The Nation Newspaper

Category: Money

  • EFInA: Financial exclusion rate drops to 36.8 per cent

    The global pursuit of financial inclusion as a vehicle for  economic development has yielded positive impact in Nigeria as the exclusion rate has reduced from 53 per cent in 2008 to 36.8 per cent in 2018. Despite overall progress, gender gap still remains. According to the EFInA Access to Financial Services in Nigeria, 57 per cent of women were financially excluded as against 49  per cent men in 2008.

    The EFInA report disclosed that in 2018, 41 per cent of women are still excluded against 33 per cent of the male counterpart. “The gender gap increased from seven in 2008 to eight percentage points in 2018, indicating a systemic obstacle to women financial inclusion in Nigeria. Some of the factors driving financial exclusion among women stems from institutional, cultural barriers and socio-economic constraints. In some markets especially in gender segregated societies, women have limited access to public spaces, identification documents, bank accounts, mobile phones, and economic activities,” it said.

    It said there was a predisposition that women offer better customer experience and women are more likely to access financial services from agent of same gender. “Microsave studies have shown that Female agents create reassuring environment for transactions for both male and female clients. Customers feel that female agents have more patience and are more willing to spend time to address queries or explain the features of a new product. However, there is no or little representation of women in agent banking across markets. More women in agent banking may be the key to close the gender gap in financial access in Nigeria,” it added.

    More intentional action is needed to encourage more participation of women in agent banking. According to Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA) study, enlisting female agents may be the most effective way to overcome low literacy rates, and build women’s confidence and trust in using financial services.

    Providers need to  identify and provide reliable tailored information for female agents as part of the recruitment and on-boarding process, influence male family members to support female agents. Provide reliable information, and encouraging them to motivate female household members to become agents, address the issues of lack of capital, lower quality training and customer enrollment rate.

    “Providers should invest in better understanding of this segment of their agent network as it will be very crucial for further business expansion. Adopt progressive and innovative agent models tailored to women to enable female agents to succeed. Providers should think of creative ways that are culturally appropriate to integrate women into their networks, if they are to grow their female customers and engage female field force as part of the agent recruitment and on-boarding team,” it said.

    It added that providers need to understand the women segment of their agent network. Data analytics will provide insight into gender performance patterns generating knowledge to support Financial Services Providers (FSPs) in decisions that narrow gender gap in agent banking.

  • UBA celebrates staff, customers

    United Bank for Africa is joining the rest of the world to celebrate the Customer Service Week, themed, “Magic happens here”, with recognitions for staff who have excelled in excellent service delivery.

    The event which is commemorated all over the world, recognises the importance of customer service and seeks to show appreciation to the staff who serve and support customers with the highest degree of care and professionalism.

    The theme of this year’s celebrations embodies all that the bank represents as encompassed in its Core Values – the 3EEEs: Excellence, Enterprise and Execution.

    Already, all branches of the bank are engaged in various activities which will make the week-long celebration exciting and memorable. Branches have been colourfully decorated, and customers are being treated to different exciting gifts and activities.

    UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Kennedy Uzoka, who spoke on the significance of continuous excellent service delivery to customers, appreciated the workers, who have worked to satisfy customers,  urging them not to rest on their oars.

    He said: “Over three years ago, we resolved to address the persistent customer service challenges in the Bank by launching the Customer First (C1st) Philosophy. The primary objective of which was to transform the bank into an undisputed customer-focused institution delivering excellent financial services from the customers’ standpoint.

    Read Also: EFInA: Financial exclusion rate drops to 36.8 per cent

    “As we celebrate this year’s Customer Service Week, I would like to express my gratitude to you all for the journey so far. It is my belief that, with our collective strength and commitment to the Bank’s corporate goals, the on-going crusade on Customer-First Philosophy, anchored on our core values; Enterprise, Excellence and Execution (3EEEs), the C1st drive will permeate the system and become our most treasured initiative group wide.”

    Explaining the theme, he urged staff to do all they can to go the extra mile and promote great satisfaction for customers, adding, “Let’s strive to put the magical touch in everything we do to create a symbolic service experience for our ‘Employer’ – the Customer!”

