I would like to today, formally introduce to you The Access Corporation, a financial services holding company that is premised on creating a globally connected community and ecosystem, inspired by Africa, for the world.
Who is The Access Corporation?
The Access Corporation elevates the platform of a brand that you have trusted over the last twenty years. Our holding company, which I will be the GMD of, will at the onset comprise of portfolio of four companies with significant complementarities:
- Access Bank Group will remain an anchor vertical for the corporation, leveraging our best in class, seamless and consistent Customer Experience and with the ability serve our customers throughout Nigeria, and across our 14 subsidiaries in Africa, Europe and Asia.
- We will be introducing a Consumer lending company that serves individuals and SMEs across a number of products. This is a digital business, focused on speed, convenience, and value.
- Our payment Services Company will drive domestic, regional and global payments. Primarily a business services company, the Payco will make payments simpler, faster and more efficient and will partner with organisations to be the most trusted fintech enabler in the continent.
- We recognize that Insurance is key to sustaining businesses, and it is a tool to protect intergenerational wealth and benefit societies. To this end Access Insurance Brokerage will provide a brokering service that is focused on your individual and business protection needs.
Why are we doing this?
In living up to our brand promise of delivering service beyond banking, we are on a mission to build and sustain a single global platform that is open for anyone to join and is better positioned to facilitate individual and business growth.
It is our view that we can unlock better value for our customers and stakeholders by focussing on these distinct businesses. Importantly this will enable us to continue to be at the forefront of developing secure and agile digital technology platforms as we attract and retain the best talent in an increasingly global marketplace.
What will change?
Let me start by saying you will still receive an exceptional quality of service from Access Bank. The Access Corporation is an elevation of your experience with us as it will connect you to even more exceptional opportunities to suit your lifestyle and business needs through our different member companies. Our priority is to drive growth and operating performance by overcoming convention yet retaining our prudent risk culture which you have seen as we aim to deliver our objective to be the world’s most respected African bank.
I will introduce the leadership of the verticals in due course. For now, Roosevelt Ogbonna, I have worked with closely for many years, will take over the helm of Access Bank and will lead the team into the next chapter.
I would like to thank you for the partnership and level of support that you have given me over the last 20 years at Access Bank. Your continued trust and commitment in Access Bank has played a pivotal role in our transformation as we have grown from a nascent Bank to become the largest bank in Nigeria and the largest bank in Africa by customer numbers. We are now taking the baton and position ourselves to remain relevant for the customers and communities we serve.
Thank you for supporting us on this exciting journey so far. I hope we can count on your continued support as we write our next 20 years of the Access Corporation journey together.
Herbert Wigwe.
