The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Ecobank

  • EFCC charges banker with defrauding general

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday arraigned an Ecobank employee, Anieka Udoh, for alleged fraud.

    The commission said he fraudulently converted $60,000 and N9.2million belonging to a customer, Major-General Umaru Mohammed.

    The bank is named as a defendant in the charge before Justice Saliu Saidu of the Federal High Court in Lagos.

    The judge ordered Udoh’s remand in prison after he pleaded not guilty to a five-count charge.

    EFCC said the defendants allegedly committed the offence in 2016.

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    The commission said they failed to exercise due diligence in relation to the conduct of financial transactions with General Umaru’s Ecobank MasterCard.

    EFCC said on or about January 28, 2016, a transaction occurred “in the name of Mohammed Umaru without the knowledge and authority of the customer, Mohammed Umaru”.

    The anti-graft agency said the complainant lost $60,000 and N9.5million from the unauthorised transaction.

    EFCC accused the defendants of fraudulently converting the money.

    The alleged offence contravenes Section 7(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud Act, said the prosecution.

    Justice Saidu adjourned until March 12 for hearing of Udoh’s bail application.

  • Alleged N411m Fraud: Court remands bank manager in prison

    A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the remand of a former manager of Ecobank, Ifeanyi Chukwu for allegedly defrauding the bank’s customers of N411million.

    Azike, who was handed over to the police by the investigative unit of the bank was arraigned before Justice Ayotunde Faji on Thursday, by the Special Fraud Unit (SFU) of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

    He is facing a three-count charge bordering on obtaining money under false pretence, false representation and fraud.

    In a charge marked, FHC/L/56c/2019, the police alleged that between 2016 and 2017, Azike fraudulently obtained N150 million from a customer of Ecobank Nigeria under false pretence of buying him Federal Government Treasury Bill in his bank.

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    Azike was also alleged to have forged the bank customer’s signature, picture and letter of Instruction which he used in opening another parallel account as Ikenna Okafor Kelvin with account number: 5333063028.

    He was also alleged to have, without the consent of the bank, fraudulently converted the sum of N411 million belonging to the bank to his personal use.

    The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

    Following his plea, police prosecutor, ASP Daniel Apochi urged the court to remand him in prison pending trial.

    Justice Faji granted his request and ordered that the defendant be remanded in prison till of March 8, 2019 when his bail application would be heard.

  • Ecobank deploys digital services to mark Valentine’s Day

    Ecobank Nigeria has stated that its innovative digital products are available to make this Valentine season an exciting one for its customers.  The bank’s customers are being offered mouth-watering  deals and offers when they pay with EcobankPay at designated merchant locations in Aba, Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt .

    Executive Director, Commercial Banking, Carol Oyedeji, who stated this in Lagos, said the Valentine season is another opportunity to show love to customers  by rewarding their loyalty and enabling them achieve their valentine wishes. She said, “customers who use EcobankPay to make payment at selected outlets in Aba, Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt during this Valentine season will get exciting discounts thereby ensuring they get more value for their spend”

    Further, Mrs. Oyedeji said , “We have provided digital solutions to ensure this season of love is a memorable one for our customers. They can send money to their loved ones with Ecobank Mobile or our Internet banking platform, Ecobank Online. For those away from their loved ones, distance should not be a barrier as they can top up airtime to stay in touch simply by dialing *326*Amount#.

    Shopping can be done seamlessly with our debit cards. We have also extended our zero fees offer on the Rapidtransfer app till 31st March, 2019 to ensure that those living abroad are able to send money to their loved ones at home without hassles”.

    Mrs. Oyedeji used the opportunity to thank the bank’s customers for their loyalty to the Ecobank brand. “We are grateful to our customers and non-customers who depend on our platforms to achieve seamless banking transactions and wish everyone a happy valentine celebration”

     

     

     

  • Ecobank, Alaba maket traders partner

    The Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan, has committed to building a solid partnership with the business women and men in Alaba International Market, Lagos.

    In his congratulatory message to mark the market’s 40th anniversary, Akinwuntan noted that Ecobank will continue innovating more payment and financial solutions to best serve the traders.

    Akinwuntan disclosed that the bank has designated Alaba market as an EcobankPay zone, meaning patrons of the market, Ecobank and non-Ecobank Account holders, have more easy, secure and convenient ways to pay when they visit the market.

