High-flying institutions in Nigeria’s financial landscape at the weekend received awards for excellence.
Guaranty Trust Bank plc emerged “Bank of the year” at the alluring Annual Banking Award organised by BusinessDay Media.
Bisi Onasanya, chief executive officer, First Bank Nigeria Limited, for the second time won the “Bank CEO of the year” award at the event which held at the prestigious Civic Center, Victoria-Island, Lagos.
The BusinessDay Annual Banking Awards are meant to reward financial institutions and their officers who were outstanding in the preceding year.
First Bank and United Bank for Africa plc jointly won “best bank in retail banking”. Also, First Bank won “best bank in private banking” award, while Zenith Bank plc clinched the award for “best bank in manufacturing”. The bank’s strong commitment to the manufacturing sector earned it this award.
BusinessDay annual banking awards conference 2014 in Lagos at the weekend. Pic by Francis Abiagam
The award was in recognition that in spite of the delicate nature of most of the firms in the manufacturing sector which are often regarded as high risk, Zenith Bank remained committed to their financial needs throughout 2013.
This year’s event, which marks the second edition, proved better and bigger, with more categories added, specifically to take cognisance of other financial institutions that also contribute to the growth of the economy and more sophisticated selection criteria. Last year, there were eight categories, representing half of this year’s awards.
Frank Aigbogun, publisher, BusinessDay, said banking in Nigeria and elsewhere faces exceptional challenges and those who are in the sector are tasked to be at their best in everything they do, noting that the recipients of the awards have pushed the boundaries of innovation in the sector.
“This is the reason BusinessDay is giving these awards. These awards reflect the strength of these institutions and individuals in this increasingly challenging operating environment.”
Other institutions that were toasts of dignitaries in attendance include Access Bank plc, which jointly won “Socially Most Responsible bank of the year (CRS)” award with United Bank for Africa plc. In their Corporate Social Responsibility, these banks have been playing leading roles in ensuring a healthy generation.
Diamond Bank plc clinched “best bank in information technology (IT)” and “Most customer friendly bank” awards.
Standard Chartered Nigeria won the “Bank deal of the year” award; the “Best bank in corporate banking” award went to Ecobank; while Fidelity Bank plc clinched “Best Bank in SME” award.
Awards for “most innovative bank product of the year” went to Sterling Bank plc and Stanbic IBTC. The products that clinched the banks the awards are Kia Kia Account (Sterling Bank plc) and IMMAN (a loan facility) products by Stanbic IBTC.
Sterling Kia Kia account gives people in the low income bracket, like artisans and other unbanked people in the country, easy and instant access to top class banking services, as offered by Sterling Bank.
IMMAN is a loan facility which is beneficial to customers in terms of access to non-interest based facilities and provision of the same convenient features that are characteristic of Stanbic IBTC Bank’s current accounts.
Unity Bank plc and Mainstreet Bank jointly won the “Best bank in Agric Sector” award. These two lenders have shown their strong footprint as banks which have greatly supported the agric sector.
The award for “Micro Finance Institution (MFI) of the year” went to LAPO Microfinance Bank; while Abbey Mortgage Bank clinched the “Mortgage Bank of the year” award.
Also, Nigeria Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank won the “best export trade financing bank” award.
The awards are based on stringent criteria, said Philip Isakpa, executive director and editor, BusinessDay. “We knew that we needn’t fall short of what is recognised as global best practices.”
No economy can ever develop without significant contribution from the banking sector, said Muhammed Hassan Koguna, chairman, board of directors, Red Stars Express Limited.
“The economic development of any country depends on the quality and efficiency of its banking sector. The Nigerian banking sector has witnessed appreciable level of success with some stability. This stability has enabled it to contribute significantly to the economy of the country.”
Noting the huge potential of the Nigerian banking sector, Koguna said the recent rebasing of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which saw Nigeria become the largest economy in Africa, means more investment coming into Nigeria.
“This is arguably a welcome development and a big opportunity for banks to grow bigger and better. I urge them to maximise this opportunity, to ensure that 99 percent of Nigerians bank their money and they should be more innovative.”
Iheanyi Nwachukwu, Hope Moses-Ashike, Femi Asu and Bala Augie
