As a testament of its determination to support Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SME) to scale and run profitable ventures, leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc -has been presented the 2020 Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) service award for the highest disbursement to DBN-focused locations.
With it’s over 6 million customers, the Bank has in recent times, won several awards such as the Best SME Friendly Bank, Best in Mobile Banking and the Most Improved Corporate/Investment Bank among several industry awards and recognitions.
The bank was also ranked the 4th Best Bank in the Retail Banking Segment in the 2017 Banking Industry Satisfaction Survey conducted by KPMG.
The award was announcement at the first-ever DBN Service Ambassadors’ award ceremony held recently in Lagos.
Speaking on the award, MD/CEO Fidelity Bank Plc, Mrs. Onyeali-Ikpe, said that the Bank was delighted to receive the award and that the recognition would spur it to do more to support the SME sector of the economy.
According to the MD, “This award serves as a proof of the remarkable work that we have done and are currently doing in helping small businesses access much need loans at competitive rates to help them scale their businesses. We are particularly delighted that a large number of our SME customers are taking advantage of our partnership with the DBN and is demonstration of our claim to be the preferred bank for small businesses.
“The critical role small businesses play in employment generation, wealth creation and social development cannot be over-emphasised. It is therefore important to position them for scalable and sustainable growth. Our vision at Fidelity Bank is to bridge the yawning gap for capacity building and help SMEs in Nigeria build the necessary capacity for entrepreneurial success. We are proud of the role that we play in helping SMEs thrive, especially through the facilitation on loans,” she explained.
Earlier in his welcome address, DBN Managing Director, Mr. Tony Okpanachi, explained that the DBN leverages its partnership with Participating Financial Institutions (PFI) to provide relatively cheaper loans as well as capacity building initiatives to small businesses.
