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Tag: FirstBank

  • FirstBank’s payment card issuance hits 10m

    FirstBank’s payment card issuance hits 10m

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has been named the first financial institution in Nigeria and the West-Africa sub-region to issue 10 million cards to customers across the country. This makes FirstBank the second bank in Africa to achieve this feat.

    The groundbreaking accomplishment is reminiscent of a similar milestone achieved two years ago when the Bank in December, 2015 and May 2016, was named the first financial institution in the country to achieve sustained alternative channels transaction volumes of 100 million transactions in December 2015 and May 2016. FirstBank has sustained its edge in payment card issuance with its Instant issuance/Instant activation technology, which was pioneered about 7 years ago. This has also informed the Bank’s consistency in maintaining the highest active Card ratio in the industry.

    According to the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Adesola Adeduntan “delivering this feat is a testament to the Bank’s brand promise to put our customers first and continuously improve our business to serve them better”.

    “We can attest that our customers have become more technology savvy and we will continue to encourage this attitude with our commitment to world class service delivery”.

  • FirstBank marks Corporate Responsibility Week

    FirstBank marks Corporate Responsibility Week

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited(FirstBank) will, beginning from September 25, celebrate its Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (CR&S) initiatives. The celebration will end on September 29.

    The FirstBank CR&S Week themed “Promoting Kindness; Putting You First” will witness the consolidation of the bank’s interventions in social responsibility across communities in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria, and FirstBank subsidiaries in the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa.

    The programme is a reflection of the bank’s  brand promise to always put its customers first while it reinforces its role in driving sustainable development in the communities where it operates.

    The CR&S week is specially designed to reignite acts of kindness in our society, and the events are tailored towards re-orientating the society along the right values; encouraging the citizenry to intentionally create positive impact in their immediate environment.

    One of the major highlights of the week has been dubbed the Staff Promoting Acts of Random Kindness (SPARK) initiative.

    The week-long activities will see FirstBank’s employees give their time and resources to promote random acts of kindness within their communities, driving welfare through giving and visits to orphanage/less privileged homes and IDPs. The bank would also hold career counseling sessions with secondary school students across the regions which would have staff coordinate impactful sessions that will inculcate financial literacy and inclusion in young students.

    FirstBank’s CR&S Week is the first of its kind in the Financial Service industry in Nigeria and it would spotlight the Bank’s corporate citizenship interventions to drive positive impact across various communities all in one week.

    According to the bank’s Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, Folake Ani-Mumuney, the CRS week was mooted to stimulate a better society with random acts of kindness. “As an institution, we want to encourage the values of random kindness and we implore Nigerians and indeed everyone to go the extra mile to promote and celebrate kindness this week. Kindness does not have to be monetary but would always leave us with a better society we can all be proud of”, she enthused.

  • FirstBank initiates fundraising for Sierra Leone flood victims

    FirstBank initiates fundraising for Sierra Leone flood victims

    FirstBank has initiated a fund-raising drive among its members of staff as part of the FirstBank Employee Volunteering Scheme, set up to provide humanitarian services to the bank’s host communities, including victims of mudslides and floods that devastated parts of Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown.

    The efforts allowed staff members to collectively give succour and hope to the needy and the funds gathered would complement the bank’s corporate donation to the victims of the disaster.

    The bank has also implored its customers and  the public to join it in  providing succour to victims of this tragedy. Accordingly, a special donations account has been set up and members of staff, customers and  the public can pay directly into the account:  FBN CSR Donations — 2032381764.

    The bank, according to a release, has remained unwavering in its commitment to doing business responsibly with individuals and corporate citizens, which include positively impacting the lives of its stakeholders and empowering its host communities.

    The Managing Director/CEO, First Bank of Nigeria Limited and Subsidiaries, Adesola Adeduntan, said the  bank would continue to uphold the citizenship approach, which includes considering the needs of its stakeholders and working to meet those needs in line with its corporate responsibility and sustainability strategy.

