Nigeria Content Online

Operators at the Nigerian Stock
Exchange (NSE) are optimistic that some of the successes recorded at
the just concluded elections in the country should restore investors’
confidence and further boost market performance.

Finance analysts at Vetiva Capital
Management Limited, a financial service company, said the market is
expected to perform better in the coming months, barring any negative
surprises on the political front, adding that “a post-election rally in
the equities market and increased portfolio flows from developed
markets” are expected as investors search for higher returns.

Market analysts also said that the outlook of the bond market will be positive in the coming months.

Rilwan Belo-Osagie, managing director
and chief executive officer of the First Securities Discount House
(FSDH) Group, said, “At the moment, bond yields are high because
interest rates are high. Maybe in the next two years the bond yield may
drop, but for most of this year I still see interest rate being high.”

Fragile confidence

Ese Onosode, chief executive officer of
FSDH Securities Limited, a stockbroking firm, said investors’
confidence in the market is still a little bit fragile, especially
retail investors within the system.

However, Mr Onosode said it will no longer take time for investors’ confidence to be restored.

“For now, what we are seeing in the
market is more foreign investors who are taking bold steps in
investment. But with time, we (operators) believe that by the time the
election results are fully out and there is a certainty as to stability
in our economy, even the retail investors’ confidence should pick up,”
he said.

He added that all international signals
from foreign investors give optimistic projection in the Nigerian
market, “therefore, what we are hoping now is that the confidence seen
internationally will filter down to local investors and make our market
a bit more buoyant.”

Speaking on the proposed
demutualisation of the NSE, Mr Onosode said, “We support the whole idea
of demutualisation, especially since it is some time that even the big
stock markets around the world already started.”

Demutualisation is transforming the Stock Exchange from being a self-regulatory organisation to a public company.

“For instance, the New York Stock
Exchange and London Stock Exchange are private entities. So the whole
process of privatising the Nigerian stock market is a good idea going
forward,” he further said. However, he said what stockbrokers expect is
a transparent process whereby all the major players involved are
carried along in the process “so that it doesn’t look like a process
whereby certain people corner the shares of the NSE when it becomes
privatised.”

Current market performance

At the close of trading activities last
Friday, the NSE market capitalisation of the 194 First-Tier equities
closed lower at N8 trillion from Thursday’s figures of N8.081 trillion,
reflecting N81 billion losses or one per cent decline.

The NSE All-Share Index last Friday
also declined by one per cent or 251.48 units to close at 25,041.68
basis points, from the previous day’s figures of 25,293.16 basis
points.

The NSE had recorded a total loss of
N449 billion in March, after recording significant losses of N260
billion in the preceding month.

In the mean time, while Emmanuel
Ikazoboh, the Exchange’s interim administrator, completed his term last
Friday, Oscar Onyema, the new CEO of the NSE, is expected to roll out
his full plans for the market to give investors a sense of what he has
to offer.

Mr Onyema, who resumed office on April
4th, had said that part of his agenda is to further boost foreign
participation in the market while he continues to woo indigenous
investors.

David Amaechi, an executive member of the Shareholders Association
of Nigeria, said Mr Onyema should make demutualisation of the NSE one
of his priorities, “to enable the market community own the Exchange so
that few hands don’t hijack the whole market.”

Michael Itegboje, the president of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), says stockbrokers should not be singled out for the stock market crisis that was also due largely to regulatory lapses.

How would you assess the capital market in the first quarter of the year?

Nothing much has
changed except that the market is a bit more stable now, unlike a year
ago. Since January, things have been better.

The market has
moved up slightly, though it also went down slightly. It is moving up
gradually now as more company results come in. People have confidence
in the ability of the companies to perform.

2010 performance
has shown that the companies are improving and most of them have
overcome the difficulties thrown up between 2008 and 2010.

Overall, you can say the market has gained about seven to 10 per cent.

Would you attribute this recovery to any deliberate effort by the regulators?

Like I said, the
companies’ performance are the major indices and not through any
regulatory effort. Companies are releasing their result, and investors
are beginning to see that there is improvement in their performance in
terms of profit, growth, and improvement in the balance sheet of many
of them.

