Baobab microfinance commissions branch at Alaba

Baobab Microfinance Bank has commissioned a branch at the Alaba International market, Lagos, at the weekend, in efforts to impress its pursuit of being a leading digital financial inclusion group.

The lender, which has its presence in over 13 countries in the world, is headquartered in Paris, with some of its investors, including the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Goodwill and Proparco and Bank of Paris, among others.

The Chief Executive Officer of Baobab , Kazeem Olanrewaju, disclosed that over N300 million has been earmarked to finance the trades in the state, while N500 million unsolicited fund from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), will go a long way in improving its operations.

Olanrewaju, who explained the meaning of Baobab as a tree that provides shelter , said the financial institution, formerly known as Microcred, has grown beyond loan to other product offerings, stressing that its customers will ha ve enough funds to grow their businesses, even as it plans to extend its branches within the Alaba region.

He added that the bank has successfully disbursed over 112,000 loans to the tune of N32 billion and has over 400 staffs on its payroll to effectively manage its client’s portfolio.

Introducing the loan prod- ucts to the guests, Baobab’s Chief Client Officer , Bambam Fall, said the lender has among its product offerings, mini micro loans ranging from N20,000 to N99,000; N100,000 to N500,000; and micro plus loan, which ranges from N500,000 to N2 million.

He said the institution in 2017 gave out the highest loan of N20 million to one of its customers. Congratulating the bank on its new branch, the Chairman of Ojo Local Government, Rasulu Idowu, promised government’s support, stating that the bank will bring development to the area. Represented by the council’s Vice Chairman, Idowu Olusola, he commended the bank on its effort at granting business support funds to the traders.

She however, appealed to customers to ensure they pay back loans on time to enable continued access to more loans, saying, “it is only a wicked man that borrows and do not repay back.” The Chairman of Alaba Amalgamated Market Union, Uchenna Nnadozie, who spoke on behalf of the market operators, asked for a friendly interest rate and mode of payment, even as they promised to cooperate with the lender to ensure it succeeds.

He said: “We will not be part of those that will collect loan and will not be able to pay back.”