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Tag: Access Bank

  • Access Bank supports women-led businesses

    Group Managing Director/CEO Access Bank Plc, Herbert Wigwe has said the bank willalways support woem-led businesses.

    The bank chief said lending to women presents little or no risks to his bank as they have over the years paid back their loans without defaulting.

    He spoke yesterday during a Power Breakfast Meeting with Herbert– organised by the bank at its head office in Lagos.

    The bank chief said the lender has not recorded any bad loan from several loans it granted to women-owned businesses in recent time adding that the bank started the ‘W’ Initiative to empower women and women-owned businesses.

    He said: “When women are involved, things get better. The ‘W’ Initiative is to empower and inspire women. We do not even have one per cent bad loans for supporting women. We are committed to ensuring that women succeed in their businesses”. He said the meeting was to enable the lender listen to the women and identify their business needs in order to meet them.

    The bank CEO also used opportunity of the gathering to discuss financial literacy for women, trainings and workshops for start-ups, business succession plan and business sustainability. He said: “Allow your children to pursue their passion. There is no guaranty that your children will be interested in your line of business. All you need is to train them to succeed in their areas of passion”.

    Also speaking, Access Bank Group Head, Retail Banking, Opeyemi Wemi-Jones, said the bank’s ‘W’ Initiative has been a huge success and will continue to guide women to success in their fields of endeavours.

    Continuing, she said: “We are the bank for women. We are going to create tomorrow together. We are into offshore investment services, private banking offerings. Our Evergreen Account waves all charges in the personal account of women from 60 years old and above. But if the account holder borrows, she will also pay charges on the loan”.

    She said ‘W’ Initiative has helped many women build businesses and planned their business succession scheme to enable them hand over their businesses to the next generation.

    She said: “We are also introducing more women to private banking. Our card services can also allow you attach your card to your children studying abroad. Our Family Fortune Promo has also helped many families own their homes and cars among other winnings”.

    Wemi-Jones said the ‘W’ Initiative was part of the bank’s efforts to offer women exclusive access to a wide range of lifestyle-oriented value added benefits and privileges.

     

     

  • Access Bank sees inflation dip to 12.56%

    The Economic Intelligence Group of Access Bank says it sees inflation rate (year-on-year) in April to sustain the downward trend started last year, easing to 12.56 per cent compared to 13.34 per cent in March.

    The lender said though the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is scheduled to release the inflation figure for April 2018 on Sunday based on the Data Release Calendar available on its website, its methodology adopts an autoregressive analysis of past prices, while recognising all the assumptions used by the NBS in its computation of monthly composite consumer price index (CCPI).

    “Looking in more detail at the drivers, our analysis indicates that the slower inflation rate in April reflects a moderation in food prices and continued stability in the currency.

    “Food inflation, which makes up 51.8 per cent of the CPI basket continued its descent in April. Based on our survey, this mainly reflected declines in prices for staples such as yam and Irish potato which continue to benefit from robust supplies to the market from barns across the country as well relatively stable transport costs in the month. Processed foods such as pasta and milk also nudged slightly lower, enjoying support from stable transport prices,” the lender said in an emailed report.

    It explained that April’s easing of price pressures also reflects stability in the core index which excludes farm products and energy prices, owing to improved forex liquidity and sustained CBN interventions. At the parallel market, the naira closed at N362/$ in the parallel market on April 30th same as a month earlier

    Treasury bill yields are likely to contract further, as market players react to declining inflation. The yields on the three- and six-month treasury bills settled at 10.72 per cent and 11.02 per cent respectively on April 30th, compared with 14.43 per cent and 14.97 per cent in that order on March 29th.

    The lender said while continued slowdown in the price pressures supports the case for less restrictive monetary policy, we believe the monetary regulator may likely wait to see inflation trend below 12 per cent before commencing easing.

  • Access Bank backs 500 women SMEs

    Access Bank’s W Academy, in partnership with the Enterprise Development Centre (EDC) of the Lagos Business School (LBS), has organised a professional business capacity-building workshop for 500 female entrepreneurs in Port-Harcourt, Abuja and Lagos.

