Have you ever wondered why EcoBank has been the Banking choice of many?
The reason is not far-fetched. In a region where banking performance tends to be patchy, Ecobank’s consistency with its high standards, both in the provision of services and products and returns to shareholders, has made it the bank of choice of many and facilitated its rapid expansion over a relatively short period.
Ecobank is a leading pan-African banking group that has made remarkable strides in its financial performance in Nigeria. The Pan-African banking group’s business segments have traded gainfully leading to an increase in its profit and customers.
Ecobank has proven to be a unique achievement in Africa, providing a working template of the value of a regional financial institution. With its head office in Lome, Togo, the group has 12 subsidiaries in West and Central Africa. With 60 branches and 1,670 employees, it is the largest bank in the Franc Zone and the 56th largest in Africa.
The bank has recorded successes, despite erratic periods of economic exertions, which is not peculiar to it alone. Ecobank’s strategy of ‘one bank’ for all markets has made it transcend existing political, economic and language barriers.
Ever wondered how the bank has maintained the quality of its products and has consistently provided excellent service to its customers? The bank has a common technology platform, which is consistently upgraded to world-class levels. This permits it to carry out highly automated and standardised operations.
Ecobank in Nigeria that has delightedly won many Awards among comity of banks. The bank has demonstrated original and practical uses of technology to provide customer convenience, improved and more affordable services and greater access to its financial services sector in the country.
The company made huge profits before tax last year. This makes it well positioned to withstand the possible shocks from the COVID-19 pandemic as it works its way through the economy.
The bank is prepared to equally pull its customers through the hard times, caused by the dwindling economy and the heinous covid-19 pandemic. The bank most assuredly is working, or may have worked out several solutions, which would lead to its teeming customers’ recovery.
The Ecobank Group in Nigeria, is one of the largest employers of labour in the financial sector of Nigeria. Records have it that the bank, so far, has employed over 1, 000 people and serves hundreds of thousand customers in the consumer, commercial and corporate banking sectors across 33 states in the country.
Ecobank has offered a full suite of banking products, services and solutions including bank and deposit accounts, loans, cash management, advisory, trade, securities, wealth and asset management.
Listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in Lagos, the Bank has been an enviable model to its contemporaries in the banking sector across the country. The pan-African bank, boasts of one of the most user-friendly digital platforms which provides diverse products and services to governments, corporate and non-corporate clients using its digital platforms.
The bank equally caters for SMEs in addition to its highly effective cash management, transaction banking solutions and its cross-border Rapidtransfer remittance solution – a few of the headline-grabbing innovations that it has delivered to meet and exceed the evolving needs and expectations of its customers.
At the same time, there was a considerable uptake in their digital services, and the fact that transfers, payment of salaries and other services could be done digitally, effectively kept the economies ticking.
Today, transitions between weekdays and weekends seem relatively seamless among Ecobank’s customers. Customers have imbibed mass experimentation of having to do everything remotely and digitally. This has caused a surge in internet banking and digital transfers.
Customers have applauded Ecobank at different times for its continued commitment and dedication to serving them especially during these challenging COVID-19 times.
During the heinous period of Covid-19 last year, the bank came through, as one of the foremost private sector institutions who provided funds for palliatives.
Apparently, the bank may be committed to greater investments in healthcare, judging by its intervention in the times of trials. Governments are obviously overweight and timely interventions from institutions like Ecobank may salvage the situation and galvanize a rallying point for those in the private sector.
Foremost firms in the private sector, such as Ecobank may have to step in one way or another, not only because of the pandemic, but to provide a functioning healthcare system in the country.
As countries exit lockdowns and rebuild their economies, it is worrisome the amount of damage that has been caused by this global health and economic crisis. Commodity prices having recovered from the fall in 2014/5, have once again tumbled, the most noticeable of these being oil.
Ecobank is not perturbed by the threat of increased impairments this may pose to the financial sector of the country. Nigeria only contributes some 15% of the bank’s revenues and less than 5% of the bank’s profits before tax.
As far as Ecobank is concerned, diversification through its large footprint will stand it in good stead. The bank has made itself available to businesses, offering help that will make them ride through this trend, working alongside them, across all industries.
Olamide Adeniji is a member of the Editorial Team of TheScript Newspaper.
