Fidelity Bank Plans Acquisition of Other Banks for Tier-1 Status

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Managing Director of Fidelity Bank Plc, Mr Nnamdi Okonkwo, has expressed the bank’s intention to acquire some other financial institutions in the future as part of its determination to attain the tier-1 status.

Addressing some financial reporters in Lagos on Thursday, the bank chief said whenever an opportunity opens for such acquisition, the bank would grab it without hesitation.

At the moment, Fidelity Bank is in the tier-2 group.

There are five banks in the tier-1 category in Nigeria and they are First Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), Access Bank and Zenith Bank.

The above lenders were categorised at tier-1 banks because of the size of their balance sheet.

But Mr Okonkwo expressed confidence that Fidelity Bank will join the ‘big five’ of the banking sector in the country.

According to him, the completion of the financial institution’s four-year strategic growth plan showed that the bank was in the right track to join the elite caucus.

The bank CEO also said at the parley with the media that Fidelity Bank is not ruling out approaching the capital market to raise fresh funds.

However, he emphasised that the financial institution was presently adequately capitalized at over 16 percent ratio despite the application of the International Financial Reporting Standard, IFRS-9, with stress tests.

Fidelity Bank has successfully risen to the leadership position amongst tier-2 banks with its robust performance in the 2017 financial year and the first quarter of 2018.

In its Q1’18 results, Fidelity Bank savings deposits kept to its plan for the 5th consecutive year of double digit growth.

Additional information from Vanguard