Wema Bank Commemorates Nigeria at 64
…To reward 64 customers with cash prizes in The Wema Bank 5 for 5 Promo Season 4 Independence Day Special

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s foremost innovative bank and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, is set to officially launch the 4th season of its reward initiative, the Wema Bank 5 for 5 Promo, with an Independence Day special live draw targeted at rewarding 64 Nigerians with cash prizes in commemoration of Nigeria at 64 on Tuesday, October 1, 2024.

Tagged the biggest 5 for 5 Promo season yet, the Wema Bank 5 for 5 Promo Season 4 is set to disburse N135,000,000 to Wema Bank customers across Nigeria. The special Independence live draw which marks the season’s kick-off will hold virtually on the Bank’s YouTube and Instagram channel, and will reward 64 Wema Bank customers with N5,000 each as against the stipulated 10 winners in the daily draws.

To qualify for the Wema Bank 5 for 5 Promo Independence Day Special draw, customers are to perform a minimum of one transaction between now and October 1, 2024, using the ALAT app, *945# or the Wema/ALAT debit card. Airtime or data purchases, inter-bank transfers, bill payments, cash withdrawals and all other transactions made using ALAT, *945# or Wema/ALAT card, are valid transactions to qualify for the draw.

With N135,000,000 set to be disbursed in daily, weekly and monthly draws, including a special grand prize of N5,000,000, the Wema Bank 5 for 5 Promo Season 4 promises to be a game changer, and every Nigerian can participate by funding their Wema/ALAT accounts and transacting frequently using ALAT, *945# or Wema/ALAT card.

Wema Bank Shines at Global SME Finance Forum Conference Awards 2024
…Awarded:

• SME Financier of the Year (Africa)
• Platinum Award for Best Financier for Women Entrepreneurs (Africa)

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s foremost innovative bank and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, has received two awards of excellence at the Global SME Finance Forum Conference Awards 2024 which held in São Paulo, Brazil between September 16 & 18, 2024. The awards received are SME Financier of the Year (Africa) and Platinum Award for Best Financier for Women Entrepreneurs (Africa).

The Global SME Finance Forum is the world’s leading, technically oriented and geographically diverse platform focused solely on scaling SME financing worldwide. Managed by this Forum, The Global SME Finance Forum Conference Awards is dedicated to acknowledging the effective and successful practices of financiers across the world, honouring the innovative products and services these financiers create for SMEs, recognising the impressive results in expanding finance and services to SMEs, and celebrating these exceptional financial institutions. Wema Bank emerged Africa’s top financier not just for the general SME landscape but also particularly for women-owned SMEs, at the 2024 edition of the annual Global SME Finance Forum Conference Awards.

Reputed as the Bank of choice for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), Wema Bank received recognition for its commendable track record of developing innovative, sustainable and significantly impactful products, services, solutions and opportunities for businesses of all sizes across Nigeria. The Bank’s impact ranges from affordable financing options and seamless payment collection solutions to access to market, digital solutions for efficient business operation and management, SME Advisory services, and a vast range of products tailored to the needs of businesses across every part of Nigeria. Through its women-focused proposition, SARA by Wema, Wema Bank continues to tailor its SME offerings specifically for women, helping these women build sustainable businesses and access the resources needed to scale and thrive. The Bank further supports overall growth and well-being of these women with affordable to free healthcare packages. It is beyond doubt that Wema Bank is indeed deserving of its recognition as Africa’s top financier for SMEs and particularly, women entrepreneurs.

Expounding on the Bank’s glaring commitment to empowering MSMEs, the MD/CEO of Wema Bank, Moruf Oseni, articulated the big picture for the Bank. “MSMEs make up the bulk of Nigeria’s economy and they are critical to not only mitigating unemployment and other macroeconomic challenges but also promoting innovation and significantly boosting the economy towards national development. At Wema Bank, we recognise the potential that MSMEs hold as well as the challenges that threaten the maximisation of this potential, and we have made a lifelong commitment to providing viable, seamless, accessible, affordable, reliable and effective solutions tailored to the needs of businesses of all sizes across Nigeria; especially women-owned businesses. There is a rising need for intentionally inclusive empowerment strategies in not only stimulating growth in the SME sector but also bridging the gap in gender equality, and we have undertaken the responsibility of fulfilling that need. As a Bank, our mission is to empower lives through innovation, and as always, we will continue to seek more effective ways to empower businesses for optimal productivity and sustainable growth”.

