The Nation Newspaper

Category: Money

  • Falling oil price weakens naira

    The naira declined last week as Bonny Light crude, one of Nigeria’s main export grades, fell for the third day last Friday, dropping by 0.6 per cent to $103.41 per barrel. The local currency weakened by 0.1 per cent to N158.63 per dollar, putting its monthly decline to 0.4 per cent.

    The Federal Government depends on oil export for 80 per cent of its revenue and 95 per cent of its export income. Analysts blamed naira’s fate on speculation that foreign investors who sold Nigeria’s debt as oil prices declined.

    The yield on the 2022 securities rose 23 basis points, or 0.23 percentage point, to 11.86 per cent, the highest since April 29. “It looks as if the global risk-off environment is feeding into Nigerian assets, broadly in line with what other emerging markets are experiencing,” Samir Gadio, an emerging-markets strategist at Standard Bank Group Ltd told Bloomberg.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on May 23 and 24, mopped up over N338 billion via treasury bills and Open Market Operation (OMO) bills to ensure price stability. The liquidity rush highlighted inflows from the monthly Federation Accounts and Allocation Committee (FAAC) injection.

    However, Currencies Analyst at Ecobank Nigeria hinted that with market liquidity of about N222 billion on May 24, there might be another round of OMO bills auction in the coming weeks to ensure price stability.

    Analysts insist that over the short term, the naira will likely continue to trade on the interbank market within the CBN’s three per cent band either side of N155 to a dollar.

     

    Excess Crude Account

     

    Balance in the Excess Crude Account (ECA) fell below $6 billion after drawing of $1 billion in April, FBN Capital, an investment and research firm said quoting data from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). It explained that the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) of 12 per cent for banks may have to be hiked again if the fiscal stance is not tightened.

    The research firm explained that the CRR remains a powerful piece of weaponry in the CBN’s arsenal because of the disproportionate influence of the banks in the markets. “The hike in the rate in July 2012 has been the single most important step taken by the CBN to hold the line on the naira exchange rate with relative ease. The CBN’s intervention is merely the latest to draw attention to the strains between monetary and fiscal policy,” it said.

     

    PenCon

     

    The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has concluded plans to conduct an enrolment exercise for employees of Federal Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that are treasury-funded.

    A statement signed by its Head Communication Unit, Emeka Onuora, said the exercise was meant for employees in the service of the Federal Government who are due to retire between January and December, 2014 and would enable them get their retirement benefits. The exercise, he said, will take place between June 3, and July 11 this year.

    He said the beneficiaries were selected after attaining 60 years of age or 35 years in service whichever is earlier or 65 years in service or 70 years of age for employees of tertiary institutions. He said the physical enrolment also covers those who have already retired but are yet to be enrolled.

     

    CIBN

     

    The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has reaffirmed its commitment to the development of manpower for the banking sector to achieve stable industry and economy. President/Chairman of Council of the Institute, Segun Aina, disclosed this during his address at the World Press conference to launch the institute’s 50th Anniversary, in Lagos. He noted that the institute has continued to fulfill the mandate for the promotion of practice of the banking profession in the country.

    Aina said that CIBN would continue to make strategic effort to support banking sector, regulatory authorities and stakeholders as they pursue reforms in the midst of constant changes in the global financial landscape.

    He said the Federal Government, state governments, National Assembly and other regulatory bodies rely on the institute for input into fiscal and monetary policies and related matters, adding that it had at various periods been called upon to serve in special committees of government on financial matters such as Committees on Drugs and Other Financial Crimes; Nigeria Accounting Standards Board (now Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria); Money Laundering Committee; FSS 2020; National Productivity Board among others.

     

    DMO

     

    The Debt Management Office (DMO) raised N500 billion from the sale of Federal Government’s bonds in the last five months, FBN Capital, has said.

    The firm said a slowdown in issuance in the first half of the year was to be expected, given that this year’s budget projects domestic borrowing at N528 billion.

    It said Nigeria’s domestic debt declined marginally by $41.1 billion in the first quarter of the year, adding that the country’s debt profile dropped from N6.54 trillion to N6.49 trillion within the period.

    It explained that while this is not easily reconciled with comments last week by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) about fiscal slippage, the Federal Ministry of Finance said in February that it would retire bonds worth N75 billion.

