Category: Business

First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Nigeria’s premier and leading financial inclusion services organisation, has announced the launch of its second fully automated branch, the FirstBank Digital Xperience Centre (DXC), on the campus of the University of Ibadan (U.I). Professor. Kayode Adebowale, Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Professor E.O Ayoola, Deputy Vice Chancellor Admin and Professor Aderonke Baiyeroju, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Academics led the university community in hosting the delegation from FirstBank comprising Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, CEO, FirstBank; Callistus Obetta, Group Executive, Technology & Innovation Services and Timothy Arowoogu, Group Head,…

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Access Bank Plc has, as part of its expansion strategy, launched custody services to offer safekeeping and servicing of financial assets to its customers. The Managing Director of Access Bank, Mr Roosevelt Ogbonna, made this known in a statement in Lagos on Tuesday. Ogbonna said that the expansion into custody services came after obtaining regulatory approvals from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in December 2022. He said that custody services was a crucial component of the bank’s continued growth and expansion strategy.…

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Leading financial institution, Fidelity Plc, has distributed over 1,200 food packs to the internally Displaced Persons in Makurdi, Benue State in its ongoing commitment to eliminate hunger among vulnerable persons in the society. The event, which took place on Thursday, 10 August 2023 at the IDP Camp, Federal Housing Estate in North Bank, Benue State was executed in partnership with the Hyacinth Alia Foundation and the Benue State Emergency Management Agency (BESEMA). Speaking during the distribution event, the Divisional Head, Brand and Communications, Fidelity Bank Plc, Meksley Nwagboh noted that…

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Zenith Bank Plc has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat for the development of the SMARTAfCFTA Portal, for trade promotion within the African continent. The SMARTAfCFTA Portal, which has the capacity to provide information like trade indicators, market trends, custom tariffs, trade agreements, rules of origin, market access requirements of relevant jurisdictions, export potentials, export diversification indicators and contact details of business partners in target markets and other trade-related information about Africa, will help to unlock the vast opportunities for trade…

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First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Nigeria’s premier and leading financial services provider, has announced the graduation of 20 successful participants in the fourth edition of its Senior Management Development Programme (SMDP) at an event held recently at Oriental Hotel, Lagos. Before the 2023 graduation, the SMDP had produced 52 graduates. The Bank successfully graduated 23 participants in its inaugural edition, held in 2018; 17 in 2019 and 12 in 2020. The Senior Management Development Programme (SMDP) is FirstBank’s intensive modular programme for a select group of senior managers to principal…

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Access Holdings Plc has been honoured with the prestigious Karlsruhe Award for Outstanding Business Sustainability Achievement for the eighth consecutive time. Presented at the Global Sustainable Finance Conference (GSFC) organised by the European Organisation for Sustainable Development (EOSD) in partnership with the city of Karlsruhe, Germany, the Award underscores the sustainability commitment demonstrated in the way Access Holdings conducts its business operations and activities. Delivering the opening remarks at the Awards event, the Lord Mayor of Karlsruhe, Dr. Frank Mentrup, lauded the unwavering commitment of the organisations present and urged…

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For a third year running, Zenith Bank Plc has been named the Best Commercial Bank in Nigeria at the World Finance Banking Awards 2023. The bank also emerged as the Best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria, in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2023, retaining the award for a second consecutive year. These awards were presented to Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Zenith Bank Plc, at the London Stock Exchange recently. The recognitions celebrate the bank’s tremendous feats and milestones in financial performance, financial inclusion, corporate…

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FBN Holdings Plc (FBNHoldings) has posted N206 billion profit before tax in the first half of the year. The six-month report for the period ended 30 June 2023 showed that the company grew gross earnings and profit before tax to N656.6 billion and N206.3 billion respectively. Group Managing Director, FBN Holdings Plc, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo said the company has continued to deliver a strong financial performance despite the complex operating environment due to its reinforced foundations, deep market understanding, strong risk management and execution capabilities. “Across our businesses, we continue…