    Group Executive, Customer Fulfillment Centre, UBA Group, Anant Rao said that  UBA in the last 3 years  has deliberately focused on  its  Customer 1st philosophy leveraging on a three prong lever of  People, Process and Technology, saying that large scale transformations have been engendered with clear focus on serving the needs of the customers while laying emphasis on creating a holistic  end to end Customer journey and with our ecosystem revolving around our Customers.

    “The  singular mission of our  consistent  and superior customer experience has been imbibed into the DNA of each and every staff of the bank. In this way, there is no gainsaying that Service has been institutionalized at UBA. The mantra of our Customers being  our employers has been ingrained into the psyche of each and every staff,” Rao noted

  • Keystone Bank rewards customers in ‘Growbiz Account Save and Win’ promo

    Keystone Bank Limited has launched a new savings promo tagged ‘Keystone Growbiz Account Save and Win Promo.’

    The promo, which is open to new and existing customers of the bank and scheduled to run till November 30, 2019, will see lucky winners walk away with cash prizes and gift items such as refrigerators, television and lots of consolation prizes.

    To participate in the promo, the lender, in a statement, explained that new and existing customers of the bank are to grow their Keystone Growbiz Account balance by N50, 000 and maintain it for 90 days to qualify for the raffle draw.

    The Keystone Growbiz account is designed to meet the needs of business owners and organizations; sole proprietors, partnerships & limited liability companies.

    The product is available in two variants: GrowBiz Gold Account (with minimum balance); GrowBiz Classic Account (without minimum balance). Each variant is broken down into three segments Individuals, SMEs/Traders and Corporates.

    Read Also: Keystone Bank restrategises to drive growth

    Speaking on the initiative, Executive Director, North & Public Sector of Keystone Bank, Mr. Lawal Ahmed, said that the objective of the campaign is to empower its customers by rewarding them with cash and gift items, whilst at the same time promoting the savings culture, in line with the financial inclusion drive of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    “We believe that it’s time to reward our loyal customers because they are invaluable to all that we do. It’s imperative to acknowledge their contributions to the growing fortunes of the bank,” Ahmed noted.

  • CBN injects $311.5m, CNY15m into retail SMIS

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Friday made an intervention of $311.5 million in the retail Secondary Market Intervention Sales (SMIS) and CNY 15 million in the spot and short-tenored forwards segment of the inter-bank foreign market.

    The Director, Corporate Communications Department at the CBN, Isaac Okorafor, confirmed the latest injection, disclosing that “the dollar interventions were for customers in the agricultural, airlines, petroleum products and raw materials and machinery sectors, while the yuan component was for payment of renminbi denominated letters of credit for agriculture as well as raw materials”.

    Okorafor further said that the market continued to enjoy stability, owing to the regular interventions by the bank, which he said has also guaranteed a stable exchange rate for the Naira. He assured that the bank’s management would remain committed to ensuring that all the sectors of the forex market continue to enjoy access to the needed foreign exchange.

    Meanwhile, $1 exchanged for N357 at the Bureau de Change (BDC) segment of the foreign exchange market, while CNY1 exchanged at N47.

  • Foundation to launch FLAG’IT App

    The Akin Fadeyi Foundation, Conveners of the Corruption Not In My Country Project, are set to launch Report-Corruption-App, a new mobile and web application designed to empower Nigerians to report corruption on October 10 at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja.

    The Report-Corruption-App, called FLAG’IT, a project initiated by the Akin Fadeyi Foundation is funded by the John.D and Catharine. T. MacArthur Foundation to further promote anti-corruption fight in Nigeria by working with public institutions to open us their processes for transparency, accountability and excellent service delivery.

    With FLAG’IT App, citizens shall be able to report and document their experiences around corruption and engage with government officials on issues bordering service delivery and corrupt practices across the country. The App also has a feature for documenting positive stories about credible and and outstanding public Officers.

    Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Professor Itse Sagay, will deliver the Keynote Address at the launch, while the Publisher of PREMIUM TIMES, Mr. Dapo Olorunyomi,  Dr. Boboye Oyeyemi Corp Marshal of Federal Roads Safety Corps, Dr. Kole Shettima, Co-Director on Nigeria and Africa Director, MacAuthur Foundation, Oliver Stolpe, Country Representative, United Nations Office On Drugs and Crime and Simon Kolawole, Founder of The Cable Online Newspaper are also billed to speak at the event.