    The events held across the three states in the last four months and served as the third, fourth and fifth editions of the second season of the bank’s Women entrepreneur Business Workshop training.

    Speaking on the initiative, the bank’s Group Head, Product Sales, Ope Wemi-Jones said: “Since 2006, the Bank has maintained its commitment to drive women’s economic empowerment in the nation. The Womenpreneur Business Workshop is intended to educate and enlighten Nigerian women on the fundamentals in business, which will eventually help them attain their full potential.”

    The Womenpreneur Business Workshop, a flagship training of the W Academy under Access Bank’s W Initiative, is designed to address the lack of access to entrepreneurial skills, finance, networking, and management skills; which are the key barriers to women’s economic inclusion.

    Its objective is to provide a discounted and practical capacity building programme that exposes female business owners to the nation’s economic reality as well as help them simplify processes and hone the requisite skills needed to grow their businesses.

    So far, over 2,300 business women in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Ibadan, Abuja, Kaduna and Enugu have benefitted from the workshop with testimonials around increasing their business network, improving their business model and are thriving through the economic constraints with ease.

    This first of its kind workshop is highly discounted and targeted at small and medium scaled women entrepreneurs. Wemi-Jones disclosed that plans have been concluded to hold the next editions of the workshop in Kano and Ibadan in July and August respectively.

     

     

  • Access Bank PayDay Loan offers quick cash

    Access Bank PayDay Loan/Salary Advance Scheme is making credit available to borrowers fast,  without stress and collateral.

    Launched last October in collaboration with Remita, the product was created to make loans available to salary earners irrespective of what bank their salary account is domiciled. Such offerings are intended to enable the customers meet their financial obligations especially in difficult times.

    For instance, a study released by Stutern showed that the average Nigerian graduate earns less than N50,000 as the first salary. Another research by Salary Survey disclosed that the average Nigerian salary is N658,324 annually – basically N54, each month. Many eagerly await their paydays, especially when it is important to access quick cash.

    Besides, business owners also breach contracts with their employees by delaying the payment of salaries while expecting them to continue performing optimally at their jobs. This, unfortunately, leads to work-life imbalance that affects delivery and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

    While it can be agreed that salary workers in Nigeria do not earn enough, every person hopes to address personal financial issues timely and appropriately with as little hassle as possible.

    Access Bank’s Executive Director, Personal Banking, Victor Etuokwu, said, “This offering is unique given that the beneficiaries do not have to be existing customers of Access Bank but hardworking salary earners who now have the opportunity to obtain instant loans without a guarantor or stress.”

    “With USSD code *901*11#, Access Bank will approve the application for the PayDay Loan almost instantly when you provide the necessary information. The application process is simple and quick. Loan applicants can get up to 75 per cent of their monthly salary in less than five minutes”.

    All the processes involved when applying for the Access Bank PayDay Loan can be performed right from a telephone device, with a tenor of 31 days or when the next salary is paid. This allows for as much flexibility as possible.

  • Access Bank grosses N137.5b in three months

    Access Bank Plc grew its top-line by 19 per cent to N137.5 billion in the first three months of this year as the commercial bank continued the implementation of a new five-year plan aimed at making it Africa’s gateway to the world by 2022.

    Key extracts of the interim report and accounts for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018 showed that gross earnings rose by 19 per cent to N137.5 billion compared with N116 billion recorded in first quarter last year. Interest income and non-interest income contributed 70 per cent and 30 per cent respectively to the top-line in first quarter 2018. The report showed a steady bottom-line performance. Pre and post tax profits stood at N27.44 billion and N22.12 billion respectively in first quarter 2018 compared with N27.6 billion and N22.41 billion posted respectively in corresponding period of last year. Earnings per share stood at 77 kobo in 2018 as against 79 kobo in 2017.

    Access Bank’s balance sheet remained strong with a seven per cent growth in total assets to N4.38 trillion by March 2018 as against N4.10 trillion recorded at the beginning of this year. Group capital adequacy ratio (CAR) and Liquidity Ratio (LR) stood at 19.3 per cent and 41.3 per cent, exceeding the minimum regulatory requirement.