What would you say about the environment in which you operate today?

The environment is hostile to stockbrokers in Nigeria. It is terribly hostile, especially from the regulatory point of view.

It seems in order
to bring confidence back to the market and correct anomalies of the
past, the regulators seem to blame everything on the stockbrokers,
forgetting that the whole crisis that happened in Nigeria and the rest
of the world was mainly due to regulatory failure.

The regulators
failed to do their job. In trying to do that, the regulatory
environment does not have to be hostile for sanity to prevail. Yes, we
all have learnt our lessons because if there is no business in the
market, there will be no other business for stockbrokers to do. Once
investors are not forthcoming, brokers suffer because there will be no
business.

That is why we have
been redirecting our resources to bring confidence to the market so
that our businesses can grow. Right now, our businesses are not growing
as we should expect.

While
brokers can be blamed partly for the crisis, what safeguard has the
institute put in place to ensure that your members do not repeat the
abuses of the past?

We have put some
things in place since October and have been training our members on the
code of ethics and standard of professional practice that would guide
them.

Secondly, we
introduced the continuing professional development programme in which
we are training our members on the current skills and knowledge in
capital market. The training is serious because credit points are
awarded for training a member who attends. We believe with that our
brokers are better prepared to face the task of the present and the
future.

Not only that, new ways of doing business in an environment that is dynamic. We are working on those areas.

I was actually
expecting you would talk about disciplinary measures put in place
against errant members to put off some of the hostilities of the
regulator?

Now, let’s get
something straight. The Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers has a
tribunal and on that tribunal, there is an assessor.

Previously, the
assessor used to be a SAN (Senior Advocate of Nigeria) but as part of
our reform agenda, we decided to make the assessor a retired justice
and we have right now, a retired justice of the Supreme Court on the
tribunal.

We also have a
prosecutor who is a SAN of many years standing. Over the years, even
before this crisis, this disciplinary tribunal has been there trying
cases and convicting brokers and any broker convicted, the press is
invited at the judgement to carry out widespread publicity of the
judgement we have given in the past.

But a case readily comes to mind here.

Which one?

Peter Ololo.

Yes, Peter Ololo is
a broker, but he doesn’t have any illegal transaction as a broker. Did
you notice that when some firms were suspended, his firm was not
suspended? So what is the problem with that?

If he did other
businesses outside the market, that is outside the market and not
inside the market. And then, that is something that is already in the
law court.

In terms of the stock broking profession, we can’t do anything unless the court finds him guilty.

So you are waiting for that judgment?

We just have to. We
cannot try him twice. Supposing we try him and say he is guilty and the
court finds him not guilty or the court finds him guilty and we find
him not guilty? So, we cannot do anything.

That case is in the
public domain and not within our purview for now. When the court
decides and passes judgement, we just have to accept the judgement.

What are your expectations from the new CEO of the Nigerian Stock Exchange?

One good thing
about the new CEO is that he is a stockbroker and he has practised in
what I may call an advanced market. That is a plus for him, the
Exchange, and the stockbrokers.

We have had
opportunity to discuss and share our views with him. We believe he is
putting his plans together and when he is through, he will release his
agenda.

We will work with
him to build a better organised market. He believes he can bring in new
product and new ideas. We will work with him.

What do you foresee, going forward?

It depends on the
regulators. They are building a world class market and we want to see
how they build it and we want to encourage them to make sure they
define it, so that in the process, it will not kill or destroy the very
owners of the business.

Whatever the
regulators do, they must take the interest of the brokers into account.
Though operators, they are members of the Exchange and as long as their
interest is not taken into account in whatever the future of the growth
of the Exchange will be going forward, it will not work.

We are interested
in a better regulated environment, a market that has a human face. A
market that is considerate of not only the investors, but also the
operators.

What is the missing link?

I believe that over
the years, SEC has paid too much attention to regulatory issues. SEC
should begin to look at developmental issues.

The government that
is interested in employing people should begin to look at the capital
market sector. There was a window of opportunity given to textile,
agriculture, and entertainment industries. We believe the time is ripe
to have a window for stockbrokers.

