub-Saharan region. Using this wide POS platform, the company has been able to create a convergence of gaming, electronic payments and transaction processes.
How the company has performed financially
By the first quarter of 2018, the company’s revenue plummeted by 11.66%, down by N6.60 billion compared to N7.47 billion year on year. The company also recorded a loss in the period under review. In the same vein, its stock has had the most difficult year yet, having fallen by 54% year to date. It ended last week on the NSE’ losers’ list, having closed at N0.23 even though it started the week with N0.29.