     

    Private sector credit

     

    The Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Bismark Rewane said that maintaining a tight monetary stance would continue to slow down credit to the private sector and stifle growth.

    His comments came after the MPC left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 12 per cent during its last meeting,

    In a report obtained by The Nation, he said analysts have mastered and can predict the committees’ decisions. Rewane said a decline in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate was not enough to move the votes in favour of rate reduction.

    “Already, the National Bureau of Statistics reported a decline in GDP growth from 6.99 per cent in fourth quarter of 2012 to 6.56 per cent in first quarter of the year. This downward trend would continue if the MPC fails to pay heed to the call for stimulus,” Rewane said.

     

    Taxation

     

    President, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) John Jegede has said that an economy that is able to sustain its citizens must leverage on tax revenues, which he said is the most reliable source of revenue for national development and transformation.

    Speaking at the institute’s induction for its members in Lagos, he told the inductees that their role is to assist the government and taxpayers to plug loopholes and bring into the tax net more individuals.

    He said a situation where negligible percentage of taxable persons actually pays taxes is very disheartening and professionals must rise up to the challenge to ensure Nigeria’s economy is diversified through taxation.

    Jegede said the institute is determined to collaborate with various stakeholders on training of tax practitioners in various organisations and agencies. “While commending stakeholders for their unalloyed support to the institute, it is my hope that the existing mutual co-operation between governments at all levels and the Institute would go a long way to improving the effectiveness of the various states’ revenue agencies while at the same time strengthening the confidence of taxpayers in the tax system,” he said.

     

    Visa

     

    Visa, global electronic payments company, has called for an improved use of e-payment products by entrepreneurs both within and outside the country.

    Speaking at the BT Africa West Africa Expo and Conference in Lagos, Country Manager for Visa West Africa, Ade Ashaye, said the firm is committed to helping the country achieve its cashless banking initiative. “Visa is committed to helping move Nigeria to a cashless economy and share some of the benefits of secure electronic payments within the industry.” It hosted it with Future Group’s Business Traveler Africa.

    He said Nigeria is growing as a destination for both leisure and business travel and rise in spending is a credit to the efforts of those promoting Nigeria as a tourist destination.

     

    FITC

     

    The Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC) has launched new products meant to boost learning and professionalism in the financial sector. The Managing Director, FITC, Mrs Lucy Newman, named the products as FITC Virtual learning, FITC E-Recruitment Portal, and FITC Virtual Library. It developed the Nigerian version of the International Finance Corporation corporate governance and board leadership training curriculum, as well as the FITC new publications.

    She said the products were relevant and should help the development of the financial sector and improve bankers’ knowledge of the financial sector.

    The CBN Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, Dr Kingsley Moghalu endorsed the products. He said there was need to improve bankers’ knowledge of operational risk. He said, “The management of operational risk needs to be improved and we know that one of the problems that affected the banking industry in the past was almost a complete failure of risk management. We must enhance the quality of banks in Nigeria through good risk management and corporate governance using proper regulatory frameworks.”

     

    Bank to bank report

     

    FirstBank of Nigeria Limited has partnered with LEGO, the world’s fourth largest manufacturer of children’s toys to introduce KidsFirst, one of the bank’s children products to the market.

    At an exclusive cinema screenings to mark this year’s Children’s Day, the bank unveiled a comprehensive programme that includes three new products – exciting content partnerships, a dynamic new website and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

    Speaking on the programme, FirstBank’s spokesperson, Folake Ani-Mumuney said the partnership with LEGO represents the bank’s quest to create a platform for Nigerian children to express themselves and instilling the culture of financial discipline in them.

    She said KidsFirst, the first of the three products to be launched, combines the fun and excitement that children are looking for with the dependability and convenience that parents need. “The partnership with Lego will give KidsFirst account holders access to exclusive Lego events, content and products. As a children’s brand known for both entertainment and educational value, LEGO was the perfect partner for KidsFirst,” she said.

    Unity Bank Plc received the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard certification, the global information security standard that helps prevent card-related fraud, the lender said in a statement.

