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Financial Industry Must Urgently Step up on Climate Change

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First Day Of Trading Of The Lunar New Year at The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx)

The financial industry needs to step up “and now” with “unprecedented levels of cooperation” to tackle the climate change crisis, affirms the CEO and founder of one of the world’s largest independent financial services organisations.

The urgent call for industry-wide action from deVere Group’s Nigel Green comes as all eyes turn to Glasgow as world leaders travel to Scotland for the COP26 summit starting this weekend. The event is expected to bring between 20,000 and 25,000 attendees alongside world leaders and business chiefs.

The goal of COP26 is to address the climate crisis, following up on the last event of this kind since 2019. It comes just a few months after the UN’s IPCC Report that described global warming as a “code red for humanity.”

Mr Green said: “Climate change is the greatest risk multiplier to our planet, to our communities, and to our way of life.

“Failing to understand the magnitude of it now is going to have catastrophic, irreversible consequences later.

“Joined-up planning followed by urgent action is essential.  But this will not only take political and social will. It will take trillions of dollars.”

He continues: “The world of international finance needs to step up – and now.

“There needs to be unprecedented levels of cooperation between financial advisories, insurance firms, banks, wealth and asset managers, investment companies, fintech groups, banks, auditors, amongst others, to help unlock and mobilise the trillions of dollars of private finance that is urgently required.

“Without this cooperation, the level of finance will not be available, nor at the pace necessary, to halt the worst effects of human-created global warming.”

Earlier this week, deVere Group pledged to position $2bn of assets under advisement into environmental, social and governance (ESG) investments within five years.

The Group is also one of 18 founding signatories of the UN-backed Net Zero initiative, the international alliance of powerhouse global finance companies that will help accelerate the transition to a net zero financial system. Its membership means it is committed to “aligning all relevant products and services to achieve net zero greenhouse gases by 2050 and to set meaningful interim targets for 2025.”

The organisation has also confirmed that it “aims to significantly speed-up its own meeting of these Science Based Targets to reduce operational emissions in line with limiting global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees Centigrade.”

Mr Green concludes: “COP26 is an opportunity for our planet that cannot afford to be squandered.

“To date, there have been decades of inaction from political leaders. Therefore, it is critical that the business community acts and ushers in an era of real action before it’s too late.

“COP 26 must act as a catalyst for the financial industry to do what needs to be done to support the transition to Net Zero.  This means putting the environment at the heart of all professional decision-making.”

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Banking Sector

Zenith Bank Commends Customers After Successfully Unveiling Upgraded Enhanced Tech infrastructure

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Zenith Bank - Investors King

Zenith Bank Plc has announced that it now boasts the best technology infrastructure in the banking industry, positioning itself to provide an exceptional customer experience and superior service delivery moving forward. This upgrade follows a recent comprehensive technology enhancement.

The bank expressed its heartfelt gratitude to customers for their support and patience throughout the upgrade process, while also extending apologies for any inconveniences experienced during this time.

This announcement was made in a social media post on Wednesday, signed by Dame Dr. Adaora Umeoji, OON, the Group Managing Director/CEO.

In her message, the GMD/CEO emphasized the bank’s commitment to delivering an unparalleled service experience, stating, “We undertook this upgrade to ensure we can offer our customers the best possible service.”

Umeoji pledged that Zenith Bank will continue to innovate, ensuring that customer needs are met swiftly, safely, and conveniently.

The post read in part: “On behalf of the Board, Management, and Staff of Zenith Bank PLC, I would like to thank you for your patience and support during our IT infrastructure migration to a new and more robust operating system.

“We are truly grateful for the trust and confidence you have placed in us. The primary reason for undertaking this extensive endeavor was to better position Zenith Bank PLC for improved service delivery to all our valued customers and to create memorable banking experiences at all our touchpoints.

“While I regret the inconveniences and challenges you faced during and immediately after our migration, I am pleased to inform you that Zenith Bank PLC now has the best technology infrastructure in the industry. We are committed to ensuring you experience superior service delivery going forward.

“Rest assured, you remain our top priority, and Zenith Bank will continue to innovate and offer value-added products and services to meet all your banking needs quickly, safely, and conveniently.”

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Finance

President Tinubu Orders Release of Minors Prosecuted for #BadGovernance Protests

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Following a recent viral video on the X app regarding the prosecution of minors who protested during the #BadGovernance movement, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered the immediate release of all prosecuted minors.

This was announced by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, in a statement to the State House Correspondents in Abuja.

In a show of concern over the detention of minors, President Tinubu directed the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction to investigate and ensure that the law is fully applied to law enforcement agents involved in the unlawful act.

It was noted that the arrests violated human rights and the Child Rights Act, as the 32 detainees are under 18 years old.

Activist organizations, including the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED), and Concerned Parents and Educators (CPE), condemned the actions and denounced the treason charges filed against the detained minors.

In a call to action, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) urged the president to instruct the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, to immediately and unconditionally release all protesters arrested during the #EndBadGovernance movement.

SERAP stated, “The immediate and unconditional release of all #EndBadGovernance protesters, including 32 hungry and malnourished children, is necessary.”

According to SERAP, for the peaceful exercise of fundamental human rights, including freedom of expression, assembly, and association without fear of persecution or undue restriction, all detained protesters should be released.

In response to the president’s directive, the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, commented that his office “will need to review the matter to enable me to make an informed decision.”

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Banking Sector

FBN Holdings To Invest N103.1bn In Corporate, Retail Businesses

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FBN Holdings

As part of means of actualizing its expectation of raising N150 billion from its existing shareholders by way of rights issue, the management of FBN Holdings said it has budgeted an estimated N103.1 billion for its corporate business and retail business lending segments of the market.

The Holdings recently held the signing ceremony to begin the rights issue offering of 5,982,548,799 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N25.00 per share to its existing shareholder on the basis of one new ordinary share for every six ordinary shares held as of October 18, 2024.

Extracts from the offer raising prospectus of the financial institution revealed that lending to the corporate business segment gets N77.34 billion, while lending to the retail business segment gets a budget of N25.78 billion.

This covers 68.95 per cent of the N150 billion proposed rights issue the management seeks to raise from existing shareholders.

Out of the N150 billion, a total of N29.46 billion was budgeted to support international business expansion and N14.73 billion for investment in automation and digital banking.

According to the financial institution, seamless and convenient banking experience for its customers would be guaranteed through its significant investment in automation and digital banking.

Through its mobile banking app, FirstMobile, and its internet banking platform, FirstOnline, the management of FBN Holdings said it has effectively acquired a broad cross-section of the target demography, with a clear proposition of owning bank accounts and utilising various financial services from the comfort of their locations.

It added that the bank plans to upgrade the FirstMobile and FirstOnline apps with additional features while driving customer adoption of the platforms, noting that the development is in line with First Bank’s commitment to providing customers with the best-in-class electronic banking experience.

The offer, however, is part of the company’s plan to recapitalise its commercial banking subsidiary, First Bank of Nigeria Limited,  with a view to increasing the bank’s capacity for business development and growth.

Chairman, FBN Holdings, Olufemi Otedola in a statement from the document urged shareholders to support the Rights issue by accepting their rights, stating that the company will be well positioned to achieve its strategic objectives and to deliver improved returns to all stakeholders.

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