    The bank’s Group Managing Director, Mr. Herbert Wigwe said the gross earnings of N137 billion and profit after tax of N22 billion in first quarter 2018 underscored the resilience of the bank and its ability to deliver sustainable earnings.

    “We have begun the implementation of key elements of our strategy and I am excited at the prospects in the coming months. A vital part of this is the continued execution of our retail market penetration initiatives, as it remains a strong catalyst to the sustainability of non-funded income growth. In addition, we remain focused on consolidating our market position in the corporate and commercial banking segment,” Wigwe said.

    He outlined that the bank’s priority for the rest of the year will be to focus on its retail offerings as it continues to see the benefits of the initiatives intensify over the next few months.

    Access Bank had last week distributed N18.8 billion as cash dividend for the 2017 business year. Shareholders received a final dividend of 40 kobo, in addition to interim dividend of 25 kobo, bringing the total dividend per share for 2017 to 65 kobo.

  • Shareholders approve N459b capital raising for Access Bank

    Shareholders of Access Bank Plc yesterday authorised the board of directors of the bank to raise up to $1.5 billion or N459 billion in new debt issue. Shareholders passed a resolution increasing the size of the bank’s existing $1 billion debt issuance programme to $1.5 billion by the addition of $500 million.

    The debt issuance programme will enable Access Bank to raise capital through the issuance of non-convertible loans, notes, bonds and any other instruments whether by wa of public offering, private placement, book building process reverse call inquiry or any other method or combination of methods.

    At the annual general meeting in Lagos, shareholders authorised the board of the commercial bank to decide the details of any issue and take all necessary actions necessary in the process of the capital raising.

    Chairman, Access Bank Plc, Mrs Mosun Belo-Olusoga, said the increase in the size of the prospective issuance to $1.5 billion demonstrated the commitment of the directors of the bank to strengthening its funding, capital base and profitability through a robust capital structure.

    According to her, the proactive issuance programme is underscored by the growing scale of regulatory headwinds and economic realities which have put demands on liquidity and capital.

    She said the board deems it necessary to further bolster the bank’s capital and funding base through the issuance of debt securities through any instrument considered appropriate for the bank to meet its growth objectives.

    She noted the successful implementation of the bank’s five year strategic growth plan of 2013 to 2017 and the launch of a new five-year plan aimed at making the bank to become Africa’s gateway to the world by 2022.

    “As we move on to the next phase of our growth story, the board is positive that we will achieve our growth aspirations through a sustained and sharp focus on our strategic priorities. Operating efficiency will remain at the heart of our decisions and we will continue to focus on effective execution of our strategy and on delivering value to shareholders,” Belo-Olusoga said.

    Shareholders who spoke at the meeting commended the bank’s consistent dividend payment policy. Shareholders also applauded the bank for surpassing N4 trillion balance sheet size. Shareholders also approved the payment of N18.8 billion as cash dividend for the 2017 business year. Shareholders will receive a final dividend of 40 kobo, in addition to interim dividend of 25 kobo, bringing the total dividend per share for 2017 to 65 kobo.

    Representatives of shareholders’ groups that spoke at the meeting included Mr. Adebayo Adeleke of Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Mrs Bisi Bakare, President of the Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria and Alhaji Muktar Muktar, President, Trusted Shareholders’ Association of Nigeria (TSAN).

    Group Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Mr. Herbert Wigwe said the bank recorded well-rounded performance in 2017 with improvements in all key performance indices such as earnings per share, cost of risk and capital adequacy ratio, which are the major ratios financial institutions are measured by.

    “Looking at the top-line of major banks, we are doing well. The new phase of our five-year corporate strategic plan will extensively cover what we could not achieve in the previous phase. We shall continue to invest in staff trainings in order to ensure our staff remain one of the best amongst their colleagues in the industry. As a customer friendly institution we have set-up an Interactive Voice Response (IVR) centre and ombudsman complaints Call Centre to tackle issues from customers,” Wigwe said.