    Presenting the certificate to Unity Bank, Mrs. Adedoyin Odunfa, Managing Director of Digital Jewels, a consulting firm on the project, said Unity Bank – which issues MasterCard and Interswitch Verve cards to its customers – had demonstrated leadership in the industry, being the fifth bank to receive the certification in the country.

    Mrs. Odunfa said, “After achieving the ISO270001 last year, Unity Bank has shown that is one of the banks at the forefront of good security and compliance by now attaining the PCIDSS certification. You are the second bank in the country to have attained both of those certifications. That is quite a formidable feat given that there are several other banks who may claim to be more technological advanced than Unity Bank.”

    Stanbic IBTC Holdings commemorated the Children’s Day by deploying its senior personnel in various schools across Lagos to teach students the value and benefits of financial planning and a savings culture.

    In a statement, the lender said its objective is to assist the gain knowledge skills and confidence that would enable them make responsible financial decisions on how to start saving money for future needs. Among issues discussed during the sessions were developing educational savings plans, budgeting, keeping money safe, and application of mobile money solutions.

    The bank said the initiative, which is an integral part of the group’s corporate social investment goals, is focused on helping the students embrace financial planning and a savings culture. Participating schools where the volunteers tutored were Corona School Gbagada, Methodist Girls High school, Yaba, Lagos Progressive Schools, Surulere, Kings College, Lagos, Corona School Ikoyi and Corona School, Victoria Island.

    Chief Executive Officer of Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Mrs. Sola David-Borha, said it was in recognition of the strategic role of qualitative education in stimulating socio-economic development that the Standard Bank Group, to which Stanbic IBTC Holdings belongs, focused its corporate social responsibility objectives on three critical areas of societal needs – Education, Healthcare and Economic Empowerment.

  • FirstBank, LEGO partner on children’s products

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has partnered with LEGO, the world’s fourth largest manufacturer of children’s toys to introduce KidsFirst, one of the bank’s children products to the market.

    At an exclusive cinema screenings to mark this year’s Children’s Day, the bank unveiled a comprehensive programme that includes three new products, exciting content partnerships, a dynamic new website and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

    Speaking on the programme, FirstBank’s spokesperson, Folake Ani-Mumuney said the partnership with LEGO represents the bank’s quest to create a platform for Nigerian children to express themselves and instill the culture of financial discipline in them.

    She said that KidsFirst, the first of the three products to be launched, combines the fun and excitement that children are looking for with the dependability and convenience that parents need. “The partnership with Lego will give KidsFirst account holders access to exclusive Lego events, content and products. As a children’s brand known for both entertainment and educational value, LEGO was the perfect partner for KidsFirst,” she said.

    She listed some of the benefits of the products to include low opening and operating balances, an annual scholarship scheme and the convenience of internet banking.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Unity Bank receives IT certification

    Unity Bank Plc has received the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard certification, the global information security standard that helps prevent card-related fraud, the lender said in a statement.

    Presenting the certificate to Unity Bank, Mrs. Adedoyin Odunfa, Managing Director of Digital Jewels, a consulting firm on the project, said Unity Bank – which currently issues MasterCard and Interswitch Verve cards to its customers – had demonstrated leadership in the industry, being the fifth bank to receive the certification in the country.

    Mrs. Odunfa said: “After achieving the ISO270001 last year, Unity Bank has shown that it is one of the banks at the forefront of good security and compliance by now attaining the PCIDSS certification. You are the second bank in the country to have attained both of those certifications. That is quite a formidable feat given that there are several other banks who may claim to be more technological advanced than Unity Bank.”

    She however, advised Unity Bank’s management not to rest on its oars. “It is a feat that is evidenced by the fact that it is a global certification and not a local one and so I will like to say that having attained this, yes, we congratulate ourselves, but we must look forward and ensure that we are able to sustain this certification. That is extremely important,” she said.

    Unity Bank’s Managing Director, Ado Yakubu Wanka said the bank is aware that banking is about confidence and as the world economy moves towards card-related transactions, it becomes more important for customers to know that their data is safe with their bank.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • CIBN reassures on manpower development

    The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has reaffirmed its commitment to the development of manpower for the banking sector.

    President/Chairman of Council of the Institute, Segun Aina disclosed this during his address at the World Press conference to flag off activities marking the institute’s 50th Anniversary in Lagos.