    The bank and its subsidiaries have identified and empathised with the victims of the mudslides and floods that devastated parts of Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown. The feat is part of its commitment to drive the sustainable development of the communities in which it does business.

  • FirstBank unveils career growth plan for workers

    The Management of FirstBank of Nigeria Limited has unveiled new career employment models to accelerate career growth and development for its workers.

    The bank has begun an accelerated career Management programme; the FirstBank Management Associate Programme (FMAP), a 24-month fast track comprehensive developmental programme targeted at young, dynamic, self-motivated and highly driven individuals who possess the right skill set and excellent leadership potential among Junior and entry-level cadre staff.

    The programme is part of the bank’s efforts to continuously integrate leadership into the bank’s culture and build a pool  of talents and next generation leaders who will be groomed to steer the ship of the bank’s business expansion and continuous growth in Africa.

    The programme will afford successful candidates the opportunity to be moved to middle management upon the successful completion of the 24 months period and become Management Associates, irrespective of their grades at the point of entry. Cross country postings and secondment opportunities will be offered to such staff to provide them with global exposure and network.

    In the same vein, the bank has also kicked off the Senior Management Development Programme (SMDP); an intensive modular programme for a select group of senior to principal managers who are proven leaders in their respective functions and have been identified as central to the Bank’s succession plan. This will result in a unique learning experience that fosters the professional, intellectual and personal development of this crop of emerging leaders.

    At the end of the programme, top performing delegates will be exposed to various leadership developmental opportunities such as executive coaching by renowned career and life coaches, strategic and executive job shadowing and handholding by bank executives as well as prioritisation for international assignments.

  • FirstBank raises int’l card payments to $1,100

    FirstBank raises int’l card payments to $1,100

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has raised monthly limits on international transactions on Naira Cards to $1,100 across Automated Teller Machines (ATM), Point of Sale (PoS), and online channels, with the daily ATM withdrawals raised to $300.

    The gesture, the lender said, was in line with its drive to promote convenience and ease of business for customers. It said customers can now enjoy increased access to funds using the FirstBank Naira Master Cards, Naira Prepaid and Naira Credit Cards for International payments. However, customers in United Arab Emirates and China have a monthly limit of $250 for PoS and Online transactions.

    The new international spend limits is coming on the heels of increased availability of foreign exchange in the economy. Customers are encouraged to continue to leverage FirstBank’s dollar denominated credit and prepaid cards even they also enjoy the raised transaction value on the Naira Cards. FirstBank remains committed to meeting the banking and financing needs of its customers, providing world class services and expertise whilst ensuring the security of customer funds, the lender said.

    FirstBank is Nigeria’s largest financial services institution by total assets and gross earnings. With more than 12 million customer accounts, the lender has over 750 branches providing a comprehensive range of retail and corporate financial services.

    The bank has international presence through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (UK) Limited in London and Paris, FBNBank in the Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra-Leone and Senegal, as well as its Representative Offices in Johannesburg, Beijing and Abu Dhabi.

  • FirstBank takes financial literacy to Ebonyi

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has expanded its Financial Literacy programme to the eastern part of the country with the launch  its launch for Secondary Schools in Ebonyi State, under the auspices of the FirstBank FutureFirst Programme.

    The initiative launched in 2013 in partnership with Junior Achievement Nigeria and the Lagos State Empowerment & Resource Network (LEARN) is designed to empower students of secondary schools with requisite knowledge of financial literacy and career counseling. This is expected to equip them with knowledge of money management, early entrepreneurship skills, financial independence while stimulating the development of a savings culture at an early age.

    The FutureFirst Financial Literacy Programme is an ongoing corporate responsibility initiative of the lender  which aligns with the its Sustainable Finance objective, a key focus area of its corporate sustainability and responsibility strategy.

    The bank has recorded success in implementing the programme in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Abuja and saw workers volunteer their time and resources to teach students in over 80 secondary schools, impacting over 60,000 students and committing over 220,000 volunteering hours since the programme was launched.