    On the inherent benefits of institutional collaborations in fighting corruption, a panel of discussants shall also rub minds in a technical session with the FRSC officials.

  • Ecobank deepens CSR

    ALL is set for staff of Ecobank Nigeria to “Walk Against Cancer” this Saturday October 5th, being part of activities to mark the Ecobank Day 2019. Ecobank Day is a special day set aside every year by Ecobank Group, for management and staff of the bank to embark on  Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities that impacts its immediate environment and people.

    The initiative encapsulates Ecobank desire to give back to the local communities where it does business through volunteering, donating or fundraising. The theme for this year’s edition is “Preventing Non Communicable Diseases” with special focus on “Cancer Awareness”. Ecobank day holds simultaneously in 36 countries in Africa where the bank operates.

    In his message, the Chief Risk Officer, Ecobank Nigeria, Biyi Olagbami, who is also the CSR lead, said the choice of this year’s theme is to further raise awareness on non-communicable diseases, particularly the dreaded cancer which is currently ravaging millions of people globally as early detection would help save many lives. He noted that staff of the bank and other interested members of the public will this Saturday embark on five kilometers cancer awareness walk in three key cities – Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.

     

     

     

     

  • NEXIM: Exporters accessing EDF

    NIGERIAN Exporters have not shunned government intervention and are accessing funds under the N50 billion Export Development Fund (EDF), being managed by the Nigerian Export-Import Bank, the bank has said.

    Over the last nine months, more than N60 billion has been approved in support of commodity exports such as Cocoa, Sesame seed, Cashew nuts, Hibiscus, Ginger Shea products as well as Hides and Skin among others, in the different geological zones of the country.

    Exporters are drawing down gradually in line with the seasonality of agricultural produce.  Indeed, the volume of applications under EDF has increased of recent, with applications worth over N77 billlon currently under processing by the Bank.

    It would be recalled that the EDF was approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria last year to boost intervention in the non-oil export sector under favourable terms and conditions.  The purpose is to promote economic diversification and sustainable growth in line with the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan of the Federal Government of Nigeria.

     

     

  • Fidelity Bank to give out N120m in GAIM promo

    FIDELITY Bank Plc has announced the takeoff of its “Get Alert In Millions (GAIM) Season 4” promo during which N120 million will be won.

    The GAIM promo is expected to run till April 2020, a duration of six months. Speaking at a press conference heralding the commencement of the promo in Lagos, the bank’s Managing Director/CEO, Nnamdi Okonkwo said the campaign is the ninth in the series of savings promos organised by the bank in last 12 years to reward its customers.

    Okonkwo who was represented by the Executive Director, Shared Services & Products (EDSS&P), Chijioke Ugochukwu pointed out that the campaign seeks to reward customers for their loyalty and patronage. Whilst the savings promo is targeted at a cross section of customers, Chijioke noted that the Bank apart from using traditional channels will utilise digital platforms such as its Quick Response (QR) code and Virtual Assistant to reach unserved areas.

    Giving insight into the rationale behind organising this initiative, Okonkwo noted that savings promo remained an integral part of the bank. He asserted that the promo was focused on reaching out to the unbanked population across the nation. “We embark on campaigns like this to drive financial inclusion in line with the financial inclusion strategy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN. This savings promo allows us to take banking services to the nooks and crannies of Nigeria.

    “It also gives us an opportunity to promote a savings culture which is critical to building up investible funds for individuals and companies and a key component of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth”, she added. Stating that the lender remained on course to achieve its strategic objective of becoming a tier one Bank by 2022, the MD explained that building a robust and solid saving volumes for the institution was a critical pillar to attaining the aforementioned target.

     

  • CBN: Deposit, withdrawal charges on transactions above limit

    THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has explained that  charges on cash deposit and withdrawals apply only to transactions above stipulated limits.

    CBN Director, Payments Systems Management Department, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF) Sam Okojere disclosed this at NeFF meeting in Lagos.

    He said:  “An example would be if an individual withdraws or deposits a cumulative sum of N600,000 into his/her account or all accounts in a bank in one day, the processing fee to be charge would be three per cent of the N100,000 that was in excess of the prescribed threshold of N500,000, that is N3,000 (for withdrawals) and two per cent of the N100,000, that is N2,000 (for deposits).

