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Interview: Corporate Nigeria (CN) talks to Mr. Stephen Olabisi Onasanya
CEO First Bank of Nigeria
Leadership Based on
Values and Traditions
CN: First Bank of Nigeria is the oldest bank in Nigeria, and recognized as one of the region’s strongest and most dependable banks. Please outline the policies and recent achievements that have won First Bank of Nigeria this position in the financial sector.
Mr. Stephen Olabisi Onasanya: Throughout our history, including when we performed species functions for the colonial territory (which became Nigeria) we have always prided ourselves on our strength and dependability.
In large part, this is because First Bank has stayed true to the values that have guided it over the years – principally the belief that a bank’s primary duty is the safekeeping of its depositors’ funds, that lending must be performed prudently and in an environment in which risk management systems and sound corporate governance override individual interests, and that it is indeed possible to sustainably grow a franchise and meet or exceed shareholder expectations while doing all of the above.
Recently, this has translated into risk management practices which insulated the bank from the excesses associated with the asset price inflation on the stock market, and a strong adherence to best-in-class corporate governance practices and disclosure levels that ensured we were the first to market with provisioning for the likely loss associated with our exposure to the stock market.
What strategies are in place to strengthen and develop the First Bank of Nigeria brand in the coming years?
This question will be answered from the perspective of strengthening the FirstBank brand rather than developing since the brand is well established in the market. The FirstBank brand has a high top of mind awareness within the Nigerian public (amongst both the old and young). Indeed, it is near impossible to find an individual in Nigeria who does not know about FirstBank. However, the strategic direction for sustainable growth and leadership in the coming years is to continue the evolution and transformation of the brand in order to ensure its relevance and appeal to younger generations of customers (who are the market of the future) while not alienating our long standing customers. Our goal is to significantly grow market share among the young and upwardly-mobile consumer segment.
This would be achieved by transforming our service delivery and operational efficiency, rebranding the internal culture, improving branch ambience and finding exciting and impactful customer engagement platforms to get our message to those target audience.
The challenging conditions faced by global financial market have adversely affected the profits of many banks. In March 2009, First Bank of Nigeria registered a profit after tax of NGN12.6 billion – a decrease of 66% on the 2008 figure. How would you assess the health of the banking sector in Nigeria at the moment?
The challenging conditions faced by the global financial market manifested locally and led to fund withdrawal from the capital market perhaps in an attempt to take profit and meet obligations in their home country. As expected the market responded to the fund withdrawal and equity prices took about 66% plunge with the industry heavily exposed to the market. The result is what we experience today.
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