Business

Hope Rises As FCMB Support 15,000 Women With SME’s

Published

5 years ago

January 25, 2021

Joel Ajayi

Hope rises for 15,000 Small and Medium Enterprises( SMEs) as first City Monument Bank has continued its aggressive drive and support for the economy sector in the country.

It will be recalled that,bank, which was recently voted as the Best SME Bank in Africa, thereby consolidating its position as the dominant financial institution in the segment, has made more funds available to women entrepreneurs through her “SheVenture” initiative.

The SheVentures initiative offers enhanced support to women-owned SMEs and starts-ups through access to finance, training and mentoring with the unique benefit of zero-interest-rate for an initial period of three months.

Over 15,000 women-owned SMEs have so far benefitted from this, in terms of funding and training, in the last 18 months.

In recognition of her great contributions to the growth of the small and medium enterprise sector, FCMB was recently voted as the Best SME Bank in Africa at the Asian Banker Middle East and Africa Regional Awards in November 2020.

It was another confirmation of the bank’s unequalled commitment and outstanding performance in offering exceptional services, including funding, capacity building and other value-added supports, to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises.

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Business

NEXIM Bank Secures Bbb+ Rating from Agusto & Co., Declares ₦30.47 Billion Operating Profit

Published

3 days ago

October 2, 2025

The Gleamer

By Joel Ajayi

The Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM) has been assigned a Bbb+ rating by leading credit rating agency Agusto & Co. Limited, affirming its satisfactory financial condition and strong capacity to meet obligations relative to other development finance institutions (DFIs) in Nigeria.

For the year ended 2024, NEXIM Bank reported an operating profit of ₦30.47 billion, more than double the ₦13.75 billion recorded in the previous year. This remarkable growth underscores the Bank’s financial resilience and operational efficiency.

Established to promote Nigeria’s non-oil exports and support import-substituting businesses, NEXIM is fully owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria through equal shareholding by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI).

The Bank has sustained strong liquidity and capital adequacy ratios, alongside notable growth in its loan book and equity investments. Key sectors supported include manufacturing, agriculture, solid minerals, and services.

According to Managing Director, Mr. Abba Bello, NEXIM has intensified its intervention in the non-oil export sector, disbursing over ₦495 billion and facilitating the creation and sustenance of more than 36,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Among the Bank’s key initiatives are:The Regional Sealink Project: A public-private partnership designed to improve maritime logistics across West and Central Africa. Promotion of Factoring Services: Offering alternative export financing solutions for SMEs. And Joint Project Preparation Fund (JPPF): Implemented in partnership with Afreximbank to enhance the bankability of export projects.

Additionally, NEXIM is developing tailored financing schemes for the mining sector, including Contract Mining, Equipment Leasing, and Buyers’ Credit/ECA Financing, aimed at unlocking export potential and boosting foreign exchange earnings.

With its renewed drive, NEXIM Bank remains committed to building local processing capacity, advancing Nigeria’s competitiveness in global trade, and strengthening non-oil export revenues by moving up the commodity value chain.

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