    The Commissioner for Education; the Secretary to the State Government; Head of the State Board of Education; 30 principals of selected schools and staff of the bank were in attendance. Subsequently, FirstBank workers volunteers were trained by Junior Achievement Nigeria as part of the requisite train-the-trainers exercise and assigned to schools.

    School teachers in the state were also trained to ensure sustainability of the programme.

    Thirty schools are currently participating in the financial literacy exercise in Ebonyi State with more schools to follow.

    FirstBank’s Future First Financial Literacy Programme is in line with the CBN’s drive for financial inclusion which seeks to ensure financial inclusion for the unbanked having a strong bearing on financial stability, economic growth and development for the citizenry.

  • FirstBank appoints new ED

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has appointed Abdullahi Ibrahim as an Executive Director. Prior to this appointment, Abdullahi was the bank’s Group Executive, Retail Banking North.

    Ibrahim’s appointment is in line with the bank’s strong corporate governance credentials and best practice, ensuring that there is balance of knowledge, judgment and experience at the highest decision making organ of the bank. This corporate governance posture has won the bank much respect and recognition both locally and internationally.

    Ibrahim was appointed Group Executive, Retail Banking North in January 2016. He was previously Group Executive, Technology and Services overseeing the Bank’s Information Technology and Services Functions. He also served as Group Executive Retail banking North from December 2012 up until his appointment as Group Executive, Technology and Services. He was the pioneer Group Head, Manufacturing Group in the erstwhile Institutional Banking Group of the bank.

    He had served as Business Development Manager in the Bank with responsibilities across Consumer, Retail, Commercial and wholesale banking segments, as well as the Group Head, Multinationals in the erstwhile Corporate Banking Directorate. Abdullah’s banking experience spans over 25 years and cuts across investment, wholesale and commercial banking as well as banking operations. His proven ingenuity in these areas is brought to bear on the Bank’s Retail Banking services.

  • FirstBank’s outlook now stable, says S&P

    FirstBank’s outlook now stable, says S&P

    S&P Global Ratings has revised its outlook on First Bank of Limited to stable from negative. The agency affirmed the lender’s ‘B-/B’ long- and short-term counterparty credit ratings.

    “We have raised our long-term national scale rating on FirstBank to ngBB+’ from ‘ngBB’, while we have affirmed our short-term national scale rating at ‘ngB’. Furthermore, we took the same rating actions on FirstBank’s non-operating holding company (NOHC), FBN Holdings PLC (FBNH). The rating actions reflect our view that FirstBank’s regulatory capital has and the risk of breaching regulatory requirements has thus diminished. In addition, the bank’s funding and liquidity remain credit strength,” the agency said.

    Continuing, it said though asset quality remains a weakness, in its view, it is stabilising, thanks to the steadying of the oil price and new management’s efforts. “We expect FirstBank will continue to display weaker asset quality metrics and lower profitability than other rated top-tier banks in Nigeria in 2017 due to continuing high credit costs. That said, we believe that the bank’s new leadership team will address the legacy asset quality issues and institute more prudent risk management measures,” the agency said.

    It said the lender’s cost of risk jumped to 10.4 per cent at year-end 2016 from 5.7 per cent at year-end 2015, and  nonperforming loans (NPLs) increased to 24.4 per cent for the same period compared with 18.1 per cent the prior year.

    The performance of the bank’s portfolio stemmed from high concentration and foreign currency loans (51 per cent of total loans in 2016), particularly the oil and gas-related exposures. This performance and the huge impairments have prompted the bank to recruit a new Chief Risk Officer and launch a review of its risk management process to improve loans approvals, risk monitoring, and collection.

  • FirstBank: Why we launched new website

    FirstBank: Why we launched new website

    FirstBank Limited said it has launched a new and customer-friendly website to deepen digital banking and provide more information on its innovative digital products, services and initiatives.

