Despite the stiff competition in the financial industry, things are looking good for Innocent Ike led-Polaris Bank, as the financial institution has kept strong, not only its profitability but has also significantly expanded its assets and services.
Sadly, the Nigerian economy has been going through a flood of challenges in recent years, making it difficult for some banks to stay alive, affecting most especially, the banking industry, which is considered the lifeblood of the economy.
The devastating impact triggered by the oil & gas industry’s sorry state, which was occasioned by oil price crash at the international market between 2014 and 2016, escalated the non-performing assets of some of the commercial banks, causing their operating assets to be battered.
Therefore, it is pertinent to applaud banks like Polaris that have managed to weather the storm of folding up, through the mutual wisdom of mergers. Despite the fact that its legacy bank was adversely impacted by the global oil crisis and pressed heavily by the consequences of the ensuing loan impairments, Polaris Bank has stayed strong and relevant in the industry.
The Bank in recent times has been committed to financial empowerment of its customers, which grants them access to soft loans that would improve their lifestyle and help them to be in charge of their resources rather than banking on uncertain sources.
In the industry today, Polaris Bank boasts of the fastest process of accessing loans, as one can easily access any of the bank’s loan schemes and get his/her account credited within minutes, while some of them require no formal documentation.
Beyond doubts, Polaris Bank under the leadership of its MD/CEO, Innocent Ike, has proven itself as a customer-centric bank positioned to deliver industry-defining products, services and platforms across all the key market segments.
Recently, in an effort to expand its impact in the educational sector, Polaris Bank Limited created a significant funding boost to private school owners. This is a great relief that would make it easier for private school owners to keep their businesses afloat, considering the harsh economic storms rocking the boats of many business owners.
The Polaris Education Loan offers both new and existing private primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions customers of the Bank, access to loans of up to N100 million to meet their various funding needs.
The scheme is the Bank’s forward-thinking safeguard to help schools mitigate any shortfall in their finances, especially as schools prepare to resume in the new academic year, starting in September 2021.
According to the Bank, this solution forms part of the lender’s effort to support Nigeria’s vital educational sector by ensuring that schools meet their goals and growth aspirations.
In other news, the bank’s commitment to creating innovative financial solutions, made it launch a quick credit solution called “Polaris Salary Advance”.
These are part of the strong indications that the bank, under Innocent Ike’s leadership, has been working with a team of first-class advisers to develop corporate strategy and transformation blueprints to provide direction for the bank and define its corporate and strategic aspirations.
Polaris Salary Advance is a customer-led product that enables employees to get up to 50% of their net monthly salary to meet basic needs before their next payday. The product is designed to provide short term financing to its customers via convenient and accessible digital channels such as the mobile phone.
Part of the features that sets the new solution apart from competition, is its design to provide leverage for consumers to meet pressing financial needs such as paying their child/ward school fees, emergencies requiring funding, bill payments, amongst other needs.
The Polaris Education Loan offers the promoters of private schools, credit facility to meet their various administrative needs: payment of salaries, finance rent, purchase of laboratory equipment, School buses, furniture, books for the library, school renovation and expansion.
The social impact of the Polaris Salary Advance solution cannot be over-emphasized given its ability to meet customers’ needs on the go.
The Bank’s Managing Director/CEO, Innocent Ike noted: “our commitment to the road not travelled, has led to the development of several product innovations beginning with the salary advance initiative. Over the next few weeks, we will be unveiling other tailor-made products targeted at making life more meaningful and convenient for our customers and the general banking public.
“Our product development strategy derives from customer feedback on the needs and aspirations of the new age. As an enterprise, we are focused on partnering with our customers into the future which is largely digitally enabled.
Under Mr. Innocent Ike, the Bank has confidently stabilised indeed and is now headed towards its dream to become a “Top Retail Bank” in Nigeria. The Bank’s collective and sustained performance trajectory in the first half of the year 2021 and its prudential ratios-capital adequacy and liquidity ratios are now in full compliance with stipulated regulatory requirements.
Olamide Adeniji is a member of the editorial team of TheScript Newspaper