    He noted that the institute has continued to fulfill the mandate for the promotion of practice of the banking profession in the country.

    Aina said that CIBN would continue to make strategic effort to support banking sector, regulatory authorities and stakeholders as they pursue reforms in the midst of constant changes in the global financial landscape.

    He stated that the Federal Government, state governments, National Assembly and other regulatory bodies rely on the institute for input into fiscal and monetary policies and related matters, adding that it had at various periods been called upon to serve in special committees of the government on financial matters such as Committees on Drugs and Other Financial Crimes; Nigeria Accounting Standards Board (now Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria); Money Laundering Committee; FSS 2020; National Productivity Board among others.

    On ethics and professionalism, Aina said that the institute serves as the Secretariat of Sub-Committees of the Bankers’ Committee, which has helped to reduce cases involving banks and their customers in the courts thereby promoting mutually beneficial relationship between both parties. “Since the establishment of the Sub-Committee in 2001, a total of 1,419 cases had been received out of which, 1,277 were amicably resolved, giving a success rate of about 90 per cent,” he said.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Consolidated Breweries to invest N10b in 2013

    Consolidated Breweries will invest about N10 billion in capacity expansion this year, its Chairman, Prof Oyin Odutola-Olurin, has said.

    Addressing shareholders at the 2012 annual general meeting (AGM), he said the company has reserved some N9.5 billion for further investments in the 2013 business year.

    She noted that there had been a strong investment drive that had seen investments increasing from N4.7 billion in 2011 to N9.5 billion in 2012.

    Besides, she said the recent acquisitions have strengthened the profitability of the company, although high interest costs and other challenges impacted negatively on its performance.

    According to her, the company has taken great strides through huge investments in equipment in the breweries and contract production at Sango Otta in order to increase its production.

    She disclosed that the increase in volume and production of its‘’33’’ Export Lager Beer brand and malt drinks in cans has made the company to remain tall in the market amidst its competitors, adding that the results have been positive in this regard though the contract brewing led to an increase in variable expenses.

    The chairman noted that the simultaneous investments in acquiring breweries while expanding and improving the capacity of its Ijebu-Ode brewery are important steps in establishing a platform for the future growth of the company and maintaining its future competitiveness.

    She added that in the short term these investments would lead to a higher interest burden and it would take some time before the newly acquired capacities could be fully utilized.

    ‘’We may still have a few storms to weather but if we press on with our plans, our dreams will culminate in a company in which you will be proud to be a shareholder,” Odutola-Olurin said.

    She pointed out that logistics operation of the company also improved in the year under review with an increase of the fleet of its third party transporters, which conveyed products more efficiently into existing and newly achieved markets.

    She said the company had already achieved great synergy sequel to the successful merger between Consolidated Breweries Plc, Benue Brewery Limited and DiL Maltex Nigeria Plc early this year. She noted that it has now been able to achieve a major increase in its production capacity and prospective revenue from its expanded brands portfolio.

    Managing Director, Consolidated Breweries Plc, Boudewijn Haarsma, noted that though overall market growth had slowed down considerably in 2012, the company posted an increase in the sales of its core brands, driven by the continued strong performance of its ‘33’ Export brand.

    He however, pointed out that the group had to accept some volume losses of recently acquired brands when it combined them into one brand portfolio.

    “Overall, the company remained the clear leader in the ‘value segment’ of the Nigerian beer and non-alcoholic malt market, by offering high quality brands at affordable prices,” Haarsma said.

    He said 2012 marked a transformation of the company’s production base into a new and modern platform for future growth, adding that the company invested more in expanding and upgrading its production capacity than it had done in the previous five years combined.

    “The expansion programme continues in 2013 and is combined with training and development of our staff. The expanded capacity, and the need to remain cost-efficient in a more challenging operating environment, necessitated us recently to close the Agbara bottling plant. This led to the exit or early retirement of some of our staff. The company will continue to sell and produce the successful Maltex brand, making use of the now expanded capacities of its breweries,” Haarsma said.

    Following an interim dividend of 30 kobo per ordinary share of 50 kobo each paid late last year, a final dividend of 80 kobo per 50 kobo ordinary share was approved for payment to the shareholders.

