FirstBank provides an array of digital financial services with the use of various payment channels to reach carefully segmented audiences with tailor-made financial solutions. Some of these channels, which have become the toast of customers and the industry, include: FirstMobile App, USSD (*894#) and Firstmonie, with the popular Firstmonie Agent Banking Network that is at the forefront of the national financial inclusion and gender diversity revolution.
The Bank’s Firstmonie Agent Banking initiative falls in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) mandate to make affordable financial products and services available nationwide. In 2012, the CBN adopted the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (NFIS). The Strategy discussed key regulatory barriers to financial inclusion while identifying areas of focus. Thus, the strategy was built on four strategic areas of agency banking, mobile banking/mobile payments, linkage models and client empowerment. The CBN identified four priority areas for guideline and framework development which include Tiered Know-Your-customer (T-KYC) regulations, Agent Banking regulations, National Financial Literacy Strategy and Consumer Protection.
The Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) financial inclusion initiative geared towards bringing the unbanked and underbanked as well as communities in Nigeria’s hinterland into the formal financial ecosystem has been key to efforts to bridge the gap. The CBN’s mandate to ensure the availability of affordable financial products and services to all individuals and groups of people in Nigeria, regardless of location, literacy level, familiarity with technology or accessibility to modern infrastructural facilities, has been wholly embraced, supported, and promoted by FirstBank.
Firstmonie as a tool for financial inclusion
Since its establishment in 1894, FirstBank has consistently built loyal relationships with its customers focusing on the fundamentals of good corporate governance, strong liquidity, optimized risk assessment and management and leadership. FirstBank is Nigeria’s premier and most valuable banking brand, and largest financial services institution by total assets and gross earnings. With more than 30 million customers with active accounts, FirstBank has over 750 branches providing a comprehensive range of retail and corporate financial services. The Bank has international presence and support through its subsidiaries, FBN Bank (UK) Limited in London (with a branch in Paris), FBNBank in the Republic of Congo, Ghana, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra-Leone and Senegal, as well as its Representative office in China.
Firstmonie Agents are widely described as ‘Human ATMs’ empowered to reduce the reliance on over-the-counter transactions while providing convenient personalised services. It is explained that the Firstmonie agents, both men and women, were equipped to carry out services which include account opening; cash deposit; airtime purchase; bills payment; withdrawals and money transfer.
With over 114,000 Firstmonie Agents spread across 774 Local Government Areas in the country, the Human ATMs have significantly contributed to promoting access to finance and banking services in areas with little or no banking presence. The Firstmonie Agent network is a bespoke channel through which FirstBank expresses her passion and commitment to broadening the opportunities and access to financial services for every Nigerian and African, irrespective of where they might be.
The laudable initiative by FirstBank is another way to bank – without visiting a Bank – which allows you to make cash deposit, transfer money to any bank and enjoy other banking services like bills payment and purchase of recharge card amongst others.
Firstmonie Agent Banking is well aligned with the overall business goals of FirstBank to promote financial inclusion and diversity. With over 647million transactions worth over N13.66 Trillion naira processed by over 114,000 FirstMonie agents, financial inclusion has remained top focus for FirstBank and an important driver of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for better impact. This is further evidenced in the fact that 31,000 of the 114,000 FirstMonie agents are women – demonstrating the bank’s continued commitment to women empowerment and an equal opportunity employer.
The quick registration, instant free POS, access to agent credit and an excellent support structure are some of the many reasons agents are attracted to FirstMonie. To the Customer, it saves customer travel and queue time (relative to alternatives such as the Branch and ATM point), provides the target market access to custom/ relevant products that fit their needs and provides quick access to “Human ATMs” which can serve all customer types – banked (customers of any bank) and unbanked. To Nigeria at large, FirstBank’s Firstmonie is a tool for financial inclusion and literacy, it helps in the reduction in the rate of poverty and unemployment, it is a channel for the deployment of National Social Intervention Programmes as well as serving as a platform for partnership with international organizations to drive humanitarian programmes.
Besides ensuring that individuals in the suburbs do not have to travel for long hours to the city for their banking activities, Firstmonie Agents are also bridging the gap between the tech-savvy and the low-tech inclined clients as the Agent network represents the convenient and comfortable alternative for customers that are unacquainted with sophisticated digital channels.
FirstBank’s resolve to impacting and rewarding its Firstmonie Agents
And as Firstmonie Agents give their best, FirstBank, on its part, has been doing everything to encourage the Agents. In its inaugural Firstmonie Agent Banking Awards, FirstBank rewarded 37 leading Agents that have promoted financial inclusion in the country. Thirty-one (31) Agents each won the sum of N250,000 at the state level while five Agents won the sum of N1,000,000 at the regional level. At the national level, the grand prize of N2,500,000 was won by an Agent from Abuja (North Central), who described it as a miracle and noted that it would spur him to work harder.
As further encouragement and to promote the business activities of Firstmonie Agents, the bank announced the provision of loan facilities of up to N1,000,000 to the Agents. This new credit scheme, which they can access 24 hours a day, can be processed in less than two minutes. The scheme means more empowerment and business expansion for Firstmonie Agents. And the expansion can go beyond Nigeria as FirstBank is looking beyond Nigeria to other African countries where FirstBank operates, like Ghana and DRC – a country with over 80 million people – to promote financial inclusion and begin to address poverty on the African continent through the Firstmonie platform.
The key strength of the Bank’s Agent Banking initiative is the ability to look at gaps in the society and develop products and services that address those gaps. It is therefore not surprising that FirstBank has driven the financial inclusion initiative much more vigorously than any other bank in Nigeria, with its Firstmonie Agent channel being among the bank’s many initiatives to expand financial access in the country. No other bank comes anywhere close to FirstBank in terms of number and spread of agents in their agent banking networks. In 2020 alone, processed over 295 million transactions with a total value of N6.65 trillion and opened more than 196,000 accounts. However, for FirstBank, it is not about number or competition with others or even being the largest bank-led network in Africa, but the impact the Firstmonie Agents channel is creating by integrating diversity and inclusion policies and awareness.
First Bank of Nigeria Limited is without a doubt, leading the effort at supporting the Federal Government’s objectives to deepen access to financial services through its unique channel designed to bridge the financial divide. FirstBank, through its Financial inclusion drive, is making a very impressive impact on job creation, women and youth empowerment, and entrepreneurship development which are fundamental pillars of overall economic development.
It’s wow, please how can I be among the firstmonie agent