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    EcobankPay’s unique offering for traders and their customers is that anyone from any bank in Nigeria can pay with MasterPass, mVISA and mCASH with any phone by scanning QR code or using USSD.  Traders can now enjoy more possibilities to grow their business as they can also sell to customers with EcobankPay in 32 countries in Africa

    “We celebrate with our esteemed traders in Alaba on this occasion of their 40th anniversary.  We treasure our long-standing relationship and want to assure them that we will continue to work tirelessly to delight them with our service and grow with them.

     

  • Ecobank deploys digital assets to lift MSMEs

    Ecobank Nigeria is committed to using its digital platforms to transform  the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) value chain, the bank’s Managing Director, Patrick Akinwuntan, has said.

    According to the bank chief, the practice would engender more activities and overall growth of the economy. He said that was part of the overall strategy of the Ecobank Group to deploy its products with digital appeal to support business development. He listed some of these products to include Omnilite, EcobankPay and Xpresspoints – which is agency banking.

    “Omnilite is an Ecobank internet banking platform that allows entrepreneurs to perform transac-tions, payments over the Internet through the Bank’s secure website. With Omni Lite, customers have easy access to their accounts from anywhere in the world; Online real-time account monitoring facility; Convenience of conducting banking transactions from comfort of home/office; Secured online transactions; Easy Access to bank information and products; Effective, cheaper and easier way for our customers to communicate with the bank on a 24/7 basis,” he said.

    Akinwuntan, who also spoke on the need to support and grow the intellectual economy, pointed out that Nigeria is gradually becoming a major hub in Africa on intellectual economy with the influx of Fin-tech companies and social media channels.

    He noted that Ecobank is already partnering with them to offer banking services. “As you know if you look at the intellectual economy, Nigeria is becoming a major hub in Africa. We had Facebook come here to see what was going on, and a number of Fin-tech companies becoming major players globally, attracting investments for the big IT companies and startups. Ecobank is seeking to become the partner that provides the banking services for the intellectuals and the economic growth that they are fostering. We partner with Fin-techs, we do not compete with them, we understand that they have their value and we now have a digital platform that makes us the platform of choice and we have physical locations that guarantee distribution to the last mile”.

     

  • Ecobank, appoints MFS Africa Ltd as digital payment partner

    The customers of Ecobank, the Pan-African Banking Group in 33 African countries, can now transact with over 170 million mobile wallets across the continent.

    Ecobank announced the appointment of MFS Africa as Digital payment partner enabling cross-platform payment services for Ecobank account holders. The partnership allows Ecobank customers to send and receive money to and from over 170 million mobile money users through an integration with MFS Africa that covers all Telcos in the MFS Africa Hub. The service is both domestic and cross-border intra-Africa transfers leveraging Rapidtransfer, a proprietary instant remittance product of Ecobank.

    Ecobank operates in 33 African countries, serving over twenty million customers. In line with the bank’s digital strategy, the partnership with MFS Africa Hub creates the first major initiative of interoperability between bank account and mobile money customers. This brings greater value for mobile money customers as they can now send money directly to any bank account in Ecobank without infrastructural hinderances; conversely Ecobank customers can do the same.

    MFS Africa operates the largest mobile payments hub network in sub-Saharan Africa, connecting over 170 million mobile wallets, and a wide network of money transfer operators and merchants. Through partnerships with mobile network operators including MTN, Orange, Airtel, Moov, Econet, Tigo, Safaricom and Vodafone, MFS Africa allows mobile financial services to scale across borders, currencies and networks with a Pan African Bank like Ecobank.

  • Ecobank promotes 1,000 employees

    Ecobank Nigeria Limited has promoted 1,000 workers.

    It said the exercise was in line with its commitment to recognise and reward excellent performance of its staff. The promoted workers cut across all cadres.

    Its Managing Director, Patrick Akinwuntan, who announced the promotion in Lagos, stated that the bank is committed to rewarding excellence and will continue to take  positive actions in line with international best practice to sustain excellence in its work force.

    Akinwuntan emphasised that Ecobank would also continue to simplify its operations and enhance its systems to better serve customers to be ahead of the competition in the industry.

    He said: “Our focus on the customer, staff and digital platforms are key components of our strategy targeted at reinforcing our position as the leading pan-African bank.

