Okpara varsity micro-finance bank’s balance sheet hits N550m

• Commissions head office building, grows customer-base to 4,000
Sixteen months after its inception, the balance sheet of Michael Okpara Uniagric MicroFinance Bank Ltd ( MOUAMFB ) has hit N550 million, with its customer-base reaching over 4,000.

These facts were disclosed on Monday when the bank commissioned its permanent head office building located in the campus and used the occasion to flaunt the progress it has made within the period.

These achievements, according to the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Bashir Ogungbangbe, include empowerment of over 600 micro customers around located around its Umudike location; and extension of credit facilities to many clients in agricultural and agro-allied businesses by exploring the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme.

Ogungbangbe added that the bank is fully integrated with Interswtich and Remita, thus creating opportunity for its customers to have access to funds from any location through transfers.

He said that the financial institution has also provided its customers with the bank’s stand-alone branded debit cards that enable them to make withdrawals from their accounts from any location, in addition to its partnering with Zenith Bank Plc to provide a co-branded bank cheque, which allows the holders to withdraw from their accounts with the bank from any Zenith Bank branch in Nigeria.

According to him, “in the bank’s last returns to the Central Bank in October 2015, the bank reported over Five Hundred and Fifty Million Naira ( N550, 000, 000 ) worth of balance sheet”.

He however remarked that achieving these was not easy considering the challenges facing micro-finance institutions in Nigeria, plus the state of the economy, adding that to advance further, “the bank is targeting increasing its share capital through private placement and also looking forward to obtaining license from the apex bank which will enable her have branches in some rural and urban communities in the state”.

He attributed the successes recorded to what he called the courage, tenacity and visionary qualities of the university’s current and fourth Vice Chancellor Prof Hilary Odo Edeoga, who is also the Chairman of the bank’s board of directors.

While performing the formal commissioning of the new head office building, Vice Chancellor Edeoga noted that this was holding exactly 16 months after the CBN issued the operating licence on July 10, 2014 and followed four days later with the laying of the foundation stone of the commissioned building.

According to him, the bank has recorded and is recording many achievements as a fast growing bank and thanked the CBN for reposing confidence in the university by granting it licence to operate a micro-finance bank.
“As of today, MOUAN MFB has over 4000 customers and we expect a rise in this figure with the formal opening of this ultra-modern edifice as its corporate headquarters. It is on record that since its establishment over one year ago , this bank has consciously and consistently stimulated the economy of of communities around it and beyond”.