    “Likewise, if a corporate should make a withdrawal or deposit a cumulative sum of N4,000,000 into its accounts in a bank in one day, the processing fee to be charge would be five per cent of the N1,000,000, that is in excess of the prescribed threshold of N3,000,000, which is N50,000 (for withdrawals) and three per cent of the  N1,000,000, that is N30,000 (for deposits).”

    Read Also: Ripples over CBN’s cashless policy

    He added: “In addition, there will be no processing fee either under the cashless policy or tax on cash-out done at agent locations in order to encourage financial inclusion in the country.”

    Speaking on efforts to secure the payment system in Nigeria, he said: “NeFF is the culmination of an enormous collective effort over the years, with many institutions and individuals contributing towards its development and progress to ensure a safe and more secure payment system in Nigeria.

    “As we build on the impressive successes recorded over the years, it is our aspiration to sustain the momentum and set new targets that will further secure the payments system.”

    Commenting further on the recent fraud report, he said: “As evidenced by the NIBSS second quarter fraud report of 2019, attempted fraud volume decreased by 47.28 per cent from the first quarter figures, while web, ATM and mobile remain the usual suspects to be used by fraudsters.”

     

  • Equities continue decline with N112b loss

    NIGERIAN equities continued on the downward trend yesterday as increased selloffs across the sectors pushed the overall market to a net loss of N112 billion. With the decline yesterday, quoted equities have lost N265 billion in the past two trading sessions.

    Key indices at the Nigerian stock Exchange (NSE) showed a considerable slowdown with declines in most share prices and the momentum of activities. Average decline stood at 0.84 per cent yesterday, pushing the average decline so far this month to -1.97 per cent. With this, average –year-to-date return worsened to -13.82 per cent.

    The All Share Index (ASI)- the common value-based index that tracks share prices at the NSE, declined from its opening index of 27,314.87 points to close at 27,085.69 points. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities also dropped from its opening value of N13.297 trillion to close at N13.185 trillion.

    Total turnover dropped by 13.98 per cent to 151.20 million shares valued at N2.52 billion in 2,895 deals.  Banking stocks dominated activities chart with Nigeria’s largest financial institution, Guaranty Trust Bank, leading with a turnover of 44.62 million shares valued at N1.24 billion. FBN Holdings followed with a turnover of 17.38 million shares worth N93.68 million while Fidelity Bank placed third with a turnover of 11.22 million shares worth N19.06 million.

    With 18 decliners to 12 advancers, most sectoral indices also closed in the negative. The NSE Consumer Goods Index led with average decline of 5.42 per cent. The N SE Insurance Index dropped by 0.35 per cent while the NSE Oil & Gas Index slipped by 0.09 per cent. However, the NSE Banking Index appreciated by 0.16 per cent while the NSE Industrial Goods Index rose by 0.79 per cent.

    “We believe the bearish momentum would be sustained in subsequent sessions as investors maintain a risk-off approach towards equities,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

    NSE’s highest-priced stock, Nestle Nigeria, led the decliners with a drop of N139.40 to close at N1,255.50. Beta Glass followed with a loss of N5.95 to close at N53.80. Unilever Nigeria dropped by N2.05 to close at N24.65. Guinness Nigeria lost N1.10 to close at N32.90. UAC of Nigeria and Dangote Sugar Refinery dropped by 25 kobo each to close at N6,75 and N10.55 respectively. Dangote Cement dropped by 20 kobo to close at N151. Zenith Bank lost 15 kobo to close at N18.25 while Access Bank and FBN Holdings slipped by 10 kobo each to close at N7.30 and N5.40 respectively.

    On the positive side, Nigerian Breweries led the advancers with a gain of N1.35 to close at N50.35. 11 followed with a gain of N1 to close at N140.

    Cement Company of Northern Nigeria rallied by 90 kobo to close at N16.40. Ecobank Transnational Incorporated added 60 kobo to close at N7.85. Flour Mills of Nigeria rose by 40 kobo to close at N15 while Caverton Offshore Support Group rose by 20 kobo to close at N2.60 per share.