That way, we
address the issue of liquidity in the market. Margin trading is
exciting because it brings liquidity into the market. The government,
through CBN, can open a window of say N200 billion that stockbrokers
can access on behalf of their customers who want to do margin trading.

The investor does
not have to go to the bank. All he has to do is go to his stockbroker,
do all the paper work, and gets the fund for margin trading with a
regulation that once it gets to a certain percentage, he puts in more
funds.

The scenario you have just painted points to the absence of market makers.

Margin trading is
not for market makers. Margin trading is done between an investor and
his broker, not the one the banks were doing. The banks were simply
giving loans.

Margin trading has
set guidelines. If you bring 30 per cent and the broker buys for you
one hundred, once the market depreciates the money you bring, you have
to bring in more funds because you are not supposed to be exposed to
more than 70 per cent.

If you can’t, they
sell the shares and take you out. We did not follow that. Margin
trading is one way we can bring liquidity back to the market.

Have you made this position to government?

We have raised it somehow. We have raised it with the minister and we are still canvassing it.

Quite frankly, do you think this market needs market makers?

This market, for it
to develop the way it should be, needs market makers. I agree. We have
always said it. But then, what are they going to make? They need funds
to do market making, and it is not just borrowed funds.

SEC has approved
some market makers but why are they not operational? Because it is a
business decision they have to take and if it is not worth the
business, why do you have to make it? Nobody can force you to be a
market maker.

See the full interview at 234next.com

Food price hikes
are hitting Africa’s urban populations harder now than in 2008 and pose
a serious challenge to some of the continent’s leaders, who face
elections this year, a World Bank official said.

Policy makers
across the globe are fighting rising food prices, currently 36 per cent
higher than levels this time last year and near peaks from 2008,
according to the World Bank’s food price index.

“This time, because
it is a more broadly based price increase, because it brings in fuel
prices as well, the impact is more urban-based,” Karen Brooks, the
bank’s Africa agriculture sector manager, told Reuters, citing
increased pressure on wheat and maize costs.

“It is also coming
at a time of many elections in Africa, and so this goes into a
political context which makes it very challenging for governments to
manage,” she added.

The 2008 spike in
food prices led to violent demonstrations across much of Africa.
Protests have returned to the streets of some capitals, while tense
elections are due later this year in Cameroon, Liberia, Democratic
Republic of Congo, amongst others.

Ms Brooks said the
bank was particularly worried about the situation in Uganda, where the
opposition has latched onto complaints over rising prices and organised
protests, some of which have turned violent.

“It is not on the scale that we are seeing in North Africa, but there are very great concerns,” she said.

In the aftermath of
the 2008 crisis, world leaders in 2009 pledged some $20 billion to spur
agricultural investment in poor nations and fight hunger.

Ms Brooks said
investors were excited about African agriculture, but that the
continent was still missing out due to lingering fears over land
rights, taxation and stability, as private funds flow into Latin
America and Central Asia.

African leaders
have committed to devoting 10 per cent of their budgets to agriculture,
as part of efforts to bridge investment gaps. But Ms Brooks said
results were mixed.

“There were
substantial commitments made, but it has been very difficult for the
donors to actually follow up on the commitments as the financial crisis
hit,” she said, adding that complex accounting methods by donors meant
it was a puzzle to work out what had been delivered by whom so far.

Four pillars

Meanwhile, some
African nations have made progress in adopting policies and most have
recognised the urgency, but just a handful are meeting the 10 per cent
budget target.

Better weather has supported harvests this year, but the deficit remains vast.

“Of course, they
aren’t doing enough. There is such a deficit of investment in
agriculture that has accumulated over the last 20 years that there is
quite a lot that has to be done,” Ms Brooks further said.

She added that the
bank was focusing on four main issues: land and water management,
technology, agricultural markets and infrastructure, and food security
and vulnerability.

“There are so many
accessible advances in science that could be applied in Africa, but
they require the participation of African scientists in order to figure
out the best varieties,” she said, citing as an example the choice of
best hybrid maize for different conditions.

