Bank
Fidelity Bank affirms commitment to data protection, strong corporate governance
Fidelity Bank affirms commitment to data protection, strong corporate governance
Sahara Weekly Reports That The Leading financial institution in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank Plc, has assured its customers of unwavering commitment to upholding the highest level of ethical standards in all dealings with customer data.
The assurance comes amid allegations by the Nigerian Data Protection Agency (NDPA) against the bank relating to data breach.
While reiterating its commitment to strong corporate governance, Fidelity Bank, in a statement signed by its Divisional Head, Brand & Communications, Dr Meksley Nwagboh, maintained that it has conducted its services with highest ethical standards by ensuring full compliance with extant laws on data protection.
Giving a breakdown of its dealings with the NDPC since it received a letter of the alleged data breach, the bank stated that “on April 30th, 2023, we received a notice of investigation from the Nigerian Data Protection Agency (NDPA), now the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC). The investigation was in respect of a complaint from [name has been withheld to protect the identity of the complainant] who claimed that [name withheld] details were used to open an account in the bank without [name withheld] consent.
“Based on this notice, we conducted an internal investigation into the circumstances around the claim and discovered as follows:
“An account opening request was received online in the name of [name withheld], and an email was sent to the email address attached to the request informing them about this.
“In compliance with our Data Protection policy, accounts created online without full documentation are not allowed to be operational and are closed after 30 days if the outstanding documents are not provided to authenticate the identity of the person seeking to open the account.
“In compliance with our data protection laws, the account was not allowed to be operational as the passport photograph and BVN were not provided.
“The account was immediately placed on “Post No Debit” status as the applicant was expected to complete the account opening process by providing the outstanding documents for verification within 30 days. This was not done, and the account was eventually closed.
“On May 2nd, 2023, we responded to the NDPC that the bank did not violate any law because there was no data breach and that the account opening process was not completed. On our part, we carried out due diligence by immediately blocking the account and subsequently closing the account when we did not receive the outstanding documents.
“At no point in the process was the account ever operational.
“On July 7th, 2023, we were invited for a Pre-Action meeting with NDPC. During the meeting, we restated our position as earlier communicated to them in our letter dated May 2nd.
“However, despite our explanation and evidence provided to support our claim, the agency informed us that they had reached a conclusion to impose a penalty on the bank.
“On 5th December of 2023, we got a letter from NDPC demanding we pay a ‘remedial fee’ of N250 million within 21 days.
“We immediately commenced another round of engagements with the Commission as we were convinced. We had not breached any extant law or regulation.
“While discussions were still ongoing with the NDPC, we received another letter on the 20th of August demanding that we now pay N555.8m naira.
“As a responsible financial organization with a history of strong corporate governance standards, we remain committed to the due process of the law, and we wish to assure all our customers of our unwavering commitment to upholding the highest level of ethical standards in all our dealings with customer data.
“Our commitment to strong corporate governance has earned us local and international recognition, including the prestigious CG+ award. This is the highest rank under the Corporate Governance Rating System (CGRS) of the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), which evaluates listed companies against established best practices and standards.
“As a bank, we remain in discussions with the NDPC over an amicable resolution to this matter.”
GTCO Plc Releases 2024 Half Year Audited Results
……. Reports Profit Before Tax of ₦1.004trillion
Sahara Weekly Reports That Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (“GTCO” or the “Group”) has released its Audited Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements for the period ended June 30, 2024, to the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) and London Stock Exchange (LSE).
The Group reported profit before tax of ₦1.004trilion, becoming the first Nigerian financial institution to cross the ₦1trillion mark in profit. This milestone figure represents an increase of 206.6% over ₦327.4billion recorded in the corresponding period ended June 2023. The Group’s loan book (net) Increased by 25.5% from ₦2.48trillion recorded as at December 2023 to ₦3.11trillion in June 2024, while deposit liabilities grew by 39.8% from ₦7.55trillion in December 2023 to ₦10.55trillion in June 2024.
The Group recorded growth across all its asset lines and continues to maintain a well-structured, healthy, and diversified balance sheet across all jurisdictions wherein it operates a Banking franchise as well as across its Payments, Pension and Funds Management business verticals with total assets and shareholders’ funds closing at ₦14.5trillion and ₦2.4trillion, respectively. Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) remained very robust and strong, closing at 21.0%, while asset quality was sustained as evidenced by IFRS 9 Stage 3 Loans which closed at 4.3% in June 2024 from 4.2% in December 2023 and improvement in Cost of Risk (COR) to 1.6% from 4.5% in December 2023.
Commenting on the results, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Mr. Segun Agbaje, said: “We are immensely proud of the progress we have made as a leading financial holding company. Despite the uncertainties in the operating environment, our performance in the first half of the year, where we recorded our highest profit to date, is a testament to the resilience and adaptability of our business model. We remain optimistic about the future and are committed to leveraging our unique strengths as a thriving financial services ecosystem to create sustainable value for all our stakeholders as we continue to position all our business verticals–Banking, Funds Management, Pension, and Payments–for rapid growth across key markets.”
Overall, the Group continues to post one of the best metrics in the Nigerian Financial Services industry in terms of key financial ratios i.e., Pre-Tax Return on Equity (ROAE) of 103.6%, Pre-Tax Return on Assets (ROAA) of 16.6%, Full Impact Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of 21.0% and Cost to Income ratio of 16.7%.
GTCO Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc is the ultimate holding company of the GTCO Plc Group, one of the largest financial services institutions in Africa. Headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc maintains direct and indirect investments in a network of operating entities located in 10 countries across Africa and the United Kingdom. GTCO’s leadership in the banking industry and efforts at empowering people and communities has earned it many prestigious awards over the years. Guaranty Trust Bank is a Twelve-time winner of Euromoney’s Best Bank in Nigeria award and was recently named Nigeria’s Strongest Brand and Best Banking Brand in Nigeria by Brand Finance and Global Brands Magazine, respectively.
BREAKING! Opay Begins Charging Of N50 Electronic Transaction Fee
OPay is set to apply a transfer fee of N50 for transactions exceeding N10,000.
OPay has introduced a new fee for electronic transfers into both personal and business accounts, in accordance with the regulations set forth by the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
Beginning September 9, 2024, there will be a one-time charge of N50 for transfers of N10,000 or more.
On Saturday, OPay communicated to its valued customers:
“Dear valued customers, please be informed that starting September 9, 2024, a one-time fee of N50 will be applied for electronic transfer of N10,000 and above paid into your personal or business account in compliance with the Federal Inland Revenue Service regulations.”
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