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Fidelity Bank Approves 22 Kobo Dividend Per Share For FY2020

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L-R: Non- Executive Director, Fidelity Bank Plc, Alhaji Isa Inuwa; Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Nneka Onyeali – Ikpe; Chairman, Board of Directors, Fidelity Bank Plc, Mustapha Chike- Obi; Company Secretary, Fidelity Bank Plc, Ezinwa Unuigboje at the 33rd Annual General Meeting 2020 FYof Fidelity Bank in Lagos, recently.
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The shareholders of Fidelity Bank Plc have unanimously endorsed the payment of a cash dividend of 22 kobo per share to all Shareholders whose names appear in the Register of Members at the close of business on April 16, 2021. This translates to a dividend yield of 9.2%, making it the 4th most rewarding Bank to investors in the Nigerian Capital Market. This announcement was made at the 33rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Lagos on April 30, 2021.

L-R: Non- Executive Director, Fidelity Bank Plc, Alhaji Isa Inuwa; Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc, Nneka Onyeali – Ikpe; Chairman, Board of Directors, Fidelity Bank Plc, Mustapha Chike- Obi; Company Secretary, Fidelity Bank Plc, Ezinwa Unuigboje at the 33rd Annual General Meeting 2020 FYof Fidelity Bank in Lagos, recently.

Shareholders who spoke at the event praised the Board of Directors and the management team for the 38.7 percent increase in total customer deposits, which rose from N1,225.2 billion in 2019FY to N1.699.0billion and was driven by strong double-digit growth in both local and foreign currency deposits.

Mustapha Chike-Obi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fidelity Bank, reassured shareholders at the AGM that the board and management of the bank would maintain the high corporate governance standard synonymous with Fidelity Bank and also ensure the bank continued in its growth trajectory in the years ahead.

“We will continue to strengthen our enterprise risk management capabilities to ensure the sustainability of our business, while modeling our governance practices to align with international best practice”, said Chike-Obi.

Mrs. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, Fidelity Bank CEO echoed the Chairman’s sentiments, stating that the bank’s financial performance for the period reflected the resilience of its business model in a challenging operating environment.

Mrs. Ikpe revealed that local currency deposits grew by 49.6 percent to N1,400.8 billion and constitutes 82.5 percent of total customer deposits while foreign currency deposits grew by 3.3 percent to N298.2 billion and now accounts for 17.5 percent of total deposits.

She further highlighted that the bank’s retail banking push continued to deliver impressive results as total savings deposits increased by 54.2 percent to N424.4 billion, making it the 8th consecutive year of recording double-digit growth in savings deposits. Total savings deposits now account for about 25.0 percent of total deposits, an attestation of the Bank’s increasing market share in the retail market segment.

Speaking on the strategy for the current financial year, Mrs. Onyeali-Ikpe, said, “We will continue to focus on redesigning our systems and processes to enhance service delivery, deepen our cost optimization initiatives to reduce operating expenses, and enhance our overall risk monitoring capabilities to ensure both internal and external risks are identified and mitigated. Our growth aspirations will be sustained while we continue to identify new opportunities in the new normal.

“On the back of the evolving dynamics in the economy, we will continue to increase the adoption and migration of customers to our digital platforms and increase our retail banking market share through innovative products and services”, she concluded.

The shareholders expressed their continued confidence in the Bank for its 2020 performance which saw a 50.9 percent increase in core operating profit to N44.9 billion. The share price also rallied 22.9 per cent, outperforming the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) Index, which only gained 10.1 percent. According to Mrs. Onyeali-Ikpe, the Bank showed “strong resilience to the adversities the global economy witnessed in 2020”.

Speaking at the meeting, Dr Farouk Umar, President, Association for the Advancement of the Rights of Nigeria Shareholders, commended the bank for posting encouraging performance in 2020 despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Umar appreciated the bank for paying dividend the same day of the Annual General Meeting unlike their peers in the industry that pay dividends a day after the AGM. Also speaking, Mrs Bisi Bakare, National Coordinator, Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria, commended the bank for declaring dividend in spite of unfriendly economic environment and the COVID-19 pandemic challenges. Bakare who welcomed Mrs. Onyeali-Ikpe and Mr. Chike- Obi, urged them to sustain the growth and ensure higher dividend in the years ahead.