Rising food prices
have ramped up investor interest in agriculture, with Boston-based farm
consultancy, High Quest, seeing inflows of private capital in the
sector more than doubling to around $5 billion to $7 billion in two
years.

Africa is still only partially cashing in.

“What we are
finding is that there is a high level of excitement. However, because
the business climates in many African countries are less well-advanced
… Africa is still lagging,” Ms Brooks said.

Poor infrastructure, weak financial services, and concerns over land
rights are among the key concerns the World Bank is trying to tackle,
to encourage investors to turn to Africa, rather than other regions
where returns are quicker, she added.

REUTERS

Are you on the other side of 45 and have little or no retirement savings? Have you ignored this most important stage of your life and suddenly find that retirement is looming?

Very few of us save enough for retirement and most people will fall short. Research has suggested that retirees will require about 60 to 70 per cent of their pre-retirement income to live just moderately well during retirement.

There are many diverse reasons why people find themselves in this precarious position.

Some have simply lacked the focus or discipline to save, whilst others find themselves at the centre of some catastrophic life event such as the loss of a loved one, a major illness, disability, or divorce that can have dire financial consequences.

Do a reality check

Be realistic about your actual situation – how prepared or unprepared are you? First, find out how much you have right now. Start by pulling together financial information such as your bank statements, and your projected pension payout or a gratuity, if you are fortunate enough to have one.

Take stock of all your assets. Even if you haven’t been saving as judiciously as you might have, you have probably built up some assets that could play a role. Then determine how much income you think you will need in retirement.

Finally, look for where that income could possibly come from.

Cut right back on your expenses

How much are you spending today? You must have a clear idea of where your money is going before you can ascertain where additional funds will come from. You will need to cut back drastically on any unnecessary expenses.

If you still have dependent children and elderly parents to support, prioritise and do only what absolutely must be done. If you have become the one stop shop for bailing out members of the extended family and friends, you really must learn to say ‘no’.

Retirement savings must become your priority and everything else has to take a back seat. Non-essential expenses like eating out often, travel, and shopping can easily get out of control.

Start saving as much as you can

It is important to seek professional advice. A financial advisor will dispassionately consider your current and projected circumstances. If you are in debt, start applying as much as possible to reduce this to free up money for retirement savings over time.

An advisor will recommend various options that might include an automated savings plan where funds are debited directly from your salary and into savings; this could include fixed income, balanced or equity funds, as well as other investment vehicles.

Don’t be too aggressive

You cannot afford to ignore your risk tolerance in your attempt to make up for lost time. Volatility is a reality in investing; as retirement approaches, there is little room for error and one must be more conscious of protecting the nest egg from the risk of loss.

A severe market downturn can be disastrous, as you will have far less time for the market to correct itself or for you to recover from poor investment decisions.

At the same time, you can’t afford to be too conservative and have inflation eat away at all your savings.

Your home can play a role

Do you have equity in your home? If your home is relatively valuable and your children have left home, if you are not too overwhelmed by sentimental attachment, a house that has appreciated in value can be sold and a smaller less expensive home purchased in its place.

Be conscious of the fact that falling property prices and a liquidity crunch have made it more difficult to sell property at a premium. If you live in an area with a high cost of living, moving to a less expensive area could make a big difference in your ability to amass a tidy sum.

Postpone retirement?

If you’ve done all your sums and clearly still won’t have enough in retirement, you have two choices: You may need to scale-back your retirement goals and lifestyle drastically, or you may have to postpone your retirement date.

Working a little longer or part time can improve your financial prospects significantly, as you will be able to invest these earnings and feed your retirement portfolio until you have to dip into it.

Leverage on your skills or talents

Can you create another stream of income to devote to retirement savings? Explore your options; it may well be something that you may have taken for granted and would do for free, that could turn into a side business.

Time is precious

No matter how precarious your finances might be approaching retirement, there is always some way to improve your situation.

You cannot make up for an entire career of not saving by trying to fast track your saving in the last 10 years of your working life. But there is enough time for you to make an appreciable difference in your retirement lifestyle.

Don’t let doubt or discouragement keep you from starting right away, regardless of your age.

