Just as its name implies, Fidelity Bank Plc has ensured its shareholders reap greater return in each financial year, as the lender’s sustained investment in digital innovations has engendered enhanced customer service delivery, and open fresh streams of revenue. Built on the ethos of “Integrity” the motto of the bank is “We keep our Word”, a spin off of the name of the bank, Fidelity.
On the overall outlook, Fidelity Bank is on track towards breaking into the league of Tier 1 banks by the end of 2022. Through its Digital banking which has brought its customers increased profitability and progress, the bank has received many commendations.
Operating all over Nigeria with over 6.5 million customers who are serviced across its 250 business offices and various digital banking channels.
Fidelity Bank is headed by an astute business executive and banker, Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe. She is the first female managing director and chief executive officer of Fidelity Bank Nigeria.
Being the MD/CEO of Fidelity Bank is a position she attained by sheer dint of hard work and experience garnered over three decades of being in the banking industry. Her key derivative, alongside the management team, has been to consolidate on the already laid foundation and track record of performance, to execute the next growth phase of the bank.
Fidelity Bank Plc provides outstanding online, personal banking, SME Banking, corporate, investment, agric and private banking services to its teeming customers.
Recently, her exemplary execution of work strategy across board paid off with an unmatched win for all concerned, especially the bank’s shareholders, as the bank recorded 35.7 per cent growth in PBT to N38.1bn and proposed dividend of 35 kobo per share for the 12 months which ended on December 31, 2021.
She started her banking career as a legal officer with the defunct African Continental Bank in 1990. She then joined the First African Trust Bank as a treasury officer. She later joined Zenith Bank and Standard Chartered Bank respectively.
Her sojourn in the banking sector dates back to 2011, when she joined Enterprise Bank as an executive director of the bank’s operations in Lagos and other locations in the South-Western region in Nigeria.
Recall that Fidelity Bank is one of the platforms in the Bank of Industry (BoI) Traders’ Moni Scheme, which reduced the cost of risk considerably in the bank from 1.5 per cent in 2017 to 0.5 per cent.”
The 2021 financial year marked the beginning of a fresh phase of the growth aspirations of the Bank. The bank closed the year impressively.
The bank’s gross earnings have increased by a huge percentage, just as current and domiciliary accounts grew in double digit. The bank’s management has reiterated many times that it will not relent on its efforts to increase the adoption and migration of customers to its digital banking platform.
Fidelity is one of the financial institutions that is investing heavily in digital technologies to drive its retail strategy, reduce cost, and consequently improve revenue and returns for its shareholders.
With 25 per cent of the bank’s fee-based income coming from digital banking, the lender introduced a digital lending solution and AI-Chatbots to spur further growth in the industry verticals, where it currently operates.
Through this and other efforts, Fidelity Bank Plc has recorded 35.7 percent growth in Profit Before Tax, PBT, in its 2021 financial year to close the year at N38.1billion.
Analysis of the results indicates that the bank’s gross earnings rose by 21.6 percent to N250.8billion driven by a combination of 60.3 percent growth in non-interest revenue (NIR) and 15.2 percent increase in interest and similar income.
The growth in NIR reflects the significant increase in customer transactions resulting in 84.9 percent growth in trade income, 48.1 percent in account maintenance charge, and 47.2 percent increase in digital banking income.
Commenting on the performance, the Managing Director, Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, stated: “We closed the financial year with strong double-digit growth in profit and across key balance-sheet lines, which reflects the disciplined execution of our strategy and capacity to deliver superior returns to shareholders.
“Other areas of the financial result recorded significant increases in the period under review with total interest and similar income increasing by N26.8bn.”
Looking into its big commitment to the growth of non-oil exports, the bank recently hosted a workshop tagged, Harnessing Export Business Opportunities, CBN RT200 FX Policy: Policy Sensitisation, Emerging Sector Issues & Implications to Business, had in attendance representatives from key stakeholders in the Nigerian financial services and export industries. With this, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) efforts towards actualising $200 billion in Foreign Exchange (FX) repatriation from non-oil exports over the next five years received a major boost.
Speaking on the need for strategic planning in the non-oil sector, Head of Export and Agric Businesses at Fidelity Bank, Isaiah Ndukwe, said the bank is well positioned to advance the CBN policy thrust to reduce the country’s dependence on oil revenue.
He stated that the bank is committed to growing the export business across key sectors of the economy by providing support to exporters.
He emphasized that the new policy will not only reshape exporters’ mindsets, but will also infuse value addition on their commodities, allowing them to earn more forex.
The bank’s disciplined MD, Onyeali-Ikpe joined the commercial bank Fidelity as an executive director in January, 2015.
She spearheaded the transformation of the Directorate, leading it to profitability and sustained its impressive year-on-year growth across key performance metrics, including contributing over 28 per cent of the Bank’s profit before tax, Deposits and Loans. Onyeali-Ikpe was formerly the Executive Director, Lagos and South West Directorate of the bank, and has been an integral part of management in the last six years.
Under Mrs Onyeali-Ikpe’s leadership, the bank is consolidating on the already laid foundation and track record of performance, to execute the next growth phase.
She is vastly experienced and has spent over 30 years working across various banks, including Standard Chartered Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc and Citizens International Bank/Enterprise Bank, where she held several management positions in Legal, Treasury, Investment Banking, Retail/Commercial Banking and Corporate Banking.
As an Executive Director at Legacy Enterprise Bank Plc, she received formal commendation from the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), as a member of the management team that successfully turned around Enterprise Bank Plc.”
In December, 2021, Mrs. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe purchased additional five million units of the bank’s shares totalling N12.97 million. A feat that has left many spellbound.
Under her watch, Fidelity Bank Plc announced a 35.7 per cent growth in PBT to N38.1bn and proposed a dividend of 35 kobo per share for the 12 months which ended on December 31, 2021.
The Audited Financial Statements for the 12 months showed a growth trajectory across board, which underscored an exponential explosion.
For this amazon, there is no stopping, as she continuously breaks the bias in consolidating the gains of the bank.
Olamide Adeniji is a member of the editorial team of TheScript Newspaper
