By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Permission has been given to the United Kingdom subsidiary of Nigerian lender, First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Plc to expand its banking services in the region.
A statement issued by FCMB explained that its branch in the UK, FCMB Bank (UK) Limited, now has the approval to carry out retail (investments) services.
With this permit, individuals and business enterprises seeking to transact their banking services between Nigeria and other African countries and desire to maintain a banking relationship in the City of London now have the opportunity to do so.
“Based on this approval, FCMB Bank (UK) Limited is now able to extend the level of excellent banking services its corporate and institutional customers currently receive to high net worth individuals and Small and Medium-scale Enterprises,” the statement said.
Business Post gathered that the new permission was granted to the financial institution by the Prudential Regulation Authority and became effective on Friday, June 8, 2018.
According to the statement, the bank has completed arrangements to formally launch its personal and business banking proposition on July 19, 2018 in London and subsequently on July 31, 2018 in Lagos.
Commenting on the development, the chief executive of FCMB Bank (UK) Limited, Mr James Benoit, described the approval and extension of services as a major achievement that would enable the bank to deliver its promise of being the corporate and private bank for African-oriented entrepreneurs, investors and professionals across all their banking needs.
According to him, “The bank will be expanding its premises and entering into partnerships with Fintech providers to open up service options to our clients and enhance their overall banking experience.”
On his part, the chief executive of FCMB Group Plc, Mr Ladi Balogun, “Our successful UK platform has proven to be of great importance to the Nigeria stockbroking and international trade finance activities of FCMB Group.”
“Leveraging our deep networks in Africa’s biggest economy, the importance of a London presence to many of our personal and business banking customers, and technological innovation, we welcome this opportunity to meaningfully serve more of our customers and grow the value of our UK franchise,” he added.
