The bank in a statement said that the 62 lucky winners emerged across the six geo-political zones, winning N100,000 each during the draw which held on Friday at its headquarters in Lagos is in commemoration of Nigeria’s 62nd Independence anniversary.

The winners emerged through a transparent draw witnessed by officials of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, FCCPC, and the Advertising Regulatory Commission of Nigeria, ARCON.

The draw was conducted using a hybrid media technology which enabled in-premises event as well as over 400 customers through the bank’s virtual network and social media handles.

Speaking at the unveiling of the winners, Polaris Bank’s Group Head, Strategic Brand Management, Mr. Nduneche Ezurike, said that the event was significant because it was a testament of the Bank’s unwavering commitment to impact and enrich the lives of Nigerians.

Ezurike noted that the reward was aimed at encouraging more people, existing and prospective customers alike to save and invest their money.

“In tough times like this, there is a compelling need to save, not only to win a prize, but also to plan for the rainy day,” he added.

He emphasised that customers could still participate in, or increase their chances of winning by depositing a minimum of N5,000 in their Savings account.

He also noted that non-customers of the bank could participate for a chance to win in the draws by opening a Polaris Savings account with N2,000 and growing same to N5,000 before the next draw date.

Ms. Susie Onwuka of the FCCPC; Doris Itegbe and Bolajoko Odusoga of ARCON attested to the free, fair and transparent draw that threw up the winners.

The representatives of the regulatory bodies commended the bank for making good its promise to winners of the independence draws.

Below are four ways to participate in the ongoing Polaris Save & Win promo:

1. Download VULTe on iOS and the App store to open a Polaris Savings Account or dial USSD *833*0# on your phone or log into Polaris Bank savings portal at https://accounts.polarisbanklimited.com/opening/
2. Grow your account by N5,000 or more for 30 days or 3 months to qualify for monthly and quarterly draws respectively; by N50,000 for 3 months to qualify for special draws.
3. If your account is dormant, you can reactivate your account without visiting the bank by simply logging into the portal: https://accounts.polarisbanklimited.com/reactivate/, accept the terms and conditions, and update the required details the Bank may need.
4. Follow the bank’s handles @polarisbankltd across all social media platforms or visit the website at www.polarisbanklimited.com to stay updated.

Polaris Bank, adjudged Digital Bank of the Year 2021 and 2022, is a future-determining Bank committed to delivering industry-defining products for individuals and businesses.

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The union made the call in a statement signed by its Secretary General, Mr Sheikh Muhammed, on Sunday, following the recent sale of the bank.

The Central Bank of Nigeria and the Asset Management Company of Nigeria had on October 20 announced the sale of Polaris Bank to Strategic Capital Investment Limited.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday okayed the sale of Polaris Bank, noting that the acquisition followed laid down procedure and the relevant presidential approval.

“As a Union, we insist on the right thing to be done, even as we are prepared to defend the rights of our members in any eventuality arising therefrom.

“Whoever comes onboard at Polaris Bank must be prepared to treat existing staff with utmost care and guarantee of their job security and continuity which is the only sure way of ensuring industrial peace and harmony across the entire bank and its operations,” Muhammed said.

The secretary general expressed reservation at the manner in which the bank was sold and sought more transparency.

READ ALSO: BREAKING: CBN announces sale of Polaris Bank

He also expressed dismay that the workers were not informed about the sale of the bank.

“Any claims of adherence to due process which excludes workers and their representative, as well as the general public, fades away in the face of reason and, cannot be seen to be transparent.

‘’It was a matter of regret that workers who are critical factors and stakeholders were not informed either directly or through their union representatives about the sale of the bank, in which most have served and still serving the bank for most of their prime years, but unfortunately, are not recognised as important enough to be informed about the sale of their workplace,” he said.

According to him, the union will discuss more on the matter at its forthcoming National Executive Council meeting.

Source: NAN

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The announcement was made on Thursday by the Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Osita Nwanisobi.

The new core investor in the bank, according to the CBN, is Strategic Capital Investment Limited, SCIL.

The deal, it was said, was sealed with SCIL by the CBN and Asset Management Company of Nigeria with the completion of a Share Purchase Agreement for the acquisition of 100 per cent of the equity in Polaris Bank by SCIL.

