Access Bank and Diamond Bank, which recently merged to become Nigeria’s largest bank, have assured customers that banking services remain the same even after the merger.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last month approved the merger between Access Bank plc and Diamond Bank plc.
The new bank would remain committed to retail and corporate banking to drive financial inclusion for desired growth and development. The bank will need to invest in retail market to drive economic growth.
Victor Etuokwu, executive director, personal banking, CBN, disclosed this on Monday while giving an update on the merger process at a press conference in Lagos, noting that the bank had got pre-merger approval and would receive the final approval after the extra-ordinary meeting scheduled to hold next month.
“The final approval comes after approval in principle and it will come after we have convened the shareholders meetings. It is a merger. We have come together to complement each other to create a robust bank,” Etuokwu said.
He said the bank was currently in 15 countries and before the end of June it would have a franchise in Hong Kong.
“Based on our receipt of the CBN approval in principle, we are going to convene the shareholder meetings in February. Once that meeting holds, and shareholders endorse the transaction, all we will do is to take that approval of shareholders to the courts. Once the court approves it, it becomes a part of the laws of the land. What we will do is to go and gazette.”
With the approval from the CBN and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), all these will happen in the next 60 days and hopefully, the process will end by the first quarter.
On the issue of branch overlap, Etuokwu said staff would be retrained for new roles. Where there are overlaps, one of the branches can be converted to an e-branch or Automated Teller Machine (ATM) gallery.
Etuokwu allayed fears of job loss as a result of the merger, saying last week the staff of the two banks met and shared ideas, vision and the future. “We need everybody to serve our customers. There are no fear, no position to say that people should go”.
On the issue of integration of Apps, he said, “The guiding principle with this integration planning is customer focus. Whatever thrills the customer. Whatever the customer loves in both brands, we want to retain as is. We have known that the Diamond mobile app is a market leader, and we will leave it that way.”
Also speaking, Robert Giles, head, retail Diamond Bank, said that integration of both banks had commenced for seamless service delivery, adding that ATMs of both banks could be used by customers at no cost, noting that they were committed at taking costs away from customers.
Also present at the conference were Chioma Afe, head, corporate communications, Diamond Bank, and Amaechi Michael Okobi, head, corporate communications, Access Bank.
