Banking
QNB Most Valuable Banking Brand in Middle East, Africa
By Dipo Olowookere
Largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa, QNB Group, was recognized once again as the most valuable banking brand in the region with brand value worth $4.2 billion, according to The Banker’s 2018 Brand Finance Global 500 report published in its February edition.
QNB’s brand value has grown to $4.2 billion compared to $3.8 billion in 2017, an 11 percent year-on-year increase, while the Group’s Brand Strength Index (BSI) has increased from 76.4 out of 100 to 78.4 out of 100, driven by its constant strong financial performance and growing international expansion.
QNB also marked a new and significant milestone in support of its vision to become a leading bank in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia by 2020, ranking second most valuable banking brand in Southeast Asia (SEA) ahead of major banks in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, and Singapore.
The Group also maintained its AA+ brand strength rating, making it the strongest banking brand in the region and could rank higher in the future as it continues to build its customer base and reinforce its brand. QNB is also the only Qatari brand to be among the top 100 banking brands in the world.
The current increase in value means that the Group is now ranked 425 across all global brands, up from 433 last year.
This recognition reflects QNB’s strong and consistent financial performance and growth rates, along with its international presence, which spans many of the world’s leading financial centres, including London, Paris, Geneva, Mumbai and Shanghai.
In addition to its brand engagement, the Group delivered a solid set at the year-end of 2017 with a net profit of QAR13.1 billion ($3.6 billion), up by 6 percent compared to the previous year driven by its asset growth by 13 percent from December 2016 to reach QAR811 billion ($223 billion), the highest ever achieved by the Group.
QNB Group also increased customer deposits by 16 percent to reach QAR586 billion ($161 billion) from December 2016.
General Manager of QNB Group Communications, Mr Yousef Darwish, said, “Being named as the most valuable bank in the Middle East and Africa region in 2018 and ranking second most valuable banking brand in SEA are a true testament to our vision, strategy, execution and strong results.”
“This new achievement also illustrates how far we have progressed in our ambition to be a leading bank in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia (MEASEA) by 2020,” he added.
“The QNB brand has improved as a national modern icon of banking excellence that reflects the bank’s long-standing legacy associated with innovation.
“It also reflects our commitment to offer innovative banking products and services that exceed customer expectations and provide a unique banking experience that has made us the first banking choice,” Mr Al Darwish concluded.
For his part, David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance, commented that, “Amidst trying times for the reputation of the banking industry as a whole, QNB manages not only to attract customers in new markets, such as South East Asia, but also to solidify its image among the existing customer base.”
Brand Finance, the world’s leading independent branded business valuation and strategy consultancy, is the company behind the Brand Finance Banking 500, a league table of the world’s biggest banks ranked by their brand value, assesses the dollar value of the reputation, image and intellectual property of the brand, which is published every year in collaboration with The Banker magazine.
The Banker has been providing global financial intelligence since 1926 is the world’s longest running international banking title and the leading monthly title of the Financial Times Group and remain a key source of data and analysis for the industry.
QNB Group’s presence through its subsidiaries and associate companies extends to more than 31 countries across three continents providing a comprehensive range of advanced products and services. The total number of employees is more than 28,200 operating through more than 1,230 locations, with an ATM network of more than 4,300 machines.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The six edition of the Hackaholics of Wema Bank Plc has produced 20 top finalists shared equally between two streams, Ideathon and Hackathon.
The Hackathon finalists are Rapid DEV, Secure IT, Neurafeed, Trust Lock Babcock, Pulse Track, IlluminiTrust, Trust Lock FUTA, Fix Fraud AI, KASH Flow and VOC AI.
The Ideathon finalists include PLOY, Fertitude, VarsityScape, Mama ALERT, StockMed, Chao, All Arbitrate, FarmSlate, Sane AI and Cycle X.
They emerged after a two-day pre-pitch held on December 16 and 17, 2025, for the grand finale slated for Friday, December 19, 2025.
They grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0 will convene the top players in Africa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, creating an avenue for these finalists to not only put their creativity to the ultimate test but also give their solutions visibility to potential investors for additional funding opportunities beyond the prizes to be won.
The prizes to be won for the Ideathon include N25 million for the winner, N20 million for the first runner-up, N15 million for the second runner-up and N5 million each for two women-led teams.
In the Hackathon category, the first to fourth-place winners will receive N20 million, N15 million, N10 million and N5 million, respectively.
The pre-pitch saw the top 43 contenders battle in a game of innovation and problem solving, presenting compelling pitches for a chance to make it to top 10 in their respective streams.
After a rigorous stretch of pitches and presentations, the top 20 emerged, securing their spot in the grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0.
“Hackaholics started off as a hackathon and morphed into an ideation. For Hackaholics 6.0, the sixth edition, we decided to give both the builders of new solutions and the refiners of existing ones, an opportunity to make meaningful impact.
“For us at Wema Bank, we understand that innovation isn’t just building from scratch. Sometimes, it’s looking at what exists and developing new ways to optimise that and create more efficiency. This is the idea behind our two-stream Ideathon-Hackathon structure.
“Every year, Hackaholics shows us just how eager and motivated Nigerian youth are when it comes to exploring creativity and innovation, and we are honoured to be the institution that provides them with the platform and resources to put this drive to good use.
“We toured seven cities, indulged 1,460 participants and discovered hundreds of remarkable ideas; some of which needed some refining and some of which deserved to move to the next stage.
“For those who needed to go back to the drawing board, we provided useful guidance and for the top contenders, we were able to shortlist to the top 43, who proceeded to the pre-pitch. To every participant, Wema Bank is proud of you. This is just the beginning,” the chief executive of Wema Bank, Mr Moruf Oseni, said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it will enforce penalties against designated banks that delay the remittance of customs revenue, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency and safeguarding government earnings.
This was disclosed in a statement on the NCS official account on X, formerly known as Twitter and signed by its spokesman, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada, who said the delays undermine the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“The Nigeria Customs Service has noted instances of delayed remittance of customs revenue by some designated banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform,” the statement read.
“Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and designated banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.”
Mr Maiwada disclosed that any bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed timeline will be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the period of the delay.
He added that affected banks would be formally notified of the delayed amounts, the applicable penalty, and the deadline for settlement.
“Accordingly, any designated bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay.
“Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty, and the timeline for settlement,” the statement read.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The deputy managing director of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Limited, Mr Ini Ebong, has offloaded some shares of FBN Holdings Plc, the parent firm of the banking institution.
A regulatory notice from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited confirmed the development on Thursday.
It was disclosed that the transaction occurred on Friday, December 12, 2025, on the floor of the stock exchange.
The sale involved about 11.8 million shares, precisely 11,783,333 units traded at N31.14 per share, amounting to about N366.9 million.
Mr Ebong, who studied Architecture from University of Ife and obtained Bachelor and Master of Science degrees, became the DMD of First Bank in June 2024. Prior to this appointment, he was Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking since January 2022.
He was previously the Group Executive, Treasury and International Banking, a position he held since 2016 after serving as the bank’s Treasurer from 2011 to 2016.
Before joining First Bank, he was the Head of African Fixed Income and Local Markets Trading, Renaissance Securities Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian registered subsidiary of Renaissance Capital. He also worked with Citigroup for 14 years as Country Treasurer and Sales and Trading Business Head.
He has a passion for market development and has worked actively to drive change and internationalisation of the Nigerian financial markets: foreign exchange, fixed income and securities.
He has worked closely with regulatory bodies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Debt Management Office (DMO) in assisting with the development of fresh monetary and foreign exchange policies, to broaden and deepen markets and open them up to international practices.
At various times he has facilitated and delivered courses and seminars on a wide variety of subjects covering Money Markets, Securities and Foreign exchange trading and market risk management subjects to regulators, corporate customers, banks and market participants.
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