ZENITH SIERRA LEONE COMMENCES OPERATION

• The Zenith franchise expansion programme has taken another major leap with the commencement of operations of Zenith Bank Sierra Leone in Freetown yesterday.

 

This is coming after the bank had secured the perquisite approvals form that country’s financial services regulator. The bank already maintains a strong presence along the West African Coast with wholly-owned subsidiaries in Accra, Ghana (Zenith Bank, Ghana) as well as Europe through Zenith Bank UK Limited. This is in addition to a representative office in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The bank is entering Sierra Leone with its trademark superior banking services, which will be provided through wide range of commercial banking services and products and at a time when the country is on the path to economic recovery and growth and sustainable development.

Established in May 1990, Zenith Bank has grown to become one of the biggest and most profitable Nigerian brands, with a shareholder base of about one million and an extensive operation covering Capital Market, Trust Services, Registrar, Medicare, Pension custodian, and Insurance.

Zenith bank has in just 18 years built a reputation as a market leader, delivering over 322 per cent in returns to investors in the form of capital appreciation, dividends and bonus.

With about three hundred (300) branches and business offices nationwide Zenith Bank has presence in all the state capitals, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and major towns and metropolitan centres in Nigeria.

Zenith Bank’s impressive performance over the years has earned it excellent ratings from local and international agencies. Standard and Poor’s currently rates the bank BB-, which is the highest ever assigned to any Nigerian bank. Also, Fitch Ratings currently rates Zenith Bank AA- (National) while Agusto & Co., Nigeria’s foremost rating agency, has for the ninth consecutive year rated Zenith Bank Triple Aaa saying ‘’…the bank is a financial institution of impeccable financial condition and overwhelming capacity to meet obligations as and when they fall due’’.

Recently, Zenith Bank was named ‘Best Bank in Nigeria’ for 2008 by Euromoney. The bank had earlier in the year won two major awards, ‘Bank of the Year’ and ‘Corporate Citizen of the Year’ at the 2008 ThisDay Award for Excellence. This is in addition to the ‘Quoted Company of the Year’ awarded by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in 2007.  

(Posted 17th September, 2008)