“We are honoured by the global recognition accorded to us by the Global SME Finance Forum and as we receive these awards, we reiterate our commitment to providing businesses with the resources they need and a bouquet of intelligent solutions that mitigate prevalent challenges and make business management and operation seamless, maximally profitable and efficient. Thank you to the Global SME Finance Forum for the acknowledgement, and also to our valued customers who continue to entrust the future of their businesses and their financial well-being in our hands. This prestigious recognition honours our unwavering commitment to empowering SMEs and fostering innovation in SME finance, further fuelling our drive to consistently go above and beyond in accelerating growth for SMEs and delivering optimum value to every stakeholder. We are indeed the Bank of choice for MSMEs and women across Nigeria, and we will never relent in empowering women to thrive and businesses to scale regardless of economic fluctuations”, Oseni remarked.

Wema Bank continues to raise the standards of banking and financial services in Nigeria, demonstrating a commitment to generating positive impact across diverse verticals, a dedication to exceeding expectations and a passion for empowering lives and businesses for success.

Businesses interested in accessing the Bank’s tailored range of finance options and business-centric solutions are encouraged to visit https://wemabank.com/smes or send an email to [email protected] to get started.

Fidelity Bank Stock record Over 20% Growth Following Combined Offer

Growing investor confidence and strong market participation have continue to boost optimism about Fidelity Bank’s stock as the bank experienced a remarkable 20% surge on the Nigerian stock market, with its share price surpassing the N13 mark by the third week of September. This upward trend follows the bank’s combined offer, which included a Public Offer and Rights Issue launched on June 20, 2024.

The combined offer consisted of 10 billion ordinary shares priced at N9.75 for the public and 3.2 billion shares at N9.25 for existing shareholders, collectively raising N127.1 billion. After a consolidation period from June to August, coinciding with the close of the combined offer, Fidelity Bank’s shares have gained over 20% month-to-date (MtD) in September.

Fidelity Bank has maintained a robust bullish trajectory since August 2018, when its stock dipped below N2. Since then, it has surged by more than 680%. The bank started trading in 2024 at N10.85, with 900 million shares exchanged. However, uncertainties related to recapitalization efforts among major Nigerian banks led to a temporary decline to N9 per share in April. Despite this setback, the stock regained its upward momentum after touching a low of N9.00.

Following the completion of the combined offer in August, Fidelity Bank’s share price climbed once again, gaining over 20% by mid-September. A key factor contributing to this latest surge is the successful combined offer, which paves the way for an upcoming private placement.

The Fidelity Bank combined offer, which was the first in the current recapitalization phase in the banking industry, saw significant demand, prompting an extension that added 8.2 billion shares. Of these, 5 billion were sold through the Public Offer and 3.2 billion via the Rights Issue. This high demand resulted in increased market activity, with over 2 billion shares traded in June and 3 billion in July.

As the combined offer concluded on August 12, the stock entered a consolidation phase, but trading activity picked up notably by mid-September. Weekly trading volumes reached 27 million shares, pushing the stock past the N13.00 threshold, sustaining its upward trend.

In a recent note to investors, the bank’s Managing Director, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe,OON expressed gratitude for the strong response to the capital raise, stating that, “With the conclusion of the Combined Offer, I am delighted to announce that we have met and surpassed our capital-raise target for the first phase of this exercise.”

“My profound gratitude goes to our customers, new investors and existing shareholders for supporting us in this journey.  We will forever be grateful for the support we received during this capital-raise exercise.

“Our deepest thanks go to our regulators namely the CBN, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX): the CBN for its vision of recapitalizing Nigerian banks to ensure banks have sufficient capital to sustain a $1tn economy in the near future and improve the overall confidence in the banking industry; SEC and the NGX for the role they played in ensuring the seamless execution of this first phase of our recapitalization plans.”