    “We will continue to align our people composition, development, recognition and rewards to position us to embrace best practice service models and technologies to enable us deliver on improved customer experience.”

    Those promoted were selected through Ecobank Group’s standardised performance management system.

  • Yuletide: Ecobank suspends charges on Rapidtransfer app

    In the spirit of the season, Ecobank Nigeria has called on Nigerians in diaspora to embrace the benefits of Ecobank’s Rapidtransfer app when sending money to their loved ones this festive season.
    The service is open to Ecobank and non-Ecobank customers, the commercial bank said.
    Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria, Patrick Akinwuntan who made the call said the bank’s  Rapidtransfer app charges zero fees for all transfers done through the Rapidtransfer app up until  31st January, 2019.
    He explained that the Rapidtransfer removes all the bottlenecks, burden and inefficiencies usually associated with remittances. The app according to him provides simple and secure digital onboarding where users can choose how and when funds are delivered to the intended beneficiary, with transparent foreign exchange rates prior to each transaction.
    “I wish to encourage our brothers and sisters living abroad who wish to send money to their relatives this season to do so through our Rapidtransfer app. This is a game changer in the way Nigerians can send money to their loved ones. They do not have to physically visit an agent. Rapidtransfer removes all of these issues and its standout affordability as we do not charge any fee for now. I wish to encourage them to sign up on this app and enjoy our seamless and cheap remittance service,” he said.
    The Rapidtransfer app which can be downloaded from play store and app store is regarded as a game changer for remittances to Africa.
    Through the app users are able to Send money instantly to and across 33 African countries. For Nigerians in diaspora the app will enable them easily and instantly send money to any bank account in Nigeria; receivers also have the option of picking up cash at any Ecobank branch. The exchange rates are very attractive.
    The features of the app include easy navigation and multi-lingual capabilities. It is available in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese languages. Users can choose how and when funds are delivered to the intended beneficiary, with transparent foreign exchange rates prior to each transaction.

  • Ekiti lifts embargo on Ecobank, GTbank, Zenith Bank

    TWO years after Ekiti State stopped Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) from patronising Zenith Bank, GT Bank and Ecobank, the government has lifted the embargo.

    Governor Kayode Fayemi announced the lifting of the embargo placed on the three  banks by the administration of former Governor Ayodele Fayose.

    The Fayose-led administration in May 2016, placed a “non-patronage” ban on the three banks and forbade MDAs as well as workers from transacting business with them.

    But in a statement by his spokesman Olayinka Oyebode, the governor directed MDAs to resume transactions with the banks.

    Acting on the directive, the Office of the state’s Accountant-General has issued a memo to heads of MDAs to give effect to the governor’s directive lifting the ban.

    According to the statement, the embargo was lifted in a bid to rekindle and strengthen the relationship between the affected banks and the state government.

    The statement reads: “The government took the decision after a careful review of the developments that led to the purported embargo by the immediate past administration.

    “The Fayemi administration is committed to the infrastructural and industrial development of the state.

    “In achieving this, it will create a conducive atmosphere for business to thrive in the state by partnering with the private sector and encouraging private initiatives, among others.”

  • Ecobank upgrades banking application

    The Managing Director of Ecobank Nigeria,  Patrick Akinwuntan  has announced that the bank has upgraded its core banking application being part of the bank’s commitment to ensuring customers receive the best service possible.

    “Our upgraded system has superior functionalities which will help us deliver our brand promise as the Bank of choice for convenient, reliable and affordable services to our customers. The new platform also promises improved performance of our digital channels as well as top range security as you carry out your transactions,” Akinwuntan stated.

    He apologised to customers over disruptions that they experienced during the period of the upgrade. The bank CEO in a letter to the bank’s customers in Nigeria and made available to the media, expressed excitement for the support during the time of the upgrade.

    According to him, “during the period our Automated Teller Machines, cards, and mobile App were available for use, however, we experienced some post migration issues which affected transfers in and out of the bank and have now been mostly resolved. I apologise for any service hitches experienced during the upgrade and appreciate our customers’ commitment and partnership with Ecobank. We value their relationship greatly and are committed to ensuring they receive the best service possible”.

    He appealed to Ecobank customers to contact their dedicated relationship managers or call the bank’s contact centre, should they have any feedback, enquiries or insight they wish to share about their experience with the system upgrade.