The threat by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to publish names of banking sector bad debtors has come good for Fidelity Bank PLC.
The bank said it recovered a total of N8 billion loans from its customers in the 2014 financial year just as the bank’s non performing loans (NPL) stood at 3.8 percent.
The Managing Director of the Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo, who disclosed this at it facts-behind-the-figures presentation on the floor of The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), said that the bank was able to recover the loans due to the vigilance of its staff.
Okonkwo said the bank would continue to go after its debtors in its renewed efforts at reducing its NPL portfolio from the current 3.8 percent to the barest level.
The Fidelity chief also disclosed that the bank was planning to build 25 branches across the country in 2015 to be able to match up with increased customer base which he put at three million.
He said the bank had so far accessed and disbursed N100 million from the CBN’s N220 billion SMEs funds to SMEs operators, while it has also concluded plans to raise N30 billion additional capital from the capital market to finance critical sectors of the economy.
According to him, the bank will continue to support SMEs in the country as a pathway to national development.