    Consolidated Breweries grew its turnover by 20 per cent while profit after tax stood at N2.7 billion in 2012. The company achieved a revenue increase of 20 per cent from N27.9 billion in 2011 to N33.5 billion in 2012. The group’s revenue was N37.4 billion in 2012, which represented a 26 per cent increase from 2011 revenue of N29.7 billion. She added that 2012 profit after tax stood at N2.7 billion, which represented a 16 per cent decline from N3.3 billion recorded in 2011. The decline was largely due to tax back duties charged within the year.

  • Use experts in key posts, Sanusi tells banks

    Use experts in key posts, Sanusi tells banks

    Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Lamido Sanusi has advised banks to use only qualified and competent hands in key positions.

    Speaking at the annual risk management conference in Lagos, he said banks should start assessing their staff in key roles, especially risk managers, auditors, compliance officers, treasurers, chief finance officers and others in controlled functions in line with the CBN’s competency framework.

    The framework shows that the recent global financial crisis exposed the inadequacy of skills and the dearth of executive capacity in the banking industry.

    The skill gap, it explained, manifested in, among others, the lack of indepth knowledge of core banking functions and poor understanding of basic banking operations; poor understanding of banking regulations and poor risk management and corporate governance practices.

    Sanusi said the CBN would soon send out questionnaires to banks for information on their staff competency.

    He advised the banks to begin to think of hiring new managers should the current ones fall below the CBN requirement. The CBN boss said this has become exigent following the regulator’s commitment to sustain the stability of Nigeria financial system.

    He said there is need to assess skills, qualifications, experience and competencies of staff currently occupying controlled functions in banks. This, in essence, implies that continuous strengthening of intellectual resources and capabilities must be undertaken to create a pool of talented and high calibre professionals in the banking industry.

    In a circular tagged: “Assessment of competencies in the Nigerian banking industry” signed by Y.B Duniya for Director, Financial Policy and Regulation, the CBN said the exercise would enable the Bankers’ Committee identify at the preliminary stages, gaps that would impede the effective implementation of the Competency Framework for the banking industry being appraised by the apex bank.

    It said the list of controlled functions was not exhaustive as other important roles and responsibilities may be added.

    The framework is expected to address the competency challenges in the industry, explore growth opportunities and facilitate improvement in the quality of human capital.

    “Under the framework, successful banks will be those that distinguish themselves by according high priority to continuous enhancement of human capital and lifelong learning,” the apex bank had said.

    The apex bank also said it will maintain a central database for approved persons. Banks are expected to update the database with details of approved persons and access it as part of their due diligence before the appointment of such persons.

    The framework leverages on the practices in other jurisdictions, such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Dubai, which provide a useful guide and template for the banking industry.

     

  • World Bank agency pledges support for SMEs’ lending

    World Bank agency pledges support for SMEs’ lending

    The International Finance Corporation (IFC), an agency of the World Bank, is assisting local banks to boost lending to Small and Medium Scale Enterprise (SMEs) in the country.

    Speaking at the SME Toolkit Global Partner conference in Lagos, IFC, Nigeria Country Manager, Solomon Quaynor, said the corporation found that banks do not want the high risk transactions associated with lending to SMEs.

    Quaynor said the SME Toolkit would enable the entrepreneurs to manage their businesses.

    IFC, he said, stepped in to de-risk such loans by providing financial infrastructure and developing collateral registry that will assist banks in lending to the subsector.

    ”We are working on getting the SMEs to use toolkit, so that banks can be more comfortable lending to the subsector. Our focus is not about giving money to the banks to lend to SMEs. It is about building their confidence in the SMEs so that the subsector can easily obtain loans from lenders,” he said.

    He said the corporation spends a lot of time training the banks to understand SMEs by designing products for the subsector among other things. It is not about the money we are providing for banks, but that we are getting them to be more careful in lending to SMEs.

    He said the corporation is investing in broadband services to ensure that the right communication platform needed to reach more entrepreneurs across the country is made available.

    General Manager, IBM Africa, Taiwo Otiti, said the SMEs tools help entrepreneurs manage their businesses properly, and in the process, making it attractive for banks to grant them loans.

    “The SMEs Toolkit will help entrepreneurs input their financials, making it easier for banks to understand and take lending decisions on their account positions,” he said.