    According to the lender, the new website is easy to navigate and equipped with tools to meet customers’ lifestyle needs

    The lender explained that in adopting global best practice, it has made the site responsive and adaptive to all devices; make the site available and accessible to the multiscreen user; create a user centered design (Improved usability and experience; and intelligent segmentation of a diverse audience (SME, affluent and youth).

    The lender added that it was motivated to unveil the website to engender consistent online brand identity using consistent design, look and feel throughout web, tablet and mobile, adding that it is fully compliant with current web standards and design trends.

    “Building online confidence and trust are at the heart of this innovation. We are determined to drive confidence in the brand and deliver an excellent user experience; integrate rich, fully functional widget, tools and calculators to engage users and enable customers get what they want with least efforts.

    “The tools include mortgage and loan calculators, currency converters as well as branch locators. There is improved aesthetics and user experience; it is simple, clear readable navigation; perfection in typography and imagery; aligning look and feel to FirstBank’s identity; consistency in brand alignment across multi-channels,” the lender added.

    On its key features, it explained that has increased usability and user experience embedded with a combination of photography and graphics to create depth that allows for immediate intuitive navigation. It also has big prompts to immediately involve user in process – for instance, call me button prompt on the mortgage calculator that facilitates direct engagement with the bank; contact us button on home page when accessed from mobile phones and others with rich features such as tools and calculators.

    On its adaptive and responsive features, it explained that its rich multiscreen user experiences makes browsing seamless from desktop to laptop, mobile, tablet and connected smart TV screens with rich and fully functional tools and calculators that are built for the mobile user.

    It also has geo location features connected to Google Maps to guide customers to the nearest FirstBank branch to their location.

    On its responsive touch screen features, the lender said it has intuitive tap, slide, drag, pinch, swipe features to adapt and respond to the tablet user taking advantage of richer features that come ready made with tablets devices, stressing that interface is extremely responsive and adaptive.

     

     

     

     

    With cybercrooks always on the prowl, the lender shared its anti-scam message to its numerous customers. “Do not fall victim to fraud: The official website address is www.firstbanknigeria.com; always look at the address bar of your browser to make sure you are on www.firstbanknigeria.com; to the left of the www.firstbanknigeria.com web address in your browser you should see a green padlock and the word ‘Secure’ next to it.

    “Please note that the bank will never ask you to click on links to update your banking details, complete or cancel a transaction. The bank will never ask you to reveal your online banking passwords(s), token number(s) and ATM PIN(s). If you receive any mail or phone call asking you for any of these information, note that it is fraudulent. Do not respond no matter the circumstance. You can report to abuse@firstbanknigeria.com,” the lender added.

  • FirstBank joins PCI SSC Board of Advisors

    FirstBank joins PCI SSC Board of Advisors

    First Bank of Nigeria Limited has reaffirmed its leadership position in corporate governance and risk management with its re-election into the Board of Advisors of the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) for the third consecutive time.

    The PCI SSC is an open, global forum for the development of payment card security standards. The PCI Security Standards Council works with organisations around the world to protect businesses and consumers against data theft by continuously developing new payment security standards, cyber security training courses, and certification programmes.

    Head of Information Security Operations at First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Lara Nwokedi, has been representing FirstBank on the Board of PCI SSC in the fight against payment fraud and data breaches globally. Nwokedi, a payment card industry professional, security lead auditor and implementer, has many years experience in information security and has led several initiatives in the bank.

    FirstBank has been the only African bank elected to the PCI SSC Board since its inception. The bank’s re-election into the board underpins its commitment to the protection of customer assets and information. According to the MD/CEO, First Bank of Nigeria Limited and Subsidiaries, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, “FirstBank has continued to maintain a safe and secure environment for customer transactions despite the challenges posed by rapid changes in technology and the operating environment. In recognition of the bank’s interventions in abating card data theft, the PCI Security Standards Council through an open and well contested electoral process re-elected FirstBank on its Board of Advisors, a feat which no African bank has achieved in the long history of the PCI SSC.”