Access Bank navigating Nigeria with agent banking to drive financial inclusion
…Boosts of 15,000 agents nationwide
Retail giant and largest banking group in Africa, Access Bank is currently fast-forwarding the nation’s drive in financial inclusion and banking the underserved with tailor-made agency banking outlets across the country.
Giving insights at a forum to celebrate strides so far achieved with its first generation agent bankers, the Head of Agency Banking, said “Access Bank saw the need to celebrate the agents that were working with it to serve its customers.”
“Today, we called them together because we are launching our new logo and our new application. Today is just a celebration of our partnership and to give them the vision we have for them.”
He disclosed that Access Bank currently boosts of 15,000 agents nationwide, saying the impact of the agents to the bank’s operations has grown operations to about 700,000 new accounts using its agents.
According to him, Access Bank has a strategic model of accepting agents in the bank which starts with ‘Know Your Customer’ and ‘Enhance Due Diligence’.
He noted that “By the time an account officer looks through these three things, he will give you a form to verify and you become our agent.
On the value addition coming from agent banking, he added that “The agency system was cogent because the farther an individual was to the bank or ATM, the easier for the person to enjoy the convenience of a nearby agent.
“They are closer to you; they do more for you because they are in your neighbourhood than you going to the bank. And all the queues we see are not necessary,” he said.
Earlier in his remarks, the Group Deputy Managing Director of the bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna, said the bank was committed to working with its partners to drive financial inclusion in the country and revealed the readiness of the bank to grow its banking agency to over 25,000 before year end.