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GUARANTY TRUST BANK NAMED BEST BANK IN NIGERIA BY EUROMONEY Lagos, Nigeria – July 17, 2023: Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd (“Guaranty Trust” or “the Bank”) has been named Best Bank in Nigeria at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2023. This marks a record 12th time that Guaranty Trust Bank has been recognised as the leading financial institution in Nigeria. Announcing the award, Euromoney stated: “Nigeria’s Best Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, has continued to do a good job of convincing investors that it is better placed than its key competitors to…

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Access Bank Plc (Access) and Standard Chartered Bank have entered into agreements for the acquisition of Standard Chartered’s shareholding in its subsidiaries in Angola, Cameroon, The Gambia, and Sierra Leone, and its Consumer, Private & Business Banking business in Tanzania. Each transaction remains subject to the approval of the respective local regulators and the banking regulator in Nigeria. The announcement was made today at Standard Chartered’s Headquarters in London in the presence of senior representatives from both banks. Signed by, Sunil Kaushal, Regional CEO, Africa & Middle East, Standard Chartered,…

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Access Bank Plc, the flagship subsidiary of Access Holdings, has completed the acquisition of majority equity in Angolan entity, Finibanco Angola S.A. The bank disclosed this in a notice filed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited on Thursday. Access Holdings had earlier announced the deal on October 4, 2022, and had received regulatory approvals in Nigeria and Angola. Commenting on the development, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Access Holdings, Dr. Herbert Wigwe, said, “In anticipation of the completion of the transaction, the bank has made excellent progress in integration planning. “Our…

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Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (GTCO) has announced dates for the 2023 GTCO Autism Conference and follow-up consultations. This year’s programme is themed “Empowering Voices for Autism” to promote inclusivity and self-advocacy for persons on the Autism Spectrum. An offshoot of the Orange Ribbon Initiative, the GTCO Autism Conference has grown to become a reference point for autism advocacy and intervention in Africa, providing support and empowerment to thousands of people with neurodevelopmental disorders. Working with specialists and partner organisations within and outside Nigeria, the conference will feature lectures, panel discussions,…

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Zenith Bank Plc has retained its ranking as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital in the 2023 Top 1000 World Banks’ Rankings, published by The Banker Magazine. For the fourteenth year in a row, the Bank has held its position as the number one Tier-1 bank in Nigeria, emerging as the 467th Bank globally with a Tier-1 Capital of $2.54 billion. The rankings, published in the July 2023 edition of The Banker Magazine of the Financial Times Group, United Kingdom, were based on the 2022 year-end Tier-1…

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FirstBank has launched an industry first Humanoid Robot at its Adetokunbo Ademola VI, Lagos Digital Experience Centre (DXC) Branch The robot is among the phased configuration of the bank’s state-of-the-art digitally led self-service branch The Humanoid Robot is equipped with Video Banking and Artificial Intelligence (AI), taking on the role of a friendly branch staff. In furtherance to its leading role in providing innovative financial solutions in Nigeria, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Nigeria’s premier financial institution and leading financial inclusion services provider, has announced the launch of a Humanoid…

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As part of efforts to boost Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings, the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) has announced a strategic partnership with leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc and Sapphital Learning Ltd. The partnership will help improve the skills and performance of export businesses in Nigeria by leveraging the NEXIM Export Academy (NEXA); an online platform that provides exporters with capacity-building training and access to finance to scale their business. The NEXA platform which was Launched with the support of Sapphital (a digital learning institute) in 2022, is designed to empower…

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Fitch Ratings has affirmed Fidelity Bank Plc’s credit rating at ‘B-‘ with a stable outlook, according to its recent report. The global rating agency also upgraded the bank’s National Short-Term Rating to ‘F1+(nga)’ from ‘F1(nga)’. It said the upgrade reflects the improvement in the bank’s local-currency funding profile, as evidenced by the increase in the share of low-cost current and savings accounts in the bank’s customer deposit base to 87.1% at the end of the first quarter (1Q2023) from 75% in 2021. According to Fitch, Fidelity Bank’s rating affirmation is…