He said: “Polaris has been operating as a bridge bank since 2018 when the Central Bank of Nigeria intervened to revoke the licence of the former Skye Bank Plc and established Polaris Bank to assume its assets and certain liabilities. As part of the CBN intervention, consideration bonds with a face value of N898 billion (future value of N1.305 trillion) was injected into the bridge bank through AMCON, to be repaid over a 25-year period. These actions were taken to prevent the imminent collapse of the bank, enable its stabilisation and recovery, protect depositors’ fund, prevent job losses and preserve systemic financial stability.

“SCIL has paid an upfront consideration of N50 billion to acquire 100% of the equity of Polaris Bank and has accepted the terms of the agreement which include the full repayment of the sum of N1.305 trillion, being the consideration bonds injected. The CBN thus received an immediate return for the value it has created in Polaris Bank during the stabilisation period, as well as ensuring that all funds originally provided to support the intervention are recovered.

READ ALSO: Polaris Bank commemorates breast cancer month

“The sale was coordinated by a Divestment Committee comprising representatives of the CBN and AMCON, and advised by legal and financial consultants. The Committee conducted a sale process by ‘private treaty’, as provided in Section 34(5) of the AMCON Act to avoid negative speculations, retain value and preserve financial system stability. In the process, parties who had formally expressed an interest in acquiring Polaris Bank, subsequent to the CBN intervention in 2018, were invited to submit financial and technical proposals. Invitations to submit proposals were sent to 25 pre-qualified interested parties, out of which three (3) parties eventually submitted final purchase proposals following technical evaluation. All submissions were subject to a rigorous transaction process from which SCIL emerged as the preferred bidder having presented the most comprehensive technical/financial purchase proposal as well as the highest rated growth plans for Polaris Bank.”

The Governor of the CBN, Godwin Emefiele, spoke on the exercise.

His words: “This sale marks the completion of a landmark intervention in a strategic institution in the Nigerian banking sector by the CBN and AMCON.

“We commend the outgoing board and management for their vital role since the bridge bank was established; in stabilising the Bank’s operations, its balance sheet and implementing strong governance structures to address the issues that led to the intervention.

“This process has provided the CBN with an unprecedented opportunity to recover its intervention funds in full and promote financial stability and inclusive growth.

“We wish SCIL well as they implement growth plans to build the bank from the strong foundations that have been established.”

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The Bank’s Group Head of Strategic Brand Management, Nduneche Ezurike, made this known in Lagos while reiterating the Bank’s unwavering commitment to stem the breast cancer scourge among women, in commemoration of October Breast Cancer Month.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month, BCAM, is an annual international health campaign organised by major breast cancer charities every October to increase awareness of the disease and to raise funds for research into its cause, and prevention.

Mr. Ezurike noted that healthcare is one of the pillars of Polaris Bank’s CSR, stressing that its partnership with relevant public-spirited NGOs like Care Organisation Public Enlightenment, COPE, and Societal Healthcare Organisation, SHO, has enabled it to contribute significantly to the reduction of breast cancer in the country.

The Polaris spokesman further noted that “In partnership with the aforementioned NGOs, we have covered five key milestones namely; awareness, advocacy, capacity-building, prevention, and treatment in an ongoing effort to reverse the negative impact and trend of the scourge and other related health complications.”

“We have screened over 20,000 women including female staff members of the Bank through our prevention programme, donated three ultra-modern breast cancer screening machines to enhance quality diagnosis and clinical practices, sponsored the treatment of over 30 indigent cancer patients, and organised a 10-km walk with over 2,500 participants to draw public attention to the breast cancer scourge,” he said.

The President of COPE, Mrs. Ebunola Anozie, commended Polaris Bank for the support, care, and encouragement they had so far received from the Bank, stressing that the Bank had been a strong force behind their Screening Counseling Referrals Education, Enlightenment, and Nurturing, SCREEN, initiative for nearly 20 years now.

“For some time, we had difficulty getting the required support for the women. Some of our women used handkerchiefs; some used tissues to fill up their bras. But we are grateful for the timely support of Polaris Bank. They were able to donate prostheses that ensured our breast cancer survivors lived better lives,” Anozie added.

Polaris Bank also has a number of other initiatives targeted at improving the well-being of the womenfolk in general in the country.

It recently organized a 3-day intensive capacity-building workshop in Northern Nigeria on life-saving skills for fifty (50) community midwives and health extension workers, randomly selected from 80 per cent public and 20 per cent private hospitals in Kano State in partnership with SHO.

The Executive Secretary of SHO, Dr. Mahmoud K. Dankadai commended Polaris Bank’s unwavering commitment to improving the health and well-being of women and children in Nigeria, especially in the North.

