Chairman of Coscharis Group, has shared his insights on the concept of money, highlighting that there are five levels of money, with cash being the least level. According to Maduka, the first level of money is credibility, which is built over time through consistent actions that can be traced and verified.
“Credibility is things you do on a constant basis over a period of time that is recorded that people can trace to and then people can say, This is who this person is,” Maduka explained. He emphasized that credibility is essential in building trust and reputation.
The second level of money, Maduka said, is credible relationship, where an individual can leverage someone else’s credibility to access resources or opportunities. “If Dangote gave his word, he availed his credibility to you. You don’t have it, but somebody availed it to you,” Maduka illustrated.
Maduka identified the third level of money as integrity, which he described as a scarce commodity in Nigeria. “Integrity is not what you do when people know. Integrity is what you would do if you know there’s no way it can ever be discovered,” he said, highlighting the importance of doing the right thing even when no one is watching.
The fourth level of money, according to Maduka, is character, which he described as the foundation of leadership. “Character is like alphabet two, it doesn’t change. It’s a statue that stands firm,” Maduka said, emphasizing the importance of having a strong moral compass.
Finally, the fifth level of money is competence, which involves having the necessary skills and knowledge to excel in one’s field. “You need to be competent. You need to be properly schooled,” Maduka advised, stressing the importance of acquiring knowledge and expertise.
Maduka concluded that anyone who has money without these five qualities is likely to have acquired it through illegitimate means. “Anybody who you see that have money and they don’t have this five things is a thief. He stole the money,” he said, emphasizing the importance of building a strong foundation of credibility, integrity, character, and competence.