Shareholders urge Sterling Bank to expand business operations

The Managing Director of the bank, Yemi Adeola, explained that the bank would strengthen and diversify its funding sources and capacity underpinned by a quicker execution of its retail banking rollout.

Shareholders of Sterling Bank Plc have urged the management to adopt measures that would help expand its business activities and increase profitability. The shareholders, who also commended the management for efficient running of the affairs of the bank, also advised the bank to ensure that they intensified recovery efforts to accelerate the bank’s growth.

For instance, the President Emeritus, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Sunny Nwosu, stressed the need for the bank to access bigger capital to expand its business operations.

“I urged shareholders to assist Sterling Bank to do business. We need to recover our impairment because this money is having a multiplier effect on the shareholders’ fund. We need to strengthen our recovery strategy and use the money to improve our performance in the current financial year,” he added.

The National Cordinator, Progressive Shareholders Association, Boniface Okezie, who lauded the bank for supporting environmental sanitation, however, urged it to do everything within its powers to recover impairment and increase profitability.
Furthermore, Okezie berated the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) policy which, according to him has caused untold hardship to shareholders. “CBN should not impose laws on banks. The bank must look for more depositors to boost its account. The bank must also do more of adverts to create awareness on new products to grow the bank.”

The Managing Director of the bank, Yemi Adeola, explained that the bank would strengthen and diversify its funding sources and capacity underpinned by a quicker execution of its retail banking rollout.

He also pledged that the Bank would continue to boost innovative banking, driven by market insights that would enable it serve its customers satisfactorily, implement significant investment in technology-led growth initiatives, and accelerate the growth of its non-interest Banking segment.

“2016 was a difficult year for the Nigerian economy, as it was characterised by high inflation, weak oil prices, lower crude oil output and foreign exchange supply shortages. These multiple challenges and the various regulatory responses put significant downward pressure on the earnings of banks.

“We expect that the Federal Government’s fiscal intervention schemes alongside supportive economic policies will create pathways for economic recovery. Over the next five years, we will be steering our ship differently and aggressively growing the retail business through electronic channels.”

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