ntel Confirms Q1 2026 Comeback with "Digital Niche Play" Strategy

 Mr. Soji Maurice-Diya, Chief Executive Officer of NatCom Development and Investment Limited (ntel), has officially announced the company’s planned Q1 2026 comeback into the Nigerian telecoms market. Speaking at the Technology Times Thought Leadership Series, Maurice-Diya confirmed that ntel will adopt a renewed, infrastructure-light model focused on filling significant "innovation gaps" within the industry.

The CEO criticized the current market for a lack of recent innovation and committed ntel to a highly focused, agile strategy:

“We don’t think there’s been nearly enough innovation in the last few years.”

Target Market (The Niche): ntel is specifically targeting the youth market the millions of Nigerians who turn 18 every year and lack historical loyalty to existing carriers. The company aims to serve a "very small subset of subscribers, and serve them extremely well," rejecting the "100 million subscriber game."

Model: The comeback will be a "light digital play" operating as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). This means ntel will lease network capacity from existing operators, allowing them to focus capital on niche products and digital customer experience rather than duplicating costly infrastructure.

Vision: ntel believes the sector must evolve beyond basic connectivity. Their goal is to become a "digital platform" that unlocks opportunities in ancillary industries such as fintech, healthcare, education, and logistics.

Maurice-Diya outlined specific areas where the company believes incumbent operators have failed to innovate:

 ntel's Digital-First Approach

Monolithic Focus Evolve beyond mere communication to become an enabler of cross-sector value creation.

Uneven Access Tackle the gap between urban and rural broadband access by deploying new models powered by renewable energy and localized infrastructure.

Regulatory Constraint Advocate for Regulatory Flexibility," urging the government to allow innovation first and then regulate "on the back-end" to avoid stifling progress.

Sustainability Drive industry sustainability by pushing for the localisation of technology, infrastructure, and talent (supporting initiatives like the 3MTT programme).

The CEO also emphasized the need for stronger policy support to ensure long-term investor confidence:

Finance-Comms Synergy: A closer working relationship between the communications and financial sectors is critical to defining the next 25 years of the Nigerian digital economy.

Investment Security: Government must ensure continued FX stability, dynamic pricing, and tie tax incentives to long-term capital commitments to reassure investors.

The strategic announcement was made at the Technology Times Thought Leadership Series, a quarterly platform powered by Digital Transformation Media Limited (DTML), publishers of Technology Times. The series serves as a high-level forum to bring together decision-makers to debate and shape policy and technology strategy in Nigeria's digital transformation space.