Wema Bank Plc said it is set to dominate digital space in the banking sector and sustain dividend payment to its shareholders who had been supportive throughout its transformation process.
The Chief Operating Officer, Wema Bank Plc, Mr Tunde Mabawonku, in a media chat in Lagos, said : “Wema Bank Nigeria’s longest surviving and resilient indigenous bank, is focusing on leading service delivery and driving the retail market through technology. We want to lead the digital space in the banking sector as we target the youths who make 60 per cent of the Nigeria’s population.”
Mabawonku disclosed that in the last four year the bank’s strategy has been innovation technology drive and the outlook is yielding dividend. We want to sustain dividend payment to our shareholders for the support and patience all those years we had not paid dividend. We would be paying dividend this year and that would be two consecutive years.
Mabawonku said through the launch of Alat.ng the first fully integrated end-to-end digital bank in Nigeria, Wema Bank has been aggressive in its target of opening numerous accounts per day.
The CFO asserted that: “ With the focus on excellence, expertise and efficiency, Wema Bank is currently ranked 8th by KPMG, from the 19th position in 2015 in the banking service delivery survey. We are 3rd in terms of service and 6th in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, SMEs development and growth.”
Commenting on the plans for expanding its branch network, Mabawonku noted that: “ Wema Bank is exploring area with great business opportunities while driving technology to meet the needs of the people.”
Despite the challenging economic environment the Wema Bank management is optimistic of the bank’s outlook, due to the consistency and stability in earnings.
While commenting on its cost strategy, the Bank’s CFO said: “We are already using technology to reduce cost of operations we are also looking at possible mergers and acquisition that would enhance scale and as well reduce cost. We are keeping eyes on various offers for sale in the market.”
