By Dipo Olowookere
In making banking more convenient for its customers and Nigerians in general, Wema Bank Plc has gone a step further by launching a new mobile branch called ‘Wema Bank on Wheels’ that will be accessible to everyone in all parts of the country.
The new truck, where normal branch services are offered, is also fitted with two automated teller machines (ATM), and is powered by solar energy, a feature that won it IBU 2016 Award’s Most Innovative Product.
“At Wema Bank, we are committed to making banking as convenient as it can be for our customers, and we achieve this using technology, while adhering to global best practices,” says Mr Damola Bolodeoku, Head of eBusiness at Wema Bank.
“We are taking banking services to Nigerians, no matter where they are. Being an environmentally responsible company, our mobile branch is powered by solar energy; a first in the banking industry,” Mr Bolodeoku enthused.
Banks around the world have often used mobile banking vehicles as a cost effective service delivery channel as competition becomes stiffer and every financial institution strive to provide their customers with the latest technology-driven services.
“Although, we have been considering the use of mobile branches to enable us exploit its many benefits, the recent closure of our branch in Abule Egba due to road construction activities by the Lagos State government fast-tracked the process,” says Kemi Aina, who heads Customer Service Management at Wema Bank.
Aina emphasized the bank’s commitment to excellent service delivery and noted that “for everyone, we (Wema Bank) have not been able to reach through our internet banking, mobile banking or USSD banking services; Wema Bank is on wheels and it is coming to you wherever you may be.”
Already, Wema Bank’s new mobile branch has started generating good reviews. “Wema Bank’s mobile branch is solar-powered; no bank has done this in the Nigerian banking industry, and this makes Wema Bank on Wheels the most innovative product of 2016,” says Tope Dare, Head, Infrastructure Business Unit at Inlaks, a Lagos-based information technology company.
One of the major benefits Wema Bank would seek to derive from its new mobile branch is its ability to provide a visible banking presence with a lower facility cost, especially in underserved markets.