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In line with its commitment to sustainable development and enabling success for women, Union Bank of Nigeria, through its women-focused proposition αlpher, partnered with Chrystallis to host the inaugural live edition of Chrystallis Conversations – a platform focused on empowering women and promoting gender equality. The event tagged Fear-Less! Pursuing Your Best Life with Courage and Conviction held on Thursday, June 1, 2023, in Victoria Island, Lagos. It was an intimate night of insightful conversations and networking. The event kicked off with a heartfelt musical performance by Funmi Bucknor, followed by…

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Polaris Bank has clarified that she did not violate any law in a recent disengagement of some staff which it said was done in line with the terms of the contract guiding their engagements   The Bank was reacting to a report of the picketing of its headquarters by NUBIFIE this morning by a section of the media.   The Bank disclosed that it has engaged and will continue to engage the union to resolve any lingering labour matters.   The Bank emphasized that a cordial relationship has existed between…

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Rising from a lower profit margin of N10.2billion and a debilitating Non-Performing Loan portfolio of 45 per cent in 2015, to an impressive profit of N147billion and a significantly lowered NPL rate of 5.6 per cent in 2022, FirstBank has proven that its back-to-back profit-making is far beyond recoveries made, but rather it’s a reinforcement of a well-articulated growth trajectory driven by a committed, competent and experienced Board and management team, writes Festus Akanbi There seems to be a consensus among watchers of the Nigerian banking sector that these days,…

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…takes trade expo to Houston, Texas, USA in October 2023 Building on the resounding success of the maiden edition of the Fidelity International Trade and Creative Connect (FITCC) in London, UK last November, leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, has announced plans to host the second edition of the trade expo in Houston, Texas in the United States of America. Tagged FITCC Houston, the event would hold on Wednesday, 18th and Thursday, 19th October 2023 at the George R. Brown Convention Center, 1001 Avenida de las Americas, Houston, Texas 77010.…

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TO CUSTOMERS’ DELIGHT, ZENITH BANK COMMENCES “ZENITH BETA LIFE SEASON 3” PROMO Zenith Bank Plc has launched the third season of its hugely successful “Zenith Beta Life Promo” to reward its customers with gifts from June 1, 2023, to May 31, 2024. Within this period, twenty bank customers of Zenith Bank will be chosen through a bimonthly raffle draw, each receiving gifts valued at NGN150,000. Five lucky customers will also win a cash prize of NGN500,000 during the quarterly draws. The promo is open to both existing and new Zenith…

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… Commend Partnerships and bundled investment initiatives Nigeria’s leading Retail Bank, Polaris Bank has announced the launch of its exclusive banking product aimed at serving its High Net-worth Individuals (HNIs) seeking innovative investment options in challenging economic times. The unveiling which took place in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Tuesday was attended by esteemed guests, industry experts, and corporate customers from across the country. The exclusive banking proposition, designed to guide HNIs towards high-yield investment opportunities, received an overwhelmingly positive response from customers present at the launch with most of them offering…

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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has debunked a report by a national daily that it has devalued the naira to N631 per dollar at the Importers and Exporters’ (I&E) window. A top official of the apex bank, who told this medium that the report is completely false , warned that such reports could have serious adverse consequences for the economy. According to the top official, the CBN has not changed its strategy of allowing a gradual convergence of the parallel and official market exchange rates. “The report is not…

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For the fourth consecutive year, Zenith Bank Plc has been named as the Best Corporate Governance ‘Financial Services’ Africa 2023 by the Ethical Boardroom. The award, which was published in the Spring 2023 edition of The Ethical Boardroom magazine, is in recognition of the bank’s adherence to global best practices and institutionalization of corporate governance, setting an industry-wide example of best practices in that field. Speaking on the recognition, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive of Zenith Bank Plc, Dr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, said: “I am extremely pleased that Zenith Bank has…

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