All is not lost, but time is a critical factor, so don’t procrastinate a minute longer.

One of the several strategies adopted by companies to entrench
their brands in the minds of consumers is free trial.

This is a key marketing effort intended to engage consumers and
deepen their experience of the brand. It also helps the brand make appropriate
adjustments in order to enhance consumer satisfaction. Free trial aids direct
connection with the target audience.

The brand connects to consumers through several touch points and
free trial is a major one. It is indeed a veritable avenue to build consumer
loyalty and followership.

This strategy is aimed at selling the values and benefits of the
brand to the consumers, and empowers them to differentiate between brands they
can trust and the ones they should not.

Consumer experience has a great impact on brand equity, as it
helps them experience the perceived quality, thereby encouraging loyalty. This
can be achieved through free trial, which fosters interaction between consumers
and the brand.

Free trial also ensures a renewed focus on the consumers, as it
empowers them to feel the brand to determine whether it aligns with their
aspirations. DStv mobile was an innovation and value added mobile television
entertainment for subscribers and when unveiled in the Nigerian market, the
company announced free trials which lasted for over a year for subscribers.

The ultimate goal was to enable the subscribers experience the
unique service of mobile entertainment on the go and also promote brand
acceptability. The approach yielded the desired results.

The free trial strategy also helps to measure consumer
experience, as it increases the word of mouth effect. There is every likelihood
of satisfied consumers recommending the service to others.

It is important to inquire from them how their experiences have
been in order to offer them premium services. The feedback mechanism put in
place revealed exciting experiences for subscribers, as the DStv mobile service
gave subscribers memorable moments, especially during the World Cup.

When a brand aligns with the lifestyle of consumers, they are
poised to tap into the enormous benefits of value and entertainment.

DStv mobile has a deliberate strategy to stimulate consumer
experience through exciting service delivery and the free trial was a vantage
platform to achieve this. Indeed, there had never been mobile TV entertainment
in Nigeria before the DStv mobile free trial which was relevant and meaningful
for the consumers.

The benefits of free trial are enormous, as it generates a
relationship building direct marketing programme. It definitely expands the
frontiers of bonding touch points that have been created with the consumers.

The feud between
the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC)
over the two factions of the Association of Senior Staff of Banks,
Insurance and other Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI) is still pending
at the National Industrial Court.

The two unions are
embroiled in a battle of wits over where the union belongs. A faction
claims it belongs to NLC while another is claiming affiliation to the
NLC.

Sunday Salako,
president, ASSBIFI, under the TUC, said the NLC ASSBIFI faction,
especially those in Union Bank “left our camp since 2004 and have since
been on their own. When they were here, they used to have the highest
number of staff members then, so there was this thinking that they must
produce the president of the association during any elections and then
there was a fall out. They say they are with NLC, and we are not. So
that is what happened.

He said the workers
withdrew from the association when they anticipated that because they
had the largest unit of attendance, they should always produce the
president of the union and hence, there have been legal issues over why
they still maintained the name of the union, instead of getting a new
one.

The matter, along
with other subsisting disagreement, was referred to the Industrial
Arbitration Panel (IAP) for arbitration. The IAP confirmed the
existence of inter union dispute in ASSBIFI and advised both parties to
return to the 2007 agreement.

Obukese Orere,
general secretary of the NLC faction of ASSBIFI, had earlier said the
constitution allows people to belong to any union they choose and that
people who say TUC is the umbrella body for senior staff are not
totally right.

Delay not healthy

The delay in
resolving this issue, however, has been proven to be harmful to member
banks and ultimately, the welfare of bank workers.

In February, the
dispute between both parties reached its peak when Union Bank banned
its chapter of ASSBIFI on grounds that it was not properly affiliated.

At the height of
the bank’s misunderstanding with its workers, it issued a statement
that “Following the unlawful operations of UBASS (Union Bank
Association of Senior Staff) and ASSBIFI (Association of Senior Staff
of Banks, Insurance and other Financial institutions), Union Bank of
Nigeria Plc has withdrawn its recognition of the above named trade
union bodies with immediate effect. All concerned have been duly
advised. The general public should please take note.”