    He said SMEs remain engine of growth for the economy, adding that they are the largest employer of labour within the economy. He said when the SMEs businesses are run well, they will have the capacity to employ more people.

    “Part of the SMEs teaching is how to package their businesses to attract banks’ lending. Also note that there are several types of banking in the country,” he said.

     

  • Africa records $66.3b insurance premium income

    African Insurance Organisation (AIO), the umbrella body for insurance organisations in the continent, has said the insurance market raked in premium income worth about $66.30billion in the 2011.

    President of the association, Mr. Hassan El Sayeed, who made this known while addressing participants at the ongoing 40th AIO Conference and General Assembly in Cairo, said the figure translates to 1.66 per cent of insurance premium raked in by operators in the world in the same year.

    The conference, which brought together insurance practitioners from Africa, Australia, Europe, Middle East and Asia countries, has theme as, “The role of the African insurance industry to support the economic development of African countries”,

    He said the $66.30billion recorded in the year under review was against the N4.03 trillion raked in by the global market the previous year.

    He also said out of the continental insurance premium figure, $21.7billion was on non-life insurance business, which translates to 32.68 per cent of the total premium raked in by the market in the previous year.

    Chairman of the Organising Committee of the conference, Mr Abdel Raouf Kotb, noted that Africa is the continent of the future, adding that the future is looking up to it.

    According to him, Africa is becoming the continent of the future and the world is following and participating in its development and many have identified it as the main source of future growth, opportunities and profitability.

    “The African economic boom is set to go from strength to strength with the continent outpacing the global average Gross Domestic Growth (GDP). The main challenge is to ensure that this growth reflects on the average citizens and that the riches of our countries have the direct effect of alleviating, more Africans out of poverty and tackling inequality,” Kotb said.

    He added that the continent should be optimistic, warning: “Let us not underestimate the challenges before us. Our continent continues to depend on external demand making us susceptible to global economic slowdowns, particularly in China and the Eurozone.”

    He added: “Africa faces many domestic risks, such as youth unemployment, political upheavals, low insurance penetration and severe weather just to mention a few. The insurance and reinsurance industry has a pivotal role to play to ensure that these risks are properly identified and managed in order to ensure the sustainable development of our countries,” he said.

  • Visa backs cash-less policy

    Visa backs cash-less policy

    Visa, a global electronic payments company, has called for an improved use of e-payment productsby entrepreneurs within and outside the country.

    Speaking at the BT Africa West Africa Expo and Conference in Lagos, Country Manager for Visa West Africa, Ade Ashaye, said the firm was committed to helping the country achieve its cash-less banking initiative. “Visa is committed to helping move Nigeria to a cash-less economy and share some of the benefits of secure electronic payments within the industry.”

    The conference was hosted in association with Future Group’s Business Traveller Africa.

    He said Nigeria is growing as a destination for both leisure and business travel, adding that rise in spending is a credit to the efforts of those promoting Nigeria as a tourist destination.

    According to VisaVue Travel data, Nigeria’s top three source markets of spend on Visa cards were the United Kingdom, United States and South Africa. Visa cardholders from these three markets account for 60.1 per cent of total spending by international Visa cardholders in Nigeria.

    ”What was great to see was the various players in West African business travel coming together under one roof, debating the issues, looking for solutions and engaging with existing and potential clients,” said Dylan Rogers, of Business Traveler Africa.

     

  • Stanbic IBTC promotes early savings

    Stanbic IBTC promotes early savings

    Stanbic IBTC Holdings commemorated the Children’s Day by deploying its senior personnel in some schools in Lagos to teach pupils the value of financial planning and savings.

    In a statement, the bank said its objective was to assist the gain knowledge skills and confidence that would enable them to make responsible financial decisions on how to start saving money for future needs.

    sAmong issues discussed during the sessions were developing educational savings plans, budgeting, keeping money safe, and application of mobile money solutions.

    The bank said the initiative, which is an integral part of the group’s corporate social investment goals, is focused on helping the students embrace financial planning and a savings culture.

    Participating schools where the volunteers taught were Corona School Gbagada, Methodist Girls High school, Yaba, Lagos Progressive Schools, Surulere, Kings College, Lagos, Corona School Ikoyi and Corona School, Victoria Island.