In compliance with the guidelines of the Corporate Affairs Commission’s (CAC), the meeting was held by proxy and had in attendance very few shareholders because of the COVID-19 precautionary measures.

Onyeali-Ikpe thanked the shareholders and the members of the Board for their continued confidence in the management team and specially appreciated Fidelity Bank customers for their patronage and loyalty.

Fidelity Bank began the year on a positive note having recorded a strong financial performance in the first quarter of 2021, posting appreciable growth in profit for the period ended March 31, 2021.

Details of the unaudited results showed that its profit before tax (PBT) grew by 53.9 per cent from N6.6 billion in the corresponding period in 2020 to N10.1 billion in the period under review. Similarly, net revenue in the period increased by 13.4 per cent from N30.3 billion in the first quarter (Q1) 2020, to N34.4 billion at the end of March 2021. The bank also recorded growth in other performance indices.

 

 

 

 

 

 


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E-Financial

NAICOM, NCRIB Commit to Drive Penetration

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Mr. Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, the Commissioner for Insurance (CFI), has reaffirmed the National Insurance Commission’s (NAICOM) commitment to strengthening collaboration with the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) to enhance compliance, consumer protection, and broader insurance awareness across the country.

Mr. Omosehin, gave the assurance when he received a delegation from NCRIB, led by its President, Prince Babatunde Oguntade, alongside the incoming President and incumbent Vice President, Mrs. Ekeoma Ezeibe, at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, according to a statement.

Welcoming the delegation, the Commissioner commended the Council for its sustained partnership with NAICOM and applauded its role in advancing industry compliance and professionalism.

He congratulated Prince Aguntade, Mrs. Ezeibe, and Mr. Tope Adaramole, appreciating their contributions towards strengthening consumer protection and broker engagement.

The CFI further congratulated NCRIB on the successful passage of the Nigerian Insurance Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025, stressing that enforcement remains the real task ahead. He assured the Council that NAICOM would continue to rely on its collaboration to achieve effective implementation.

Highlighting industry priorities, Mr. Omosehin emphasized the need to expand insurance awareness, improve competence across the market, and ensure operators align with the Digitalization Regulation 2025.

 


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African Parliaments Move to Plug $587Bn Annual Revenue Leakages

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Lawmakers from several African countries converged in Abuja on Monday to collaborate on strategies to block the annual revenue leakages of $587 billion, as reported by the African Development Bank (AfDB) in May this year.

African Parliaments Move to Plug $587Bn Annual Revenue Leakages

This comes as Nigeria’s National Assembly reaffirmed its commitment to establishing the National Assembly Budget and Research Office (NABRO)—an independent, non-partisan budget office designed to support evidence-based budgeting, comparable to the United States Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

The urgency to curb the $587 billion (approximately ₦887 trillion) lost to capital flight across Africa was brought to the fore at the opening session of the 8th Conference of the African Network of Parliamentary Budget Offices (AN-PBO), held in Abuja.

In his keynote address, Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the House of Representatives, stressed that there was no better time for African legislators to confront the continent’s fiscal and governance challenges through effective and efficient legislation.

According to him, revenue leakages—particularly those resulting from corruption, illicit financial flows, and systemic inefficiencies—must be addressed through enhanced budget scrutiny and oversight.

“According to the African Development Bank, Africa loses over $587 billion annually to capital flight—money that flees the continent through corruption, illicit trade, mispricing, and profit shifting by multinational corporations,” Abbas said.

“Corruption alone is estimated to drain about $148 billion annually, while other illicit financial flows—such as trade malpractices and smuggling—siphon away tens of billions more. This is money that should be building roads in Lagos, equipping hospitals in Nairobi, or improving schools in Accra. Instead, it vanishes.”

He noted that Nigeria presents a cautionary example of both the scale of the problem and the urgent need for reform.

“In our public procurement processes—which account for a significant portion of government spending—Nigeria loses an estimated $18 billion annually to financial crimes, roughly 3.8% of our GDP. These leaks could fund countless social programmes.”

Abbas emphasised that budget leakages undermined the effectiveness of government programmes and must be stopped to ensure better outcomes for citizens.

“That is why we are increasing oversight hearings, audit inquiries, and strengthening anti-corruption legislation. Oversight is essential to ensure that limited resources are deployed for the public good,” he stated.

He also highlighted the lack of institutional capacity in many African parliaments, which hampers their ability to effectively scrutinise budgets and monitor public expenditure.