Following this, the
NLC embarked on a nationwide picketing of the 94-year old institution,
basically disrupting its operations for several days. The Congress said
it is not the duty of Mrs Osibodu to de-recognise ASSBIFI, its
affiliate, or any industrial union since there are statutory bodies in
place to regulate trade union activities.

“On the legality or
otherwise of ASSBIFI, we wish to unequivocally state that the dispute
is still pending at the Industrial Arbitration Panel (AIP) and no
judgement has been delivered up to this moment to warrant the
unfortunate and totally contemptuous decision of the Union Bank
management,” the labour union had said.

The matter was,
however, resolved after the minister of labour waded in and advised the
bank to accede to the demands of the union.

Industry watchers and banks have said they would not be part of what is happening until the issues are legally addressed.

A total of N5.85
billion was repaid as loans by Nigerian farmers under the Agricultural
Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund (ACGSF) last year. The highest repaid
amount of N769.15 million, representing 13.15 percent of the total, was
made by Delta State, followed by Katsina and Adamawa states with
N667.21 million and N532.64 million, respectively. Ekiti had the lowest
repayment figure of N15.7 million, trailing Abuja, which repaid N19.12
million, and Bayelsa, which repaid N19.18 million.

According to data
released by the Developmental Finance department of the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN), the funds were disbursed to finance 50,119 projects
across the country, with Katsina State topping the list at 7,184
projects, followed by Kogi and Sokoto states with 6,877 and 5,618
projects, respectively. Abuja had the least number of projects with 50
while Ekiti and Bayelsa had 111 and 120 projects, respectively.
Nassarawa State did not record any projects.

Since its establishment in 1978, the ACGSF has granted around 692,716 loans valued at about N41.34 billion.

The ACGSF was
formed solely to encourage financial institutions to lend funds to
those engaged in agricultural production and agro-processing
activities, with the aim of enhancing the export capacity of the nation
as well as for local consumption. The fund is set up with the sole
purpose of providing guarantees in respect to loans granted by any bank
for agricultural purposes.

Interest Drawback

Likewise, N694.67
million has been repaid to farmers under the Interest Drawback
Programme (IDP) of the ACGSF. The IDP was set up in 2004. Under the
IDP, farmers shall borrow from the lending banks at market-determined
rates and after the liquidation of the loan, they shall be entitled to
interest drawback at the pre-determined IDP rate. The IDP has an
authorised capital fund of about N2 billion and is funded jointly by
the federal government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the
ratio of 60:40.

Under the IDP, the
highest amount paid during the period was made last year when N227.44
million was paid out. According to the CBN, the repayment trend is
encouraging. “A trend analysis of the loan repayment performance of the
ACGSF over the years shows that the IDP has impacted positively on the
operations of the scheme as it induced clients to repay on time,” the
CBN stated.

To be eligible for
the loan drawdown, a farmer must have repaid both loan principal and
interest within the agreed tenure. However, a grace period of three
months for repayment may be allowed but drawback entitlement shall be
calculated only up to the scheduled date for the final repayment of the
loans. This means that interest accruing during the grace period will
not be part of the amount to be refunded.

“Farmers that liquidate loans after the expiration of the guarantee
certificate/grace period are not eligible and shall be disqualified,”
say the CBN guidelines. “A loan for which repayment period is extended
after the expiration of the original guarantee certificate shall not
qualify to benefit under the IDP.”

The
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday set end of June as deadline for
full compliance to the proposal for the implementation of uniform
customer bank account numbering system in the country.

By
that date, only banks with the Nigeria Uniform Bank Account Number
(NUBAN) codes and validation test pass would be allowed access into the
automated clearing system by the apex bank.

The
apex bank said yesterday the present account numbers and NUBAN codes
would co-exist in the electronic payment and cheque clearing systems
till June 2011, after which customers in all the 24 deposit money banks
(DMBs) are expected to be integrated into the new system.

The
apex bank had, in August last year, issued guidelines on the NUBAN
scheme designed to achieve a uniform customer bank account numbering
structure in the country, as part of efforts to help resolve the myriad
of problems observed with the current electronic payment system by
commercial banks, particularly those relating to specification of wrong
beneficiary account numbers.

