Wema Bank takes financial inclusion to varsities

Wema Bank Plc has said it is taking the campaign for savings culture to the nation’s universities with its Purple Savings Account that targets the youths and new entrants in higher institutions across the country.

For a start, it has participated in the orientation programmes for new students of Lagos State University (LASU); Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State; the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, among others.

Wema Bank Regional Manager, Apapa, Femi Olowoyeye, at LASU 2017 Orientation Programme, said the bank is partnering schools to boost students’ digital banking experiences and offer quality services.

He said students can open Wema Bank Purple Account with just N1, 000 with a student Identity Card, adding that the exercise was expected to boost the students love for savings.

Vice Chancellor, LASU, Prof. Olanrewaju Adigun Fagbohun, while urging the students to prioritise positive learning, commended the partnership between the school and Wema Bank and urged other corporate bodies to do the same.

Meanwhile, the accounts can be activated on phones, text messages, SMS Banking, USSD, mobile banking, which usually excite the youths. “They can go to their banks via phones. They do cash withdrawals from ATMs without their cards. So, we are making these things available because they are the future of banking,” he said.

He added that new customers also get instant account numbers, Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card and activation and enroll on the Bank Verification (BVN) network where necessary.

“It is part of the bank’s drive to deepen financial inclusion in line with the policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria. While we want matured people to have accounts, we also want the younger generations to also have accounts.

“What we have done here is complete banking process. We are taking banking with technology seriously because as a strategy, Wema Bank has a vision it is implementing. We launched a virtual banking platform, which ensures that everything that can be done physically can also be done virtually.

“For this programme, our target is to achieve at least, 1, 500 new accounts. Last year, we achieved 1, 127 accounts within two days. We are on social media to ensure that anywhere they can find convenience,” Olowoyeye added.