    Key extracts of the audited report and accounts of Access Bank for the year ended December 31, 2017 showed that gross earnings grew by 20 per cent to N459.08 billion in 2017 as against N381.32 billion recorded in 2016. Group’s operating income rose to N302.6 billion in 2017 as against N272.6 billion in 2016.

    However, the bank’s bottom-line contracted as pre-tax profit dropped by 11 per cent from N90.34 billion in 2016 to N80.07 billion in 2017. After taxes, net profit declined from N71.44 billion to N61.99 billion. With these, earnings per share dropped simultaneously from N2.50 in 2016 to N2.18 in 2017.

    Wigwe said the bank’s operating performance in 2017 was impacted by the residual effects of macro-economic conditions of 2016, noting that the bank’s fundamentals remain strong and the group remains poised for sustainable growth in the coming periods.

  • WMD 2018: CAMA, Access Bank hold forum on eradicating malaria

    Corporate Alliance on Malaria in Africa, CAMA, in partnership with Access Bank Plc and other Corporate Society Organisations (CSOs) will on April 26th, hold a Malaria Forum in Lagos tagged; “Accelerating Investment to Bring Malaria to Zero”.
    The forum which seeks to bring together group of business executives, corporate health managers, technical experts, government officials, program implementers and global health community to discuss strategies to accelerate investment to bring malaria to Zero in Nigeria and Africa will take place at Access Bank Office in Victoria Island, Lagos.
    The gathering aims to showcase the impact of malaria investment by the private sector on key indicators such as key achievements and innovations.

    It will also highlight the challenges and opportunities facing malaria elimination in the country, exchange knowledge on best practices for workplace malaria programs and feature partnership opportunities for malaria elimination in Nigeria.
    According to the Director of the Global Malaria Programme at WHO, Dr Pedro Alonso, “if we are to get the global malaria response back on track, supporting the most heavily affected countries in the African Region must be the primary focus.”
    “The 2017 World Malaria Report, has also disclosed that progress made in global malaria control is stalling, and risks going backwards without urgent action. Meeting global malaria targets and the aspirations of Nigeria’s national malaria strategic plan will only be possible through greater investment and expanded coverage of core tools to prevent, diagnose and treat malaria.
    Head, Sustainability Access Bank PLC, Omobolanle Victor-Laniyan said that Investment on Malaria will yield huge returns through increased economic productivity , number of hours in school and lives saved.
    “It makes business sense to mobilise resources and competence to end malaria in Africa.”
    “World Malaria Day, held annually on April 25th, is an opportunity to highlight advances in malaria prevention and control and to commit to continued action to accelerate progress against this deadly disease.
    “This year’s theme –Ready To Beat Malaria– marks the importance of collective responsibility and commitment of the global malaria community in bringing together people on working towards a world free of malaria. The theme also puts the exemplary progress achieved in tackling malaria under the spotlight. It also puts focus on disturbing trends captured in World Malaria Report in 2017.
    Speakers at the event will include Minister of State for Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, Commissioner for Health Lagos State, Dr. Olajide Idris and GBCHealth President, Nancy Wildfier-Field with a video message from Christoph Benn, Head of External Relations for the Global Fund and a host of private sector leaders; as well as representatives from ExxonMobil, Chevron, Nigeria Institute of Medical Research, Access Bank, Private Sector Health Alliance, Nigerian Breweries and Dangote Foundation.
    During the meeting, CAMA an alliance of global companies from a variety of sectors who are committed to the global malaria fight will launch a case study report on best in class malaria programs.
    The report includes the first-ever mapping of private sector malaria investments in Nigeria and offers suggestions for creating additional impact as the country moves toward malaria elimination amongst others.
    The Corporate Alliance on Malaria in Africa (CAMA) is a GBCHealth-led initiative to drive partnerships for malaria control and elimination.
    GBCHealth in the same vein, serves as a hub for business engagement on the world’s most pressing global health issues. Since 2001 GBCHealth have helped hundreds of companies develop and implement their own global health programs, brokered countless global and local public-private partnerships and effectively driven business advocacy nationally and globally in service of public health.