Similarly,
it directed banks to provide the relevant information to their
customers in-clearing systems to enable them distinguish NUBAN codes
from old account numbers while processing inward cheque items and
electronic payment instruments during this transition period.

“The
deadline for full NUBAN compliance is June 2011. Therefore, only
instruments (paper and electronic) that carry NUBAN codes and pass the
NUBAN validation test (that is, instruments with correct check digit)
would be allowed in the automated clearing system as from this date,”
the CBN said.

Working to comply

But
there appears to be various levels of compliance by the banks to the
directive, as most of the banks spoken to yesterday either were
ignorant of the new numbering system or were yet to do anything about
it, while others said they had commenced the process and are on course
to meeting the deadline.

At
Afribank Plc, the spokesman, Moshood Isamotu, said its management had
since January this year complied with the directive, as all its systems
have been upgraded to accommodate the new digital platform required for
the effective operation of the NUBAN system throughout its network of
branches.

For
Udo Igwe, the head, brand management department of Springbank, it had
started the process already and hopes to complete it before the June
deadline.

However,
responses from officials in most other banks gave an indication that
they still have a long way to go in meeting the deadline, as some of
them said they were either not aware, or have not commenced action on
the directive.

In
its recommendation to facilitate the smooth implementation of the
scheme, the Cheques and Automated Clearing House (ACH) Working Group
(CAWG) recently recommended the issuance of a special NUBAN check
number code for all banks and customers accounts.

The
NUBAN account serial number, according to the apex bank, would be
preceded by a three digits code assigned by the CBN to the bank, with
the last number in the serial representing the NUBAN check digit
required for account number validation.

The
3-digit codes assigned by the CBN to the banks in the Bankers Clearing
System , according to the operational guidelines issued in Abuja
yesterday, include Access Bank (044), Fidelity Bank (070), StanbicIBTC
(221), Afribank (014), Finbank (085), Standard Chartered Bank (068),
Citibank (023), Guaranty Trust Bank (058), and Sterling Bank (232).

Others
include Diamond Bank (063), Intercontinental Bank (069), United Bank
for Africa (033), Ecobank (050), Oceanic Bank (056), Union Bank (032),
Equitorial Trust Bank (040), BankPHB (082), Wema Bank (035), First Bank
(011), Skye Bank (076), Zenith Bank (057), First City Monument Bank
(214), SpringBank (084), and Unity Bank (215).

The
NUBAN code of a typical customer bank account would be derived through
the summation of the bank’s assigned 3-digit code in the Bankers
Clearing System with the NUBAN serial number, less the last digit for a
module of 10 to arrive at the check digit for number validation.

“All
Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) are advised to adopt this uniform algorithm
to obtain the check digit component of the NUBAN codes of their
customer account numbers,” the apex bank said yesterday, urging bank
managements to communicate the NUBAN codes to their existing customers,
while all new bank accounts should henceforth be provided with the new
codes.

Under the new arrangement, only NUBAN numbers/codes are supposed to
be featured in place of the customer account number field in the cheque
Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) code line in all cheques
issued to customers.

One of the several strategies adopted by companies to entrench
their brands in the minds of consumers is free trial.

This is a key marketing effort intended to engage consumers and
deepen their experience of the brand. It also helps the brand make appropriate
adjustments in order to enhance consumer satisfaction. Free trial aids direct
connection with the target audience.

The brand connects to consumers through several touch points and
free trial is a major one. It is indeed a veritable avenue to build consumer
loyalty and followership.

This strategy is aimed at selling the values and benefits of the
brand to the consumers, and empowers them to differentiate between brands they
can trust and the ones they should not.

Consumer experience has a great impact on brand equity, as it
helps them experience the perceived quality, thereby encouraging loyalty. This
can be achieved through free trial, which fosters interaction between consumers
and the brand.

Free trial also ensures a renewed focus on the consumers, as it
empowers them to feel the brand to determine whether it aligns with their
aspirations. DStv mobile was an innovation and value added mobile television
entertainment for subscribers and when unveiled in the Nigerian market, the
company announced free trials which lasted for over a year for subscribers.