He noted that the Bank had provided a number of medical consumables such as umbilical cord scissors; latex sterile gloves; delivery mats; surgical blades; cord clamps; povidone-iodine; baby oil; hand sanitizers and facemasks in addition to the 3-day training for participants.

READ ALSO: Journalists commend Polaris Bank over annual media workshop

Additionally, in seeking ways to address social issues affecting women, and the most vulnerable groups in Northern Nigeria, Polaris Bank also working in concert with a northern-based NGO and women-focused group, Sisters-Keepers Initiative, organized a conference in Kano to exchange ideas on the scourge of child neglect, physical abuse, domestic violence, illiteracy, street begging, and child labour.

The Grand Patron of Sisters-Keepers Initiative, Hajiya Halima Yusuf, expressed the readiness of her group to work in conjunction with Kano Concerns Citizens Initiative, other NGOs in the North and the leadership of traditional institutions to drill down the impact of the conference.

The Bank is currently in its second-year partnership arrangement with Pacegate to uplift the girl-child through the provision of educational supplies in 13 secondary schools across 7 states of the country including Kano, Abuja, and Kogi to curb the impact of global warming on the education of the girl-child who is usually at the receiving end of environmental degradation.

Polaris Bank’s consistent support for Nigeria’s health sector was recently recognised as the “Outstanding Healthcare Financial Institution of the Year” by the Nigeria Healthcare Excellence Awards (NHEA), the nation’s premier Health Award body.

Polaris Bank, adjudged the Digital Bank of the Year, is a future-determining Bank committed to delivering industry-defining products to individuals and businesses.

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Four millionaires will emerge alongside 4,379 Nigerians who will be rewarded with other cash gifts from N100,000.00 up to N500,000.00 per person in a monthly, quarterly and special draws over a period of 12 months.

The ‘Save & Win’ promo is aimed at making millionaires of everyday Nigerians by encouraging current customers of the Bank to grow their existing accounts by N5,000.00 in 30 days while prospective customers are encouraged to open and save in their account, a minimum of N2,000.00 and grow it to N5,000 within a month to qualify for the monthly draws, and stand a chance of winning N100,000.00.

For the quarterly draw, existing and prospective customers stand the chance of winning N1 million in rent as first prize; N500,000.00 for first runner up and N250,000.00 for second runner up within the promo period.

READ ALSO: Journalists commend Polaris Bank over annual media workshop

The campaign started from October 1, 2022, and will run till September 30, 2023.

The first draw, which will herald the first set of winners for the month of October, will be announced in the first week of November. On that day, the first set of winners, 62 in all, will receive N100,000.00 as their reward in commemoration of the 62nd Independence Anniversary of Nigeria.

The same process will be repeated in subsequent months where 100 Nigerians will win N100,000.00 each.

In December, however, the 1st quarter of the campaign draw will hold where three winners will go home with N1 million in rent prize: N500,000.00 and N250,000.00 cash prizes alongside 100 winners of N100,000.00 each across the six geo-political zones in the monthly reward draw.

There will also be special draws for Nigeria’s Independence, Xmas, Valentine, Easter and Eid-el-Kabir seasons.

Additionally, the campaign has a targeted draw component where 200 winners comprising of artisans, trade association members will emerge per month (10 winners per cluster with 20 clusters activated every month).

The Group Head, Product and Market Development, Mrs. Adebimpe Ihekuna, while kicking off the campaign, noted that “the essence of the exercise, is to give back to customers and encourage savings amongst Nigerians”.

The campaign, she further explained, is a reward for the traders, artisans, public servants and indeed professionals who in spite of the challenging times, are able to put aside some money.

She reiterated that in challenging times such as we are now, there is a compelling need to save, not only to win a prize, but also to plan for the rainy day.

Explaining further on the dynamics of the campaign, Mrs. Ihekuna, noted that “both current and new savings account customers of the Bank are eligible to participate in the promo.”

She disclosed that the joy of winning lies in the ability to continuously grow savings to have greater chances of winning.

According to her, “Winners will emerge from four routes or reward categories namely, Monthly draws, Quarterly draws, Targeted draws and Special draws through a transparent electronically generated process that will be supervised by relevant regulatory institutions.”

Opening a Savings Account is simple and swift in Polaris Bank.

Prospective customers can dial *833*0# on their phones to follow the prompt or simply download VULTe on iOS and App store.