  • Access Bank Lagos City Marathon unveils RevolutionPlus

    Organisers of the Lagos City Marathon, Nilayo Sports have unveiled another sponsor for the annual event.

    It’s RevolutionPlus.

    The deal, which was signed yesterday at the headquarters of RevolutionPlus Property Development Company, is worth N500 million for five years.

    Managing Director of RevolutionPlus Bamidele Onalaja said his company was happy to identify with one of the best one-day event in Africa.

    He stated that the company would have been involved in the third edition of the marathon, which took place in February, but the deal could not be concluded before the race.

    Onalaja said  the sponsorship  forms part of his company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), while noting that sports promotes good health, which is in line with his company’s policy of promoting sound health at the work place. He also said the race would give RevolutionPlus the needed publicity to reach out to its client.

    “We are happy to be part of this yearly event. I thank the organisers for agreeing to bring us in and I can assure everyone including the runners that the next edition will be colourful,” Onalaja, who described himself as a lover of football and athletics, added

    Executive Director Tolulope Onalaja, who was instrumental to the deal, said she was convinced about the viability of sponsoring the marathon after watching the last edition from close quarters.

    She said the excellent organisation of the race, which also saw disabled athletes participating, persuaded her to convince the company to sign the agreement with the organisers.

    Chief Executive officer of Nilayo Sports, Bukola Olopade said the partnership has  enhanced the status of the marathon. He praised  RevolutionPlus for backing the event.  Olopade also said the next edition would be better than previous one.

    General Manager of the race, Yusuf Ali said bringing in high level athletes have made the marathon the best one-day sport event in Africa. He also expressed hope that the sponsorship would grow as the event.

  • UBA, Access Bank, 2 others scale up to NSE’s premium board

    United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Access Bank Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc and Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc were yesterday scaled up from the main board of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to the elite premium board.

    The migration of the four companies brought the number of companies on the premium board to seven including Dangote Cement, FBN Holdings and Zenith Bank International. The migration followed the attainment of key indices for the premium board by the companies including corporate governance, size and liquidity.

    The premium board was designed as a market for the most capitalised stocks with the best corporate governance and liquidity. The premium board was meant to showcase Nigeria’s best stocks to the global market.

    The Exchange had indicated that the premium board is aimed at providing a platform for greater global visibility for eligible Nigerian entities, which will make it easier for them to attract global capital flows and reduce the cost of borrowing.

    The criteria for the premium board include that companies to be listed on the board must have market capitalisation of not less than $1 billion or about N157 billion.

    Also, premium board’s companies must also score at least 70 per cent on the Exchange and the Convention for Business Integrity’s Corporate Governance Rating System (CGRS). Besides, the companies must have a minimum free float of 20 per cent or value of shares floated must be equal to or above $1 billion and the number of shares representing its issued share capital must be equal to or above 10 billion units.

    The companies are expected to meet stringent corporate governance, capitalisation and liquidity conditions.

    To remain on the premium board, a company’s continued eligibility shall be evaluated by the Exchange annually in line with all the outlined criteria or on the basis of additional requirements which may from time to time be prescribed by the Exchange, provided that each company shall comply with all other continuing listing obligations as specified under the listings rules of the Exchange.

    UBA, with a market capitalisation of N374.48 billion, had earlier passed the CGRS benchmark. Lafarge Africa, Seplat and Access Bank had market capitalisation of N391.37 billion, N378.60 billion and N347.12 billion respectively.

    Speaking at migration ceremony at the NSE yesterday in Lagos, Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka said the migration of UBA to the premium board of the Exchange evoked the leading roles of the bank as the pioneer of Initial Public Offering (IPO) in the Nigerian banking sector, following its listing on the NSE in 1970.

    According to him, the migration of the bank is a further attestation of its size and the liquidity of the stock on the Exchange.