The ultimate goal was to enable the subscribers experience the
unique service of mobile entertainment on the go and also promote brand
acceptability. The approach yielded the desired results.

The free trial strategy also helps to measure consumer
experience, as it increases the word of mouth effect. There is every likelihood
of satisfied consumers recommending the service to others.

It is important to inquire from them how their experiences have
been in order to offer them premium services. The feedback mechanism put in
place revealed exciting experiences for subscribers, as the DStv mobile service
gave subscribers memorable moments, especially during the World Cup.

When a brand aligns with the lifestyle of consumers, they are
poised to tap into the enormous benefits of value and entertainment.

DStv mobile has a deliberate strategy to stimulate consumer
experience through exciting service delivery and the free trial was a vantage
platform to achieve this. Indeed, there had never been mobile TV entertainment
in Nigeria before the DStv mobile free trial which was relevant and meaningful
for the consumers.

The benefits of free trial are enormous, as it generates a
relationship building direct marketing programme. It definitely expands the
frontiers of bonding touch points that have been created with the consumers.

Customers of First Bank and GTB yesterday had hard times
transacting business at the banks as their networks broke down. Normal services
were not resumed until after midday, leading to frayed tempers in the banking
halls across Lagos.

The banks have been showing signs of network challenges, either
technology migration induced or just service breakdown. Visits to branches of
the banks showed that the challenges faced by the banks before the long Easter
breakstill persisted, as both had their banking halls filled with aggrieved
customers.

Tough business day

The network challenges made it difficult for customers to
transact business. Mostly affected were those who wanted to withdraw money from
their accounts through the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), as the banks
continued to accept deposits but could not post them immediately.

Funmi Adekoya, a customer said, “Last Thursday, I was here and
they officially announced to us that they were having network challenges; that
we should bear with them, because their services would be below expectation. I
initially thought it was because of the rush for withdrawals by customers
because of the long break ahead, but a week later, I am surprised that am
starring at even a worse situation.”

Some of the customers were so frustrated they refused to switch
off their phones while some picked their calls, despite caution from the bank
attendants.

“How do you expect me to switch off my phone? Do you know how
long I have been here? So I should not pick my calls? If you don’t want me to
pick my calls, then give me my money and let me go. It is only when you are
rendering your services efficiently that you can expect me to obey your rules,”
a customer told an official in anger.

First Bank, in some of its branches, could not carry out any
transactions for its customers till noon yesterday.

“The network was just restored a few minutes ago,” a bank
attendant at First Bank, Oba Akran branch, said, around 12.20 pm. “It has been
down since morning. We have not been able to make any payments or perform other
transactions,” she said, looking at the crowded hall.

According to her, there was no need heading for another branch.
“The truth is that it is everywhere; it’s affecting all our branches” she
added.

The bank’s hall was filled to capacity, despite the fact that
some customers were turning back, as soon as they sighted the queue. At the
GTBank, it was no different. At 12.30pm however, the banks had begun responding
to customers.

On Wednesday, GTB on Facebook apologised to its customers for
the downtime experienced with its challenges during the Easter holidays.

The bank had said, “We want to sincerely apologise for the
downtime experienced with our Internet Banking Service during the Easter holidays.
We recently migrated to our Superdome Servers, which will provide our e-Banking
Channels with a more robust, secure, stable & reliable platform.

“Over the next few days, you may notice some service disruptions
across certain branches and e-Banking Channels. This is also a result of
Internal Migrations and Platform Reboots. Please be rest assured that our other
e-Channels (ATM, Mobile & GTConnect) will continue to function throughout
this upgrade/ migration. Thank you for your understanding and know that we do
this because we want to serve you better,” the statement said.

The spokesperson for the First Bank, when contacted on phone,
said he was out of Lagos and could not speak on the problem.

Service breakdowns are not totally avoidable. It is not known
when the banks service breakdown would be fully addressed, but customers say
banks should devise a more effective way to address their internal challenges,
without having to put their customers through such extreme discomfort.