If you have a dormant Account with the Bank, you can reactivate it from your devices by visiting https://accounts.polarisbanklimited.com/reactivate/ or any of the Bank’s branches across the country.

Polaris Bank, adjudged the Digital Bank of the Year, is a future-determining Bank committed to delivering industry-defining products to individuals and businesses.

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The annual media workshop, in its fourth edition held over the weekend, had in attendance over 152 participants, including renowned publishers, editors, Managing Directors of media houses, reporters, and other media-inclined professionals.

Earlier, while welcoming participants and declaring the workshop open, the Group Head, Strategic Brand Management of Polaris Bank, Nduneche Ezurike, said the bank remained committed to its corporate citizenship of contributing to the development of the media in Nigeria.

He explained that since Polaris Bank took up the responsibility of empowering media practitioners in 2018, the media has been better for it.

READ ALSO: How Polaris Bank opens its Vulte and gives power to the customers

The highly engaging sessions, anchored by some of the best in the industry, have helped media practitioners to raise the bar of their practice while avoiding landmines that could ruin their blossoming careers.

Polaris Bank, working through respective State Councils of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), has trained journalists in Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Ondo, Rivers, and Abuja on contemporary issues such as: Best Media Practice, Fact Checking, Impact of Fake News, Digital Journalism, Art of Story Telling in a Digital Age, Media Convergence & Transitioning to a Multi-Media Journalist.

He noted that since the commencement of this initiative, over 3,000 Nigerian journalists have directly participated in the media workshop, a key feature of the Banks’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) intervention.

Most participants expressed their appreciation to Polaris Bank for the consistency in hosting the media seminar, despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

They promised to put to judicious use the rich nuggets learned from the workshop.

The Deputy Group Business Editor of The Nation newspapers, Taofik Salako, noted that “The workshop was very educative and informative. As a matter of fact, I acquired new knowledge and information as regards Cybercrime Law and You.”

Another journalist, Toyibat Ajose, wrote, “Polaris Bank has indeed over the years shown consistency as a media-friendly brand by organising this annual high-impact capacity-building workshop for Nigerian journalists to broaden our horizons and enable us practice more professionally.”

This, we appreciate.

Simon Kolawole, Founder and Publisher of TheCable, facilitated the topic: “Managing a Virtual Newsroom’, while “The CyberCrime Law & You” was anchored by Eric Orji, a top Legal Practitioner and Principal Partner from E.A Orji & Co Law Firm.

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We want to be served. We want to be loved. We want to be in control. We want to associate with successful people, events, and stories. We want to know we are not being taken for granted. We want to know we are in the picture. That is what customers think about when they engage with your products and services. That is what they see when they walk into your banking hall, your store, click your button or use your app. Well, what do you see as the owner of the business?

The former group Chief Executive Officer of Polaris Bank did see a different vision. He foresaw the future of a bank that in the next three to five years would be one of the first five banks in Nigeria. He foresaw a full-fledged retail bank with strong digital backing. He saw a commercial bank with an underpinning for digital transformation. He had a vision of a major transformation of the bank. Five years later, that transformation occurred with the launch of Vulte, a mobile digital bank.

In July 2016, Tokunbo Abiru, the former helmsman of the bank while addressing the shareholders and 61 graduate trainees of Polaris Business School in Ibadan said that within the next five years, the newly-announced bank has the potential of becoming one of top five banks in Nigeria. He reassured that the bank “can boast of a strong market share going by several transformative business initiatives”. One of these initiatives is Vulte.

Actually, the trajectory of Vulte started two years ago. Now, the soup is ready. The table is set. Polaris Bank has opened its Vulte to its customers. It has given them total control. As such, the customers are now at liberty to determine “how they want to be served, the way they want to be served.” With the release of Vulte, Polaris has joined the league of champions. It has moved to the next rung of the ladder. It can compete as never before. With Vulte, the bank has affirmed to serve the customers better. It has admitted to making their banking experience pleasurable.

We want to know we are not being taken for granted. We want to know we are in the picture. That is what customers think about when they engage with your products and services.

While the customers are basking in the euphoria of gaining access into the Vulte, they have the opportunity to, among other activities, open accounts, set transaction limits, verify identity documents, register biometrics, ask questions and apply for instant loans! On the loan side, this is a new vista. But the bank said the customers can “determine how delightful your banking experience will be”. The acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Innocent Ike, corroborated this fact. He said Vulte is “returning all powers to the customer as king”. He emphasised that the customers are now at liberty to enjoy “unhindered, contactless and refreshing banking experience” at their finger-tips.

