FCMB Gives Reasons for Empowering Enterpreneurs

By Emmanuel Uffot

FIRST City Monument Bank has explained that the rationale behind its comprehensive capacity building programme, tagged, ‘Business Enterprises and Sustainability Training,’ for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, is to lay a solid foundation for their long-term success.

According to the bank, this would also enable entrepreneurs to have access to business management skills and advisory services, learn and acquire competencies which they could apply for effective management of their respective businesses in a sustainable manner.

It noted that it held the sixth edition of the Best programme for existing and start-up SMEs in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State recently, where hundreds of existing and start-up entrepreneurs from the six states in the South-South zone took part and benefitted from the intensive training and empowerment exercise.

This followed the success recorded at previous editions of the training across Nigeria since it commenced last year. The initiative, led by FCMB Training Academy, the bank’s business banking group and seasoned facilitators, focused on business and skills development, marketing, finance and accounting for SMEs.

It covered various topical areas such as identifying business opportunities, surviving in a harsh business environment, improving productivity, raising capital, optimising sales, cost and revenue management, among others.

Accordingly,It was one of the value-added offerings of FCMB in line with its Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR activities aimed at complementing its efforts in the areas of lending and advisory services to SMEs with the objective of stimulating their growth and contributions to overall national development.

The entity from which the bank was founded City Securities Limited, was established in 1977 by Oloye Subomi Michael Balogun.

First City Monument Bank Ltd. was incorporated as a private limited liability company on 20 April 1982 and granted a banking licence on 11 August 1983. It was the first bank to be established in Nigeria without government or foreign support. On 15 July 2004, FCMB changed its status from a private limited liability company to a public limited liability company and was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by introduction on 21 December 2004.

In November 2010, both FinBank and First City Monument Bank (FCMB) announced that FCMB has expressed interest in acquiring shareholding and become the strategic investor in FinBank, another Nigerian commercial bank that was undercapitalized.

 In February 2012, following regulatory approval, FCMB acquired 100% shareholding and began integration of Finbank in its existing operations.