“Without access to high-quality fiscal data and independent economic analysis, legislators cannot adequately hold the executive accountable on complex macroeconomic issues such as debt sustainability and investment efficiency.”

This, he explained, is precisely the gap that Parliamentary Budget Offices (PBOs) are intended to fill.

Abbas stated that Nigeria was responding to these challenges through reforms aimed at strengthening the legislative ‘power of the purse’ and ensuring greater accountability in public finance.

“One of the most significant advancements is our effort to establish the National Assembly Budget and Research Office (NABRO) as an independent, non-partisan body to support our legislature.

“Let me assure this audience that the National Assembly is fully committed to NABRO’s realisation, full funding, and independence,” he further said.

He added that beyond NABRO, the Nigerian legislature was pursuing a broader fiscal governance agenda: “We are revising our Fiscal Responsibility and Finance laws to enhance budgetary discipline and transparency. We are also empowering our Public Accounts Committees to take decisive action on audit findings.”

Earlier in his remarks, Barrister Kamoru Ogunlana, clerk to the National Assembly (CNA), described the conference as a critical platform for peer learning and capacity building, aimed at institutionalising evidence-based public finance management.

“I encourage us all to use this conference not only as a platform for exchange, but as a springboard for innovation and renewed commitment to fiscal responsibility,” he said.

Representatives from 16 African countries participated in the conference, including Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa, Tanzania, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, Liberia, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Cape Verde, among others.


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JustMarkets Unveils Revamped IB Program with Flexible Commissions, Enhanced Partner Benefits

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JustMarkets, a global multi-asset broker, presented a new version of its Introducing Broker Program.

The upgraded IB structure is designed to give even higher returns, more partner transparency, commission flexibility, long-term growth, and clearer rules, adapted to the current macroeconomic environment.

Let’s see why this program is so groundbreaking and what benefits it offers to each partner.

Benefit #1. Income for 100% of client trading volume

The standout change is the shift from a fixed-per-lot payout to a percentage-based commission model, allowing partners to earn:

  • Up to 45% of the spread on Standard, Standard Cent accounts.

  • Up to 30% of the spread on Pro accounts.

Such a flexible system helps partners to get rewards for 100% of client trading volume, including scalping, intraday, and other short-term strategies often excluded under traditional fixed-lot programs.

Benefit #2. Higher spreads in times of market volatility

Under the percentage-based model, spreads can increase during periods of market volatility. As a result, commissions will increase, too. Regardless of what traders prefer: gold, oil, Forex, or digital assets, partners can benefit directly from market movement, which makes this program exceptionally profitable during active trading conditions.

Benefit #3. No longer bound by strict MTP rules

Perhaps the biggest frustrations for IBs have been the Minimum Trading Point requirement, which filters out a huge portion of eligible trades. JustMarkets has fully removed it, meaning every completed trade went straight to the partner earnings. This creates a better, more predictable revenue stream, especially valuable for high-frequency traders.

Benefit #4. More tools, transparency, and rewards

JustMarkets has also improved its Partner Area with real-time reporting tools, updated commission details, and full visibility into client spreads directly in the trading terminal. This change aimed to build more trustful broker-traders and broker-partners relationships by showing exactly how commissions are calculated.

To further support growth, the program offers loyalty rewards worth up to $500,000, including cash bonuses, luxury gadgets, and even cars. Nigerian partners also benefit from naira-friendly deposits and withdrawals, as well as access to marketing assets like banners, landing pages, and analytics.

A program built for long-term partnerships

JustMarkets is strengthening its commitment to partner success with a next-level IB program built for today’s market dynamics. This upgrade removes outdated requirements like the MTP, ensuring that every trade contributes to partner earnings. It also features a flexible, percentage-based commission system, offering up to 45% of the spread for all instruments, from gold and oil to Forex and digital assets.

According to Yasser Mansour, who is JustMarkets Senior Key Account Manager, all these changes were made with partners and traders in mind:

“We did everything to deliver a fairer, more adaptable, and more rewarding partnership model. Our team believes that traders and partners are the heart of every innovation and service we work on. The revamped IB program is a great tool for partners to get new opportunities, grow their businesses, and succeed in highly volatile markets. Our sincere aim is to provide the most transparent and rewarding partnership environment for partners and traders worldwide.”

To start using the JustMarkets Trading app, simply register and download it on your Android or iOS device.


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