    “It is also reinforcing of our continuously evolving sound corporate governance, which is a pre-requisite for companies to be listed on the premium board of the NSE. In expectation that this premium listing will further enhance the visibility of our stock on the Nigerian Bourse, we believe our decision to migrate UBA to this new board will deepen value creation for our shareholders,” Uzoka said.

    He reiterated the commitment of the bank to sustainable and superior wealth creation for all shareholders, noting that the bank places utmost importance on value creation for all its investors.

    In his remarks, Chairman, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr. Tony Elumelu described the migration as a well-deserving recognition of the size, liquidity and sound corporate governance of the UBA Group.

    He commended the management of the Exchange for creating the premium board noting that the board should provide relevant visibility for prime stocks listed on the Exchange while helping discerning investors in their stock selection and broader investment decision process.

    “I expect stocks listed on the premium board to attract the justified premium valuation, which they truly deserve, as large-cap companies with proven record of sound corporate governance and stock liquidity. I would expect the NSE or any of the major brokerage houses to develop an index around the premium board, as this my further deepen the market and create the much-needed products and liquidity for the Nigerian equity market,” Elumelu said.

    Group Managing Director, Access Bank Plc, Mr. Herbert Wigwe said the bank has always placed premium on sound corporate governance in line with its vision of being the leading African bank.

    “Access Bank is pleased to have attained this status. We have always adhered to international corporate governance best practices, which is line with our aspiration to become Africa’s gateway to the World,” Wigwe said.

    Managing Director, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Mr. Austin Avuru, said the migration of the company to the premium board four years after it was listed on both the London Stock Exchange and NSE in 2014 confirmed the adherence of the company to international best practices.

    “Seplat has always adhered to international corporate governance best practices in every area of our operations,” Avuru said.

    Managing Director, Lafarge Africa Plc, Mr. Michel Puchercos, said the cement company as a member of the world’s largest building material multinational, LafargeHolcim, strives to be a role model in every country of operations.

    Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Oscar Onyema, said the migrated companies have fulfilled all the stringent listing requirements for the premium board.

    “It is a platform for showcasing sector leaders, with sound corporate governance. Premium board features companies that adhere to international best practices on corporate governance and meet the Exchange’s highest standards of capitalisation and liquidity,” Onyema said.

    According to him, companies on the board are well-run corporates with sound governance, which have strong visibility on the Exchange and are expected to further appeal to investors, seeking to invest in companies with the highest standards of corporate governance.

  • Toyota rewards FirstBank, Access Bank, CCECC, others

    FirstBank of Nigeria Limited, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC), Access Bank Plc and others have emerged winners of Toyota Nigeria Limited (TNL) Customers of the Year Awards.

    TNL rewarded them in Lagos for their high purchase and support of  Toyota models.

    FirstBank emerged the Evergreen Customer of the Year, in addition to winning the second runner-up prize for the Customer of the Year Award. The Evergreen Award is the ultimate prize for a customer that has consistently patronised the Toyota products over the years.

    The CCECC and Access Bank named the winner and first runner up in the Customer of the Year category were rewarded by the TNL.

    TNL Chairman Chief Michael Ade-Ojo said the company remained indebted to them for the success of the brand in the country.

    He said the Toyota brand remained number one automobile in Nigeria because of its quality, which the customers continued patronage had attested to.

    TNL, he said, owes it a duty to continue to satisfy them.

    Ade-Ojo, who hinted about his retirement at 80 in June, said: “I do not have any fear that our customers will suffer. You’re not going to suffer. Kunle (his son/TNL Managing Director) is there for you when daddy retires. It’s not that I’m saying bye for now. But I’m warning you that things are changing. I might not be able to continue to do this (functioning as the company’s chairman) for long.”

    Kunle Ade-Ojo said: “The loyalty of our customers through thick and thin is an eloquent testimony of their love for the Toyota brand and, of course, for us as a company. We cherish our relationship with our customers. This relationship has stood the test of time and has endured over the years. Our customers have demonstrated on several occasions that they are not only ardent lovers and patrons of the Toyota brand but passionate advocates as well. The least we could do therefore is to set aside a day like this to celebrate them and showcase our token of appreciation.”