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Figures Don’t Lie: Wema Bank Standing On Strong Financial Fundamentals — Adebise

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Wema Bank, Nigeria’s leading innovative and digital-driven financial institution has reassurance its esteemed customers and shareholders that it remains standing on strong financial fundamentals and reliable performance metrics, riding on the back of seasoned and astute leadership.

The bank gave this reassurance, through its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Ademola Adebise, while reacting to a recent publication in the media purportedly alleging a dip in its liquidity status following the unaudited report for 2020 with the MD/CEO saying the report is only a deliberate campaign to create panic among its stakeholders using false news, and therefore should be discountenanced,

He said, “The strength and viability of financial institutions are not measured on the isolated performance of one outlier year. The said report based a lot of its false allegations on the unaudited 2020 financial year. But that was a year when COVID-19 induced a lockdown and a disruption of such magnitude that negatively impacted businesses, industries, and economies the world over.

“Wema Bank has continually exhibited not just resilience, but admirable viability over the years with a 30.95% increase in earnings recorded in just 2019. Then came 2020, and in spite of the difficulties, we succeeded in achieving impressive results in key areas such as net earnings from fees and commissions, while growing the Bank’s asset base significantly.

“That’s not all, customer credibility in the bank was also accentuated with a massive increase in customer deposits over the previous year. This is an audacious show of confidence from the customers of Wema Bank

“These performance metrics amongst others, are testament to our smart balance sheet optimization approach which will be affirmed by the time the audited and official 2020 Financial Report is released in the coming weeks “

The CEO also referenced how well the Bank’s performance in the said 2020 makes it one of the best performing financial institutions in the land.

“We won the BusinessDay award for the Best SME Bank of the Year for 2020. A recognition of our unrivaled support for small and medium scale businesses through loans, business advisory, and ease of payments and transactions.

“Also, the recently published 2020 KPMG Customer Experience Survey, showed Wema Bank making significant growth in the retail category, climbing up ten (10) places from the previous year to 2nd position, with an above industry average of 74.6% Customer Experience score. This achievement is a mark of dedication to excellent customer service and refreshing support for all our customer categories.”

The KPMG Customer Experience Survey grades banks over six universal pillars of Personalization, Integrity, Expectations, Resolution, Time & Effort, and Empathy, and Wema Bank has shown a mastery of these pillars and has been outstanding at all of them.

Furthermore, in line with the bank’s sustainability goal of developing digital solutions for societal impact, it successfully organized the second edition of Hackaholics, a radical gathering of developers, web designers, and creative thinkers to develop solutions around key themes of Education, Health, Agriculture, Fintech, Gaming & Betting.

These are intentional measures put in place to sustain an institution’s legacy of economic evolution and social inclusion.

“We are a responsible corporate citizen with empathy as a core pillar of our personality. Thus, we stood by the nation in the trying times of the COVID-19 pandemic with significant support for governments at both the federal and state levels.

“Particularly to prevent severe food shortages and align with the SDG of Zero Hunger, we supported State Governments with food palliatives donation which alleviated the conditions of over 80,000 households of the most vulnerable segments of the population.”

With all these financial and non-financial performance metrics, it is not in doubt that Wema Bank is not only standing strong, it is also among the best performing financial institutions in Nigeria, in 2020.

“I’ll take this opportunity to commend our customers for their sustained trust in us. A support that has remained a critical pillar of our stability and growth over the years, especially as we celebrate our 76th anniversary.

For us as a responsible and visionary organization, we are staying committed to our corporate purpose of making life easier and better through innovation and digital-driven lifestyle solutions for Nigerians and their businesses.” Adebise concluded.

BIG STORY

JUST IN: CBN Increases Banks Capital Base To N500bn, N200bn For National Commercial Banks

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The capital basis for commercial banks with international permission has been raised to N500 billion by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The policy change was confirmed by Mrs. Hakama Sidi Ali, CBN’s acting director of corporate communications. in a declaration.

She added that commercial banks with regional authorization are expected to reach a capital floor of N50 billion, while those with national authority must meet a ceiling of N200 billion.

Announced on Thursday, March 28, 2024, this comprehensive financial reform requires significant increases in banks’ minimum capital bases, which vary depending on the size of the bank.

The latest policy directive specifies that commercial banks with international authorization are now required to shore up their capital base to N500 billion.

In a bid to tighten the financial fabric, the CBN has not overlooked merchant banks, which are now subject to a N50 billion minimum capital requirement.

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BIG STORY

Federal Government To Arraign Binance Executives Over ‘Tax Evasion’ On April 4

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On April 4, the federal authorities will file charges against senior executives of the cryptocurrency company Binance, Tigran Gambaryan, and Nadeem Anjarwalla, for allegedly engaging in “tax evasion.”

Anjarwalla is Binance’s regional manager for Africa, while Gambaryan oversees the company’s compliance with financial crimes.

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) charged Binance with a crime on March 25th for “tax evasion.”

The service claims that the action is intended to maintain national economic integrity and fiscal discipline.

The lawsuit, designated as suit number FHC/ABJ/CR/115/2024, is said to “implicate Binance with a four-count tax evasion accusation”.

However, on Thursday, NAN reported the federal government will charge the three defendants before Emeka Nwite, the presiding judge, at the federal high court (FHC) in Abuja on a four-count charge.

Despite not being a vacation judge, according to the report, the chief judge granted the fiat for the judge to oversee the case during vacation because it is a matter of critical national interest.

The lawsuit comes a month after Anjarwalla and Gambaryan were detained by the Nigerian authorities.

Anjarwalla and Gambaryan had flown into Nigeria but had their passports seized by ONSA.

On March 12, Anjarwalla was transferred to a local hospital after he fell ill while in detention in Nigeria.

However, on March 25, Anjarwalla escaped from custody and fled Nigeria with a smuggled passport.

Meanwhile, Gambaryan, on March 28, sued Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser (NSA) and the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleging violation of his fundamental rights.

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BIG STORY

NCC Orders Deactivation Of All Registered SIMs Without Proper NIN Linkage

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Telecommunications operators in the country are getting ready for another round of phone line disconnections for subscribers who have not linked their National Identification Numbers (NIN) with their SIM cards.

In accordance with a regulation from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), which requires all registered SIMs without adequate NIN linking to be either repaired or entirely disconnected from networks, the disconnections are scheduled to occur on Friday, March 29.

In an effort to counter illegal acts including banditry and kidnapping and ultimately strengthen national security, the government launched the NIN-SIM Linkage process on February 28, 2024.

There are hints of a potential third phase in April 2024.

Operators have reportedly collaborated with the NCC in implementing the directive, demonstrating their dedication to national security objectives and ensuring full compliance by the specified deadlines.

The second phase will target subscribers with five or more SIMs from a single operator that lack verified NIN-SIM linkages.

The third phase, scheduled to start on April 15, will focus on subscribers with four SIMs or fewer and unverified NINs.

While telecom companies are advocating for a review and extension of the April deadline for the third phase, indications from the NCC suggest a firm commitment to the established timelines.

The first phase resulted in the barring of 40 million lines, including approximately 17 million active SIMs without NIN submissions and 23 million inactive SIMs lacking NINs over the past year.

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