The chairman of the bank, Muhammad Ahmad, said at the launch of Vulte that the goal of Polaris is to offer customers and non-customers a 24-hour seamless service. This is what led to the pursuit and actualization of Vulte. And more arrays of banking products that would cater to the varying needs of its diverse customers are coming.

Ahmad said that the opening of the Vulte was a milestone in the bank’s pursuit of a strong and digitally-led retail brand. Almost three years ago, he opined, the bank’s management was clear on the type of bank to “build and the direction to go”. This clarity was informed by the fast pace of change in the financial service and the apparent technology-defined outlook of banking across the world.

Meanwhile, globally, banks are working hard to make their services convenient, efficient and reliable to all customers using technology tools. Technology has placed Bank of America among the best banks for convenience. Bank of America has gone a step further in its customer service strategy by offering customers in-person education about its mobile banking tools. It has more than 3,000 digital ambassadors stationed at various branches to educate customers on how to take advantage of the bank’s online and mobile banking services.

Hopefully, Polaris Bank will match this customer education aspiration. But in the meantime, its customers are happy. They have the steering wheel. They are in control of their banking needs. Writing on the Appstore page, the customers paid glowing tributes to Vulte mobile banking platform. Engineer Peter Michael wrote that digital banking is not about “the goodness and smoothness of transactions”. Instead, “we are talking about security, interface communication, navigation and alignment of options.”

The other users Paul Muraina shared his experience about on boarding, which he said was seamless “without a need to visit the brick and mortar branch to complete the process”, and Suleman Usman simply wrote “deep, rich contents. No failed transactions. User-friendly”. Matthew Onje wrote that Vulte “is simply digital banking on the go. Bravo to the developers”.  Praizeville Blast, one of the users, explained that Vulte banking platform was awesome. “This is one of a kind and the best from Polaris to its customers,” he wrote.

The Chief Digital Officer of Polaris Bank, Bamidele Adeyinka said Vulte will transform everything that happens in the ‘brick and mortar’ space to clicks and buttons. The Vulte comes in mobile (Android and iOS) and web applications. It allows customers to access banking services at the click of the button. On-boarded customers can access PayDay loans on the mobile and web digital platform where “eligibility will be displayed to the customer within the Vulte application.”

To get into the Vulte and be served like a king, take two steps. Provide your BVN. Take a selfie. Your face will be compared automatically with the picture you have on your BVN profile. This is possible through a facial recognition tool. It is an advanced cognitive and artificial intelligence facial recognition technology. It is one of the ways Polaris Bank opens its Vulte and gives power to the customers. It is the Polaris Bank’s edge. Isn’t it attractive? Isn’t that what you want? To be served like a king?

*Olaegbe (psalmsonolaegbe@gmail.com)

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Mr Babatunde Osibodu, the Company Secretary, said in a statement on Saturday in Lagos, that the appointment was in line with a culture of good corporate governance and succession planning.

Osibodu said that the board had announced that the Managing Director/CEO of Polaris Bank Limited, Mr Tokunbo Abiru, would be proceeding on retirement with effect from August 31.

He said Abiru had successfully completed his two terms of two years each, first as Group Managing Director/CEO, Skye Bank Plc and Managing Director/CEO Polaris Bank Limited.

“The incoming Acting Managing Director/CEO was until now the Executive Director, Technology and Services while also overseeing the South-South/South East Directorate of the Bank.

“Accordingly, not only has he been a pivotal part of the Bank since July 2016, but a major driver of the Corporate Transformation journey.

“This gives an assurance of continuity: a definite continuation of the strategic plans and initiatives that brought the Bank the successes it has recorded till date,” he said.

Osibodu said that Ike had garnered over three decades’ professional experience in the Banking Industry.

“He is a graduate of Accounting from the University of Lagos, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), a Certified IFRS Expert and an Honorary Senior Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).

“He holds an Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation from MIT Sloan School of Management; Boston and he is also a Member of Institute of Directors, IOD,” he said.

Osibodu said that with the change of baton, the bank would continue to deliver on the sterling performance reflected in the full year 2019 results in which the Bank posted Profit After Tax, PAT, of N27billion.

He said: “To buttress the fact that this is sustainable, the Bank’s first half 2020 result showed a PAT of over N18 billion, despite the tremendous headwinds brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Osibodu said the board of directors of the bank expressed the confidence that the bank would benefit immensely from Ike’s skills and wealth of experience.

According to him, with his hard work and diligence, the bank is bound to continue to thrive under his leadership.

Polaris Bank is a future-determining Bank committed to the delivery of industry-defining products, and services, across all sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Source: NAN

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This drive was further re-enforced by the CBN N100 billion Health sector support fund set aside by the Apex Bank to help cushion the effect of COVID-19 on the nation’s economy and the health sector in particular.

This was made known by the Bank’s Group Head, Products and Market Development, Adebimpe Ihekuna, while commenting on the recently concluded webinar tagged “Managing Health Care Business During and Post-COVID-19″.

Eligible participants under the scheme comprise healthcare product manufacturers – pharmaceutical drugs and medical equipment; and healthcare service providers/medical facilities – hospitals/clinics, diagnostic centres/laboratories, fitness and wellness centres, rehabilitation centres, dialysis centres and blood banks.

Others include pharmaceutical/medical products distribution and logistics services; and other human healthcare service providers as may be determined by the Central Bank Of Nigeria (CBN) from time to time.

Adebimpe explained that the chunk of the disbursements are under the CBN intervention funds at 5% and up to 10 years loan tenor; as well as direct disbursement from Polaris Bank at highly competitive terms and conditions.

She confirmed that healthcare firms/businesses in the value chain who wish to take advantage of the scheme to expand and grow their business, should submit their application at any branch of Polaris Bank or send a mail to: smebusiness@Polarisbanklimited.com to engage a Product Manager for guidance.

Applicants can also visit the Polaris Bank website: www.polarisbanklimited.com for additional details on the CBN N100 billion Health sector support fund and other lines of products.

Polaris Bank is a future-determining Bank committed to the delivery of industry-defining products, and services, across all the sectors of the Nigerian economy.

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The result which posits a compelling narrative in the history of Nigeria’s banking industry followed from the turn-around initiatives undertaken by the leadership of the Bank led by the MD/CEO Mr. Adetokunbo Abiru.

According to the Bank’s first full year financial result released during the weekend, Polaris Bank Limited posted a gross earnings figure of ₦150.8bilion and a Profit Before Tax (PBT) of N27.8billion within the first full year of operations.

The remarkable achievements coming in the first year of operations of the institution is a clear validation of regulatory induced interventions in the nation’s history.

The Bank also closed the 2019 financial year with Total Assets of N1.1trillion and Shareholders Funds of N83billion.

The result shows that Polaris Bank’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (14%) and liquidity ratio (81%) are well above regulatory requirements demonstrating strong prudential compliance and strong capital buffer, careful liquidity management and resilience.

This result is coming amidst the highly challenging business environment which forced many businesses to cut down on their operating expenses.

The Bank’s customer deposits stood at N857.9billion even as the Bank continues to focus on stable, low-cost deposits and well-diversified portfolio devoid of high concentration.

Likewise, the loan book stood at N261billion providing the Bank with the desired headroom to accommodate required growth in risk assets to support the nation’s economic growth.

The Bank equally recorded a Return on Equity (ROE) and Return on Assets (ROA) of 33.0% and 2.4% respectively for the year ended December 31st 2019.

Commenting on the Bank’s performance, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of Polaris Bank Limited, Mr. Adetokunbo Abiru, said that: “the emergence of Polaris Bank on September 21, 2018, has heralded a new dawn as it laid the foundation for institutional competitiveness and service innovation in the nation’s challenging banking space.”

Expressing satisfaction with the Bank’s new corporate governance regime, the Chief Executive Officer noted that “We shall continue to run an ethically governed Bank, upholding sound risk management practices and proactively taking measures to mitigate the impact of the adverse business environment while the Board and Management continue to guide the Bank towards a path of sustainable growth.”

Polaris Bank’s performance has assured a strong positive outlook for earnings, margins, and profitability improvement in its cautious pursuit of loan growth, a sustained strategy for operational efficiency, funding cost optimization, and efficient deposit mix.

The headroom for loan creation no doubt presents an opportunity for improved margins.

Going into the year 2020 and despite the challenging macroeconomic environment, the Bank says it is poised to reap the benefits of its investment in both the capacity of its employees to improve service experience as well as in critical infrastructures that will support the digitization of its operations.

Polaris Bank is a future-determining Bank committed to the delivery of industry-defining products, services, and digital platforms across all the sectors of the Nigerian economy.

The Bank is a member of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), which seeks to engage the private sector and the global financial sector to help create a financial sector that serves people and the planet while delivering positive impact.

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