India Consulate to Nigeria, Mr. Kannan Chockalingam has reaffirmed the strong and growing bilateral relationship between India and Nigeria, describing ties as flourishing across economy, trade, technology and culture.

Chockalingam made this reaffirmation at the MarTech excellence award Nigeria 2025, a celebration of innovation, culture and agentic marketing with the theme “Afro-Bollywood Night.”

The award hosted by technology solutions companies, Netcore and Infytel brought together Indian and Nigerian artists.

It celebrated cultural synergy between Nigeria and India, reflecting the long-standing admiration Nigerians have for Bollywood. More than 24 categories of the MarTech Excellence Awards were announced, with major institutions such as Ecobank, Access Bank, Zenith Bank, First Bank, FCMB, UBA, Keystone and among recipients.

The award recognised that organisations have demonstrated excellence in marketing technology adoption and customer communication.
The Consulate said: “Basically, we are providing technology services to the Nigerian banks. And I’m very happy that Indian companies are working hard to make the Nigerian banking sector better and providing technology. So, we are trying to speak with the Nigerian government to introduce Unified Private Interface System (UPI) system of which many of the companies are adopting the UPI system. So, India is ready to help and share the best practices with Nigeria. Nigerian banks can consider the UPI system. And they can put forward their ideas to the government of Nigeria. So that we can implement the UPI system here, that would be a benefit for all the Nigerian banks.”

Managing Director and CEO of Infytel Communications Limited, Anant Sabat said the company operates in 18 countries and brings advanced IT and AI-driven solutions to Nigeria through global partnerships including Microsoft, Oracle and Dell.

He noted that Infytel collaborated with Netcore to deploy Smart Tech platforms offering 16 communication channels for targeted, automated marketing.

Also, CEO, Netcore Cloud, Abithab Bhaskar noted that Indian companies have played a major role in transforming Nigeria’s banking technology landscape for nearly two decades.

“Today, almost 90 per cent of the banking and finance sector uses our services,” he said, crediting the company’s early investment in Nigeria and direct engagement with local clients.

Bhaskar revealed ongoing discussions with the Nigerian government on introducing India’s UPI system, which has revolutionised digital payments in India. He stated that the system could significantly benefit Nigerian banks and enhance financial inclusion.

Netcore used the event to launch its new Agentech AI module in Nigeria, a tool designed to help marketers automate and personalise campaigns without relying on multiple departments.

“At scale, manual execution is impossible. AI makes it possible,” Bhaskar said.