By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Undoubtedly one of Nigeria’s most valuable Bank brands, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, has again set to support schools with their educational requirements to enhance preparations for the school year.
This comes in the beginning of another school term and as students return to school after the long holidays.
A statement signed by First Bank’s Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, Folake Ani-Mumuney, disclosed that the bank has developed an array of products and solutions targeted at enabling schools acquire attractive educational facilities to support their business whilst empowering parents and guardians to seamlessly send their wards back to school.
Its educational products and solutions include the FirstEdu Loan, Operational Vehicle Loan, Commercial Mortgage, Personal Loan against Salary (PLAS) and Salary Overdraft (SODA) which enhances Parents/Guardians’ capacity to pay their wards’ school fees.
The FirstEdu loan is targeted at private Nursery, Secondary and A-Levels schools. The product offers opportunity for private schools to access flexible funding to meet urgent cash flow needs, replace old furniture and equipment, as well as refurbish dilapidated buildings and classroom blocks.
With this product, school owners/proprietors can stay ahead of competition in providing educational services and support to the target population by maintaining acceptable standard infrastructure at all times.
This product allows the customer access up to N10 million with no tangible collateral required apart from the domiciliation of school account with the Bank. This reduces the cost of borrowing to the customer and eliminates the challenges posed by the provision of additional demanding collaterals.
The Operational Vehicle Loan is targeted at registered businesses. It allows the entrepreneur to acquire brand new vehicles for the day to day operation of the business.
Organisations can take advantage of this facility to purchase school buses in the case of school proprietors and even upscale their staff welfare schemes through provision of staff buses.
The organisation can access up to N10 million, for a single transaction, with flexible repayment plan spread over 36 months. The minimum equity contribution is 30% and the purchased vehicle doubles as collateral for the loan.
Personal Loan against Salary (PLAS) offers customers in paid employment access to cash to meet immediate financial needs such as payment of school fees, medical treatment, holiday expenses, etc. PLAS has a flexible repayment plan spread up to 48 months for our customers’ convenience. There is no equity contribution or collateral requirement.
The Salary Overdraft Account (SODA) is also available to customers who want short tenured overdraft to meet immediate financial needs. SODA can be dispensed as a one-off overdraft for 30 days with up to 40% net salary and a revolving overdraft for 180 days with 25% of applicant’s average previous 3 months net salary.
Only a salary account will qualify you to access PLAS and SODA if you work with any of FirstBank’s approved list of employers.
FirstBank’s educational facilities are offered without collaterals. So as the new school term resumes, the Bank has the right products just for you and is poised to constantly provide the platform to support the life styles of its teeming customers.
Customers and stakeholders are enjoined to visit any FirstBank branch for further information about its school solutions.
Aduragbemi Omiyale 
Modupe Gbadeyanka