The Interview Editors
First Bank of Nigeria Limited, has disclosed that Firstmonie Agents across the country has collectively processed transaction volume in excess of 1 billion, amounting to over N22trn.
According to the bank’s head of marketing and corporate communications, Mrs. Folake Ani-Mumuney, in a statement on Wednesday, Firstmonie, which is First Bank’s agent banking network, has 180,000 outlets spread in 772 local government areas in Nigeria.
“Popularly referred to as the ‘Human ATM’, Firstmonie Agents are empowered to reduce the reliance on over-the-counter transactions while providing convenient personalized services. Amongst the services carried out by the Agents include; Account Opening, Cash Deposit, Airtime Purchase, Bills Payment, Withdrawals and Money Transfer’ she said.
She stated that the Bank’s CEO, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, while expressing his appreciation to the Firstmonie Agents, noted that, “Since the relaunch of our Agent Banking scheme in 2018, our Firstmonie Agents have played a vital role in bridging the financial inclusion gap in the country, as many more people have been able to undertake various financial and business transactions in cost-effective ways, thereby saving a lot of time and money in travelling over long distances for basic banking services.“
“We are delighted by the giant strides of our Firstmonie Agents in promoting financial inclusion and commend them for their efforts in taking banking to the doorsteps of Nigerians – irrespective of where they are – in a very effective way”.
Ani-Mumuney added that Firstmonie Agents had been, “Integral to bringing financial services closer to the underbanked and unbanked segment of the society, providing convenient banking services that are easily accessible, thereby saving time and travel costs for individuals in the suburbs and remote environments with no access to financial services.”
