Fidelity Bank positions to leverage new opportunities

FIDELITY Bank Plc has assured investors that the bank is well positioned to leverage emerging opportunities in the global financial space, even as it targets seven percent net interest growth in 2015.

Addressing stock brokers during the ‘Facts Behind the Figures’ of the bank in Lagos on Tuesday, the Managing Director, Nnamdi Okonkwo

who expressed optimism that the bank would emerge the best retail bank in Nigeria in a near future, said the bank is well focused in delivering and sustaining its medium and long term strategy that would accelerate business growth in the areas of retail infrastructure and Small and Medium Enterprise (SMES) lending.

Already, the retail banking strategy, according to Okonkwo, gathered increased momentum in 2014 with the bank acquiring over 471,000 new retail customers, just as consumer loans grew by over 21 per cent and core low-cost retail deposit by 18 per cent which lowered the bank’s average cost of customer deposits.

He explained that the N30 billion unsecured bond raised by the bank recently would be used to finance business growth in the areas of retail infrastructure and Small and Medium Enterprise (SMES) lending.

According to him, “The bond is due for 2022 with issuing price of N1,000 per unit, payable  in full on application. The offer was fully subscribed, it is a measure of confidence that investors have for Fidelity Bank.
   
“We are in a journey to deliver better, improved and newer bank and this is one of the ways to travel there. That confidence which investors placed in us will not be misplaced. We will justify it. It is a tough year but we believe we will get there.”

He assured that with the capital adequacy ratio of 23.2 per cent, which is already above regulatory requirement, well positioned to leverage emerging opportunities from the new dispensation.

Okonkwo added that the bank is targeting seven percent growth in net interest margin, with an increase of 10per cent in return on equity.