Swift Telephone Network Limited, a Nigerian telecom company, has been granted a Unified Access Service Licence by the Nigerian Communications Commission. This development marks a significant milestone for the company, which was founded in 1998 by Mrs. Clara Adetuyi. The licence is expected to enable Swift Telephone Network to expand its services and provide more opportunities for Nigerians.
According to a statement from Swift Telephone Network, the company began as a modest umbrella and table calling spot to support the NUGA Games. It later introduced voicemail services to the University of Lagos community in 1999-2000, which was the first of its kind. The company also provided landline services to the Nigeria Military, World Health Organisation, and major government parastatals.
Swift Telephone Network faced challenges, including the loss of infrastructure and boardroom issues, which led to its operations ceasing in November 2010. However, the company was revived in February 2017 by Oluwole Adetuyi, who, along with Yetunde Okafor, began rebuilding the company. After settling regulatory obligations and reinstating its licence in 2019, Swift Telephone Network resumed operations in September of the same year.
The company submitted its application for the Unified Access Service Licence on 22 February 2022 and has now been granted the licence by the NCC. This licence is seen as a bridge to new opportunities for Swift Telephone Network, which aims to build a telecommunications company that is proudly Nigerian in its roots, global in its outlook, and transformational in its impact.
Swift Telephone Network's Managing Director/CEO, Oluwole Adetuyi, said the journey to obtaining the licence has been long but has never stopped. The company's story is seen as a reflection of Nigerian enterprise, which survives, adapts, and reinvents rather than surrender. Adetuyi emphasized that the licence is not the destination but a bridge to new opportunities.
Swift Telephone Network has committed to skills development for engineers and digital professionals, partnerships with Nigerian vendors and service providers, expanding connectivity to bridge the digital divide, creating opportunities across the telecom value chain, and building indigenous technical capabilities. The company plans to announce strategic partnerships and roll-out plans in the coming weeks.
The company's Director, Legal and Regulatory, Yetunde Okafor, stated that Swift Telephone Network's ambition is to connect people to opportunities, businesses to customers, and Nigeria to the possibilities of the digital future. With the Unified Access Service Licence, Swift Telephone Network is poised to make a significant impact in the Nigerian telecom industry.
Key points
- - The licence was granted by the NCC on 2026. - Swift Telephone Network was founded in 1998 by Mrs. Clara Adetuyi. - The company aims to build a telecommunications company that is proudly Nigerian in its roots, global in its